Appetite

Are we really less hungry in the summer? A variety of physiological and mental processes during the summer season may lead to a decrease in appetite and reduced eating. What is the connection to the long daylight hours and do we actually gain fewer calories?

The attraction to high-fat foods is not necessarily just a matter of willpower: a new study from Osaka Metropolitan University in Japan has identified a brain mechanism that may influence fat consumption and body weight. The researchers found that damaging a mitochondrial protein called OPA1 in nerve cells associated with appetite regulation caused mice to consume more fat and gain weight.