The overconsumption of sugar-sweetened foods has often been compared to drug addiction. Until very recently, this parallel was based more on anecdotal evidence than on solid scientific grounds. But now we have PET scans, imaging technology that allows doctors to measure brain activity in real time. It all started with a study that showed decreased dopamine sensitivity in obese individuals. The more the individual being studied weighed, the less responsive to dopamine he or she appeared to be.5 We see the same reduction in sensitivity in cocaine addicts and alcoholics.6 The brain gets so
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