Brain to ego-trip

Commonly is a sick pancreas as the cause of diabetes. Or body cells no longer respond to the hormone insulin. A surprisingly different theory Achim Peters has made. The diabetologist at the University Clinic Lübeck keeps our brains for the culprit.


The brain actually plays a big role when it comes to food. Specific brain nuclei signal to us that we are hungry or tired, they decide when and how much we eat. Probably our thinking organ is therefore also involved when we nibble us overweight or diabetic get.

Obesity expert Achim Peters and his research team has long been at the problem of obesity and diabetes. He believes the brain is enthroned as ruler of a selfish and controlling the body out of pure self interest, what and when we eat: The main thing would get, there is enough sugar. Whether the body by taking the sugar addiction damages the organ of thought did not matter. The brain is just selfish. Peters Selfish Brain theory is not yet proven, but it explains some of our bad habits very well.
The brain receives no supply scares, we are on

Our brain relies on glucose as fuel. Of which consumes a lot of the thinking organ: between 80 and 140 grams a day. The equivalent of three to ten tablespoons of sugar. This makes the brain of only two percent of the human body, but it consumes at least half of the energy eaten, stress even 90 percent of the available fuel.

Because the nerve cells can not store sugar for bad times, they must be fed constantly. Cancels the sweet flow of blood from the help, the organ of thought according to the Selfish-brain theory itself: It encourages us to eat sweets. Finally, it controls all important body functions and can turn on Hunger and motion signals.
Only when the brain is tired, the rest of the body feeding

Whether enough sugar arrives in the brain, special sensors to measure the nerve cells in the head. Decreases the glucose level in the blood, sends the brain is the command to get the new fuel. Initially, the body concerned then glucose from the usual reserve: starch from other organs is transformed into glucose and flushed into the blood.

At the same time, the brain ensures that glucose can be snapped up by any other competitor in the body: It thus slows the production of insulin, the sugar and you can not be introduced into the body cells.

Only when the nerve cells are full, may eat the rest of the body. Are the sugar reserves of the body is empty, pulls the brain from other organs, even the glucose. This ego trip of our thinking organ is the reason why the Lübeck Achim Peters calls the brain selfish.

Are the energy storage in the body low, about noon, the sugar level in blood drops to a minimum value. By then our calls to mind another energetic sugar. We get cravings, particularly for sweets and rich. Is nothing tangible on the brain in order to activity mode and sends us in search of food - in the stone age to hunt, now in the supermarket.