food.
These foods light up pleasure and reward
centers in the brain for a different reason than
nature intended—not because they provide
vital nutrition, but because they are
scientifically designed to stimulate our taste
buds. The effect is a total disconnection
between pleasurable, rewarding tastes (sweet,
fatty, and salty) and the nutrition that always
accompanies them in nature.
In nature, sweet tastes usually came from
seasonal raw fruit, rich in vitamins, minerals,
and phytonutrients. Today, sweet flavors
come from artificial sweeteners, refined
sugars, and high fructose corn syrup. In
nature, fatty tastes usually came from meats,
especially nutrient-packed organ meats. In
modern times, fats come from a deep-fryer or
a tub of “spread.” In nature, precious
electrolytes like sodium came from sea life,
or from the animals we ate. In modern times,
salt comes from a shaker.