If you are a cheese addict like myself, you'll agree that indulging in a bit of Emmental here, and a slab of Brie there, isn't just enjoyable, it's a way of life. Where do you even begin with its myriad of charms? Whether it's the taste, the variety available, or just the fact that there's a drawer dedicated to our beloved stinky delights in practically every refrigerator, there's something about cheese that we simply cannot say no to. According to a new study, published by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, cheese crack is an actual thing - there are certain foods that researchers say are more addictive than others. Using information taken from the Yale Food Addiction Scale, which asked around 500 students to complete a questionnaire, they found that we get a strong compulsion to certain foods because of the way they are processed. The researchers proposed, "that highly processed foods share pharmacokinetic properties (e.g. concentrated dose rapid rate of absorption) with drugs abuse, due to the addiction of fat and/or refined carbohydrates and the rapid rate the refined carbohydrates are absorbed into the system." I know what you're thinking: "you have Gouda be kidding me right now. You're telling me that I'm being drugged by cheese?" And yes that's basically what the study suggests, in a rather longwinded way. Cheese is especially addictive because of the protein casein, found in all milk products. Cameron Wells, a registered dietitian, told Mic that casomorphins (the opiates released by casein during digestion) "really play with the dopamine receptors and trigger that addictive element." Just like pizza, which unsurprisingly grabs the number one spot in the study, there's an actual reason why your longing for cheese is as strong as Stilton's scent, it's all to do with science. Source
