In general, both internal signals of the body, such as fluctuation in blood sugar levels, and external stimuli, such as food advertisements can spark an appetite in humans.
‘Alterations in brain opioid systems signaling have been associated with obesity.’
In their new study, researchers investigated the connection between the brain’s opioid and endocannabinoid signaling and different types of eating behavior.They discovered that the function of the opioid system is connected to eating triggered by external stimuli.
“The less binding sites there were for the opioids, the greater was the tendency to eat in response to external stimuli, such as seeing appetizing food. Moreover, the number of binding sites for endocannabinoids was connected to several different types of eating behavior, describes first author,” Doctoral Candidate Tatu Kantonen from the University of Turku.
The results indicate that especially the opioid system could be a potential target for anti-obesity drugs in humans. The study findings are published in Translational Psychiatry.
Source: Medindia
