Researchers from the University of Exeter Medical School in the United Kingdom recently conducted a study looking at sugar cravings and the hormones that are associated with body fat. They analyzed health records, blood samples and genetic information for 450,000 people in the UK. The researchers found that people with a variation of the FGF21 gene have slightly less body fat than others. But, it is not all good news. They also found that people with this genetic variation crave more sugary foods, have more carbohydrate cravings (carb cravings) or have sugar addiction.

There is intense debate about what diet is the most effective for weight loss — high protein, low fat or a balanced approach. In fact, there are now dozens if not hundreds of popular diets which are all based on varying amounts and percentages of carbohydrates, proteins and fat. We have seen a shift in the popular rhetoric about diets from emphasizing low fat to embracing high fat diets, with the proclamation that “fat doesn’t make you fat.” Several studies have demonstrated that low carbohydrate, high-protein diets resulted in more weight loss over the course of 3 to 6 months than low-fat diets, but other studies did not show this effect. More research with extended the follow-up to 1 year did not show that low-carbohydrate were better than low-fat diets. Other studies have found that a very-high-carbohydrate, very-low-fat vegetarian diet was better than a traditional low-fat diet. Another study has shown that a Mediterranean-style diet was better than a low-fat diet.

Yet another study has found that treating thyroid disorders is not as straightforward as once thought. The latest research by Joseph Meyerovitch, MD, of Schneider Medical Center, Ramat Hasharon, Israel has shown that treating borderline low thyroid levels is associated with increased risk for death in people over the age of 65 years. The death rate was 19% higher in patients taking levothyroxine, according to an analysis by Dr. Meyerovitch. The study also found a dramatically increased risk for dementia, heart failure, chronic renal failure, and cerebrovascular disease in the patients who took thyroid hormone. The research was presented at the 2018 meeting of the Endocrine Society in Chicago.

Several recent studies have elucidated the connection between food addiction and obesity (although normal weight people can also struggle with food addiction). Brain imaging and other studies show the effect of compulsive overeating and reward centers of the brain. The same brain centers that are triggered by cocaine and heroin can also be activated by food. Just like addictive drugs, tasty foods trigger feel-good centers in the brain. As a result, people with food addiction eat when they are not hungry. They lose control over eating and spend a lot of time anticipating the emotional effects of overeating.