Popcorn can be as addictive as heroin, scientists show

Popcorn can cause an addiction, just like heroin! The popular cinema snack appears on a blacklist of addictive food, created by researchers Paul M. Johnson and Paul J. Kenny. Other food items on the list are pizza, hamburgers, cheese and ice cream.

“We discovered that the development of obesity was directly related to the appearance of a cerebral reward deficit that worsened progressively.”

Low levels of dopamine, a feel-good chemical in the brain, was found in both people with food addiction and those with drug addiction. 

Overconsumption of high-calorie foods and foods containing lots of sugar triggers the same reward systems in the brain as drugs, and make the system react.

“The reward pathways in the brain has been so overstimulated that the system basically turns on itself adapting to the new reality of addiction, whether it is cocaine or cupcakes”, say the scientists.

However, having popcorn once a week with a movie should not put you at any risk for addiction!