People that have a sweet tooth, in addition to dessert lovers, will definitely love this news: a new study suggests that people are more likely to remember a meal as long as it includes something sweet, which can ultimately help you to control your appetite.
The study, published in Hippocampus, was first conducted on rats, which were found to have increased activity in a particular part of the brain that responsible with episodic memory. Munchies reports:
"A study conducted by Georgia State University, Georgia Regents University, and Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center found that rats that ate a sweetened solution experienced significantly increased activity in the part of the brain that forms episodic memory, the type of memory that allows us to form autobiographical thoughts and construct our experiences into serial form. While that may help you recall your birthdays and birthday cakes, it might serve you an even better purpose: Researchers think that it could help you control your appetite."
As it oddly turns out, remembering your meals is actually important in helping regulate one's diet, according to an English study cited by Science Daily.
When the memory-making isn't interrupted or doesn't happen, people have a tendency to eat more during their next meal. So, it's better to remember those meals so that you keep yourself from eating too much the next time.
This was also evidenced by a previous study conducted by the Georgia team, where they found that the rats eat more and much sooner when the "episodic memory was deactivated following a sweet meal."
Neuroscience Institute at Georgia State professor Marise Parent says:
"We think that episodic memory can be used to control eating behavior. [...] We make decisions like 'I probably won't eat now. I had a big breakfast.' We make decisions based on our memory of what and when we ate."
Apparently, it's not because we remember the meals because they taste good either. Colorado 9NEWS psychologist Dr. Max Wachtel says that the sweet meals result in chemical changes in the brain that allows individuals to remember them better.
