Thanks to new evidence that has just come out, we can now safely blame our genes once again for being overweight! Researchers at the University of Texas have found that obese people generally have fewer pleasure receptors in the brain, meaning that when they eat, they get less satisfaction than people who have the normal number of receptors.

Reward for Food
Harking back to primeval times when food was scarce, the brain is programmed to release the "happy chemical" dopamine, when we have eaten, rewarding us for feeding our bodies. However, if some people have weaker "reward centres", they will not necessarily feel the same buzz as others, prompting them to eat more.

When this results in unhealthy weight gain, the researchers said that this issue may be able to be corrected with behaviour or drugs.

Another milkshake, please!
The team from Texas worked alongside the Oregon Research Institute and Yale University School of Medecine. They used a technique called functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, which measured the brain activity in response to the taste of a chocolate milkshake in comparison with a tasteless option.

It was found that the participants with a lower number of dopamine receptors had a weaker cognitive reaction to the taste than those with a normal level. After tracking the changes in the participants' body mass index over the course of the following year, researchers found a link between weight gain and a lower number of pleasure receptors.

Eric Stice who ran led the research stated that: "Although people with decreased sensitivity of reward circuitry are at increased risk for unhealthy weight gain, identifying changes in behavior or pharmacological options could correct this reward deficit to prevent and treat obesity."