• Question: Why do we get addicted to things such as food?

    Asked by Lucyyyy to Deborah, Euan, Maheen, Rob, Stu on 13 Jun 2016.
    • Photo: Maheen Siddiqui

      Maheen Siddiqui answered on 13 Jun 2016:

      A lot of processed food nowadays contains chemicals that are addictive! These can make you want to have the certain food again and again, for example some crisps contain these chemicals.

    • Photo: Deborah Prunty

      Deborah Prunty answered on 13 Jun 2016:

      The body is a complicated thing full of all sorts of chemical reactions. Some of these release chemicals and hormones that have different effects on the body.

      The brain is… Kind of like a toddler in many ways. If it finds a chemical that it likes, and or makes it happy, and it will want more, and will throw a temper tantrum until it gets more of it. Even when the chemical is bad for it. This is what addiction is.

      We get addicted to things because they cause reactions, that make our brains go wibbily and want more.

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