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October 7, 2009 – Eating a high fat meal – such as steak – may cause you to eat more than your needs require for 3 days.
This is what American researchers say1 who observed how rodent brains react to the presence of certain dietary fats, including palmitic acid.
Palmitic acid is the main saturated fatty acid found in the meat of mammals, including beef and pork. It is also found in milk, cheese and butter, as well as in palm oil and food products that contain it.
Scrambled message
Researchers have found that after a meal rich in palmitic acid, it quickly rises to the brain. Then, it “scrambles” the signals that the brain normally sends to the digestive system to regulate hunger.
In fact, palmitic acid reduces the ability of leptin and insulin to signal fullness for up to 3 days after consuming the saturated fat meal.
It thus makes rodents resistant to insulin and temporarily causes symptoms of metabolic syndrome – a risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
A cause of obesity?
The study involves mice, but the researchers believe the results observed could be similar in humans.
This is why they recommend limiting the intake of saturated fat. “It is not yet known how long the effect lasts in humans, but it is clear that palmitic acids make you eat more,” writes Deborah Clegg, lead author of the study.2.
According to her, the ubiquity of saturated fat in the Western diet suggests that the epidemic of obesity and overweight could stem from the overconsumption of food caused by the presence of palmitic acid.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are several studies showing that dietary palmitic acid also increases the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Martin LaSalle – PasseportSanté.net
1. Benoit SC, Clegg DJ, et al, Palmitic acid mediates hypothalamic insulin resistance by altering PKC-theta subcellular localization in rodents, Journal of Clinical Investigation, September 2009, Vol. 119, no 9, 2577-89.
2. Ice cream may target the brain before your hips, press release issued on September 14, 2009 by the Southwestern University of Texas Medical Center, to which the DD Deborah Clegg.
3. Diet, nutrition and the prevention of chronic diseases, WHO Technical Report Series, 2003, 81-82. The document (PDF) is available at www.who.int [consulté le 6 octobre 2009].