These foods stimulate an opioid receptor known as the kappa opioid receptor, which helps to regulate fat metabolism. Stimulating this receptor causes the body to store much more fat than it would normally.
Traci Ann Czyzyk-Morgan, one of the researchers involved in the work, said, "The data presented here support the hypothesis that overactivation of kappa opioid receptors contributes to the development of obesity specifically during prolonged consumption of high-fat, calorically dense diets."
The report recently appeared in the online Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
(Source: www.sciencedaily.com)
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