The Hungry Brain: Outsmarting the Instincts That Make Us Overeat

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year

From an obesity and neuroscience researcher with a knack for engaging, humorous storytelling, The Hungry Brain uses cutting-edge science to answer the questions: why do we overeat, and what can we do about it?

No one wants to overeat. And certainly no one wants to overeat for years, become overweight, and end up with a high risk of diabetes or heart disease—yet two thirds of Americans do precisely that. Even though we know better, we often eat too much. Why does our behavior betray our own intentions to be lean and healthy? The problem, argues obesity and neuroscience researcher Stephan J. Guyenet, is not necessarily a lack of willpower or an incorrect understanding of what to eat. Rather, our appetites and food choices are led astray by ancient, instinctive brain circuits that play by the rules of a survival game that no longer exists. And these circuits don’t care about how you look in a bathing suit next summer.

To make the case, The Hungry Brain takes readers on an eye-opening journey through cutting-edge neuroscience that has never before been available to a general audience. The Hungry Brain delivers profound insights into why the brain undermines our weight goals and transforms these insights into practical guidelines for eating well and staying slim. Along the way, it explores how the human brain works, revealing how this mysterious organ makes us who we are.

ISBN-13: 9781250081209

Media Type: Paperback

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Publication Date: 12-24-2018

Pages: 304

Product Dimensions: 5.30(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

Stephan J. Guyenet, Ph.D. is an obesity researcher and health writer whose work ties together neuroscience, physiology, evolutionary biology, and nutrition to offer explanations and solutions for our global weight problem. He received a B.S. in biochemistry at the University of Virginia and a Ph.D. in neurobiology at the University of Washington. He is the author of the popular health website, Whole Health Source, and is a frequent speaker on topics of obesity, metabolism, and nutrition.

Table of Contents

Introduction
1. The Fattest Man on the Island
2. The Selection Problem
3. The Chemistry of Seduction
4. The United States of Food Reward
5. The Economics of Eating
6. The Satiety Factor
7. The Hunger Neuron
8. Rhythms
9. Life in the Fast Lane
10. The Human Computer
11. Outsmarting the Hungry Brain
Notes
Index

Show More