The Hungry Brain with Stephan Guyenet

The Hungry Brain with Stephan Guyenet» Listen

Date: December 18, 2017

Episode Description

How do we get fat?  How do we get completely out of control when it comes to food?  In his book “The Hungry Brain” Stephan Guyenet explains the science of why we over eat and get fat.

Dr. Risk’s Thoughts

It’s hard to find someone who hasn’t experienced food cravings. I know I have, and I can logically think my way through it and discuss it.  But when it comes to the cravings, and the desire for that item, it is extremely overwhelming and beyond logic.  I sought out Stephan Guyenet to explain this to me.  Why, as humans, are we so stuck on doing things that eventually cause us harm?  Not only did I want to understand my own cravings and behaviour, but also that of my patients.  Everyday someone comes in to see me and is disheartened when they realize they need to change their diet, even if it will save their life.  Often it’s the foods we love the most that are hurting us (is it because we eat too much of them out of the love for them?), and this paradox often seems unfair.

Guest Information

Stephan J. Guyenet is a researcher, science communicator, and science consultant who focuses on the determinants of eating behavior and body fatness.  After earning a BS in biochemistry at the University of Virginia, he completed a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Washington, then went on to study the neuroscience of obesity and eating behavior as a postdoctoral fellow.  He spent a total of 12 years in the neuroscience research world, resulting in publications in scientific journals have been cited over 1,800 times by his peers.  His general-audience book The Hungry Brain was called “essential” by the New York Times and named one of the best books of 2017 by Publishers Weekly.