Brain Cells that Trigger Sugar Cravings and Consumption Identified

Most people enjoy a sweet treat every now and then. But an unchecked "sweet tooth" can lead to overconsumption of sugary foods and chronic health issues like obesity and type 2 diabetes. Understanding the biological mechanisms that control sugar intake and preference for sweet taste could have important implications for managing and preventing these health problems.

The new study, led by Matthew Potthoff, PhD, associate professor of neuroscience and pharmacology in the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, and Matthew Gillum, PhD, at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, focuses on actions of a hormone called fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21). This hormone is known to play a role in energy balance, body weight control, and insulin sensitivity.

"This is the first study that's really identified where this hormone is acting in the brain and that has provided some very cool insights to how it's regulating sugar intake," says Potthoff, who also is a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Diabetes Research Center at the UI and the Iowa Neuroscience Institute.

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Lockdown surge in domestic violence

A national helpline set up for perpetrators of domestic abuse has reported a surge in calls by 25%.

The Respect phone line, which provides confidential advice to perpetrators about violence and domestic abuse, had a 26.86% increase in calls in the week starting March 30, compared with the week before.

The Respect phone line website recorded an increase in hits of 125% in the same period.

South Cheshire based My CWA (formerly known as Cheshire Without Abuse) wants local people from across the county to know that during the coronavirus pandemic they are not alone, and that there is still support for people struggling with conflict during lockdown.

CEO Saskia Lightburn-Ritchie explained: "This lockdown has exacerbated so many things for so many families and whilst there is a lot of help and assistance highlighted for victims of abuse, there has been less media surrounding any help for the perpetrators domestic abuse.

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Have you ever said, 'I know exactly how you’re feeling'? Quit it.

transform Through Therapy specializes in online group therapy, with a special focus on grief and caregiving. In this series, they will be talking about COVID-19 and the impact it is having on mental health.

It's a common reaction. Someone is going through a hard situation — loss, hardship, for all of us in one way or another, COVID-19 — and deep down, it's an uncomfortable thing to talk about. So a natural reaction is for us to try and empathize by saying, "I know what you mean."

We all do it. We feel like conversationally, we're giving them a big hug.

But it's not often taken that way.

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Mind Reading and Mind Control Technologies Are Coming

The ability to detect electrical activity in the brain through the scalp, and to control it, will soon transform medicine and change society in profound ways. Patterns of electrical activity in the brain can reveal a person's cognition—normal and abnormal. New methods to stimulate specific brain circuits can treat neurological and mental illnesses and control behavior. In crossing this threshold of great promise, difficult ethical quandaries confront us.

MIND READING

The ability to interrogate and manipulate electrical activity in the human brain promises to do for the brain what biochemistry did for the body. When you go to the doctor, a chemical analysis of your blood is used to detect your body's health and potential disease. Forewarned that your cholesterol level is high, and you are at risk of having a stroke, you can take action to avoid suffering one. 

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