According to an article in the Kansas City Star, men and women’s brains
respond differently when it comes to food. Scientists have discovered women have
a much harder time saying no to favorite foods then men do. This study could shed
some light on the increasingly dangerous up-ward trend of obesity (schmid, 2009, A6).
Medical department leader, Gene-Jack Wang and his colleagues were
surprised to find the differences in brain responses to food between males and
females. The results will hopefully shed some light on why the obesity rate is
higher in women and girls as opposed to men and boys (schmid, 2009, A6).
The findings will be reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences. After test subjects were quizzed about favorite foods all were asked to
fast. A technique called cognitive inhibition was used. While brain scans accrued
test subjects were subjected to their favorite foods (Schmid, 2009, A6).
According to the study men’s brains were able to resist the desire for food
Whereas woman’s brains was unable to resist the desire for food
Why this happens, is because the part of the female brain that responses to food
remains active (Schmid, 2009, A6).
This study is another indication of just how different male and female brains
really are. As science moves forward Scientist will continue discovering the
psychological effects food has on the human brain. My hope is that through this
study females can learn to control and mentally overcome the desire to overeat or
eat unhealthy
.
The better understanding we begin to have of our brains the
mentally healthier we can become. Bit by bit the human brain is
releasing its secrets to us. Let us consume and apply our learned knowledge to
everyday living.