Are You Addicted to…

super-normal stimuli?

**An Encouraging Word, Vol. 11**

an occasional note from Jean Fain

 Harvard Medical School psychotherapist & hypnosis instructor

 Published May 27, 2007

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Read on if you’re interested in losing weight without the deprivation associated with dieting. Feel free to forward “An Encouraging Word” to a friend. If you didn’t receive this note directly from Jean Fain and you’d like to subscribe, send an email to the address above with the word “subscribe” in the subject field. If you’d rather not receive future announcements, send an email with the word “unsubscribe” in the subject field.

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You Heard It Here First…

Back in the ‘70s, the buzzword in New England figure salons was “myogenic tonus.” It mattered little that exercise instructors had only the vaguest understanding of this pseudo-scientific term. They sold life-time memberships with the promise that “myogenic tonus,” the supposed firming that occurs by strapping one’s butt into a vibrating belt contraption, would transform flabby pears into firm peaches.

As the calendar pages turn, diet and fitness buzzwords show up, everyone uses them, and in a matter of weeks or months, they disappear from daily conversation, dead, buried and forgotten. Low carb has certainly overstayed its welcome, but by next month, the promise of Atkins’ and South Beach  may sound as silly as, well, myogenic tonus.

Every once in a while, a new catchphrase shows up that has a powerful, positive impact on the way we think, if not behave.  “Aerobic exercise” comes to mind, as does “glycemic index.” It’s impossible to predict which buzzword will be the next big buzz, big bust or nothing at all. One concept from one of the many new books on the obesity epidemic seems more buzz-worthy than most, as evidenced by the many “ahas” clients have been having when considering how it might help explain their compulsive overeating.  In hopes of stimulating thought, conversation, and maybe even behavior change, here’s the pre-buzz on “super-normal stimuli.”  

Deirdre Barrett, a colleague from Cambridge Health Alliance and the author of the soon-to-be published “Waistland: The (R)evolutionary Science Behind Our Weight and Fitness Crisis,” borrows the term super-normal stimuli from the study of animal behavior to explain America’s junk food addiction. Super-cali-what??  Nope, the word’s super-normal stimuli, which Barrett defines as any food that is super-sweet, super-fatty or otherwise unnaturally appealing to the eyes and the tastebuds.

“We’re programmed to forage for sugar and saturated fats because these were once found only in hard to come by fruit and game,” she writes. “Now this programming lures us powerfully toward plastic-wrapped hunks of corn syrup solids and hydrogenated vegetable oils.”  Super sugary foods and refined fatty meals, she posits, trigger changes in the same brain chemicals affected by addictive drugs.  Like heroin and nicotine, she argues, Twinkies and other super-normally stimulating foods are habit-forming and, if consumed in large enough quantities, life-threatening.

Barrett’s antidote to the obesity epidemic is radical, but worth considering: Eradicate all super-normal stimuli from your diet. Period. Eat only natural foods – whole grain breads, lean meats, fresh fruits and vegetables -- even if your taste buds initially scream from boredom. “Once you avoid the super-normal stimuli,” she writes, “natural foods begin to taste as good to you as they did to your ancestors.”

Like I said, Barrett’s solution is radical. But if you’ve ever tried to eat just one potato chip and wound up eating the whole bag, banning super-natural stimuli from your diet for some period could prove a worthwhile experiment. 

 “Waistland” hits bookstore shelves June 25, 2007. Here’s the Amazon link:  http://www.amazon.com/Waistland-evolutionary-Science-Behind-Fitness/dp/0393062163/ref=sr_1_7/105-4021207-2489223?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180107282&sr=1-7.

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The Wonder Years…

For some instant perspective on super-normal stimuli, watch the classic Wonder Bread commercial from the ‘70s. Clearly, the average American diet is far from optimum, but it’s certainly come a long way from the Wonder Years.  Watch it and weep: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxK-1MpMBlk

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Food For Thought…

“Zoos across America post signs: “DON’T FEED THE ANIMALS.” To young children, this looks mean-spirited. If they love the cute otter turning flips, why not share their potato chips…? Adults quickly explain that what animals need is meat, fish, greens or chow pellets carefully engineered for a balance of nutrients…. The children’s well-intentioned offerings would make the animals fat, sick, short-lived. Chips and candy are human food.

What’s wrong with this picture?”

--Deirdre Barrett

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In addition to seeing clients in private practice, Jean Fain teaches hypnosis at Cambridge Health Alliance, a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School, and she writes for O, The Oprah Magazine, among other women's magazines. More information about Jean Fain’s services and weight-loss CDs is available on her website (www.jeanfain.com).

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