The hypothalamus doesn’t care what you look like in a bathing suit next summer, and it doesn’t care about your risk of developing diabetes in ten years. Its job is to keep your energy balance sheet in the black, and it takes that task very seriously because it was essential for survival and reproduction in the time of our distant ancestors. The tools at its disposal, including hunger, increased food reward, and slowing your metabolic rate, are extremely persuasive. When the hypothalamus squares off with the conscious, rational mind, it usually wins in the end.
