My boss could ask me to pull a report of all transactions in a certain period, which might seem useless to me. But if I know what the report will be used for, I can customize the format, possibly tighten the parameters, improve results and feel that my time is being well-spent rather than wasted.
My running coach could give me a workout that I don't like, but if I know the reason why it's being assigned, I can get my whole heart and soles into it.
Everything is easier for me when I know the reason behind it.
So here is some interesting research to fortify your health goals:
Scientists, in two separate studies, have found that the brain reaction to high calorie foods (like cake, pie, french fries) is much more dramatic in overweight people than in normal weight people. Brain activity scans found that the response is centered in the midbrain, where dopamine is released.
Dopamine is, more or less, our pleasure chemical. If we don't have enough of it, we tend to get depressed, uninterested in life, unresponsive to the delights of the senses.
To greatly simplify, then, perhaps when we pleasure-eat (as opposed to eating for energy) it is our way of seeking more dopamine.
So what else can we do to stimulate dopamine release besides pleasure-eating?
#1 is the answer to almost everything that ails us... exercise. Exercise increases calcium in the blood, which stimulates dopamine production and uptake. 30-60 minutes of walking is enough to do the trick, so you can imagine what higher levels of exercise can do.
#2 is sleep, 7-8 hours a night. Take charge of your schedule and make yourself go to bed on time. Most Americans are chronically sleep-deprived... could this explain some things about our country? Go to bed, already.
#3 is nutrition. Here are some things to improve dopamine levels:
... foods high in tyrosine: almonds, avocados, bananas, low-fat dairy, meat and poultry, lima beans, sesame seeds and pumpkin seeds. Put them on your grocery list.
...anti-oxidizing foods: greens, carrots, beets, asparagus, oranges, peppers, strawberries, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, sunflower seeds. Farmer's market, here I come!
And avoid foods that inhibit brain function, such as: refined packaged foods, refined white flour, cholesterol, caffeine and saturated fats. Now that you know that something like powdered sugar donuts INHIBIT brain function, aren't they a little less appealing?
A note about food addictions: when we are addicted to something, even coffee, dopamine receptors need more and more of the substance to trigger response. So if you feel addicted to something (sugar is a common criminal) you are training your midbrain to produce less and less dopamine per donut, say. But dopamine is what makes us feel good and alive... we want more or it, not less. This perfectly explains why, once we get started eating a bowl of ice cream at night, we begin to need it every night and we dish up more and more of it. We're pursuing the dopamine, but less and less of it is available to us.
Knowing that makes me much less interested in my usual food addictions. I want my brain at full-strength, and I certainly want my pleasure receptors unclogged.
Have a great week, and happy "doping"!
