A Quebec study published in Cell Metabolism has learned more about ghrelin, better known as the hunger hormone.
The hormone can be so powerful, that it can neurologically affect a person the same way that drugs or alcohol can make a person dependent on the substances. “Ghrelin has widespread effects,” said neurologist Alain Dagher.
Secreted by the stomach, ghrelin circulates in the blood and enters the brain cells, particularly in the hypothalamus, the control center of hunger.
Dr. Dagher added, “It’s not one or two brain regions, but the whole network. [After ghrelin infusion], food pictures become even more salient—people actually see them better. It influences not only visual processing, but also memory. People remembered the food pictures better when ghrelin was high.” Dagher has discovered a good stepping stone to conduct further research on treatments for obesity and ways to block the hormone.