Carbohydrate-Biased Control of Energy Metabolism: The Darker Side of the Selfish Brain !

Conclusion

Homeostatic control of energy metabolism aims to maintaining energy balance and as soon as it is achieved, energy intake might be expected to decrease or stop. However, this is possible only in deterministic environments. In variable environments, energy storage becomes advantageous and approximately equal parts of energy are allocated for maintenance, reproduction, and depots (Fischer et al., 2011). Energy intake beyond rigid homeostatic regulation relies on behaviors with hedonic, rewarding, and addictive nuances more characteristic for CHO than for fat. Their traits notwithstanding, these behaviors are highly evolutionary significant: “Although at first glance, hijacking of the homeostatic regulatory mechanisms by its hedonic counterpart may seem conflicting, it should be borne in mind that during evolution, humans have lived in an environment where food availability was restricted and uncertain (e.g., hunter–gatherers) and the biological system has been ‘hard-wired’ to maximize energy stores” (Pandit et al., 2011).

To maximize energy stores, energy intake relies on CHO-driven behaviors to allow the environmental “push.” Therefore: (1) dietary fat is not to blame for the diet-induced obesity; it is CHO that is not limited enough in HFD; (2) KR may be an element of common language in experiments with different methodological approaches.

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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3243104/?tool=pubmed

Graham