"The Brain's Role in Post-Meal Hunger Pangs"

New research from UCLA suggests that impulses to eat, even when not hungry, may be triggered by specific cells in the brainstem, rather than stomach hunger pangs. The study on mice showed that activating these cells led to increased snacking behavior, especially for high-calorie foods, even in the absence of hunger. This finding could have implications for understanding and treating eating disorders in humans, as it reveals a brain circuit that can override normal eating impulses, particularly for junk food.