Study: Desires for fatty foods and alcohol share a chemical trigger

A brain chemical that stokes hunger for food and fat also triggers thirst for alcohol and may play a role in chronic drinking, according to a study led by Princeton University scientists.

The study showed that rats injected with galanin, a natural signaling agent in the brain, chose to drink increasing quantities of alcohol even while consuming normal amounts of food and water. The finding helps explain one of the mechanisms involved in alcohol dependence and strengthens scientists' understanding of the neurological link between the desires for alcohol and food.

"There seems to be a cycle of positive feedback," said Bartley Hoebel , co-author of a paper appearing in the December issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. "Consumption of alcohol produces galanin, and galanin promotes the consumption of alcohol. That would perpetuate the behavior."

The research was conducted by Michael Lewis, a visiting research fellow in Hoebel's lab, in collaboration with Hoebel, a professor of psychology; Deanne Johnson, a research staff member; Daniel Waldman, a senior undergraduate; and Sarah Leibowitz, a neurobiologist at Rockefeller University.

See the news release for more details.

Contact: Lauren Robinson-Brown (609) 258-3601