In fact compulsive eaters might not be "greedy," but simply fighting addiction.
Lead researcher Simon Thornley, from Auckland Regional Public Health Service, said heavily processed carbohydrates caused blood-sugar levels to spike suddenly.
This "sugar rush" stimulated the same areas of the brain associated with addiction to nicotine and other drugs.
His controversial paper, published in the journal Medical Hypotheses, suggests the sugar content of foods can predict their "addictive potential" and it calls for tougher regulation.
Dr. Thornley and his colleagues found that people who binged on high-carbohydrate foods experienced symptoms of addiction -- loss of control, a compulsion to keep taking higher amounts to get the same "buzz," and suffering depression if they went "cold turkey."
Like those addicted to cocaine and alcohol, people with a higher body mass index had fewer brain pleasure receptors.
The paper suggests that reducing sugar content in commonly consumed food items -- enforced by regulation -- could break addiction and bring large public health benefits.
