Text Size
Smaller
Bigger
Family History

Alcoholism in the Family? Researchers Say You’re More Likely to Be Obese.

posted 07:16 PM EST, Tue March 15, 2011

Women with a family history of alcoholism are 49% more likely to be obese than women without a close relative alcoholic. Researchers suspect that people with a genetic predisposition for alcoholism are also more likely to stimulate the pleasure centers of the brain with overeating.

Alcoholism in the family? Then watch out, because according to researchers at Washington University in St. Louis – you’re at increased risk to become an alcoholic yourself, and also at increased risk for obesity.

After wading through obesity and addiction survey data on 80 000 Americans who participated in national surveys in 1992-92 and 2001-2002, the researchers found that women with a family history of alcoholism are 49% more likely to be obese than women without such a history!

The study authors say that eating, particularly eating foods high in fat and sugar, can stimulate the same reward systems of the brain as drugs and alcohol, and that people with a predisposition towards alcoholism likely also have a predisposition towards getting ‘high’ on food.

Lead researcher, Richard Grucza explains, saying, “Much of what we eat nowadays contains more calories than the food we ate in the 1970s and 1980s, but it also contains the sorts of calories — particularly a combination of sugar, salt and fat — that appeal to what are commonly called the reward centers in the brain. Alcohol and drugs affect those same parts of the brain and our thinking was that because the same brain structures are being stimulated, overconsumption of those foods might be greater in people with a predisposition to addiction."

The full study results and a discussion of the implications of the findings can be read in the January edition of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

Subscribe Subscribe to this topic category
Story Highlights
  • Obesity: Addiction to alcohol in the family may predispose you to overeating.
Creative Commons License
Copyright Notice
We welcome republishing of our content on condition that you credit Choose Help and the respective authors. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Helpful Information
Understanding How the Alcoholic Thinks
Understanding the Insanity of Alcoholism: How the Alcoholic Thinks © Flood
One of the finest compliments I receive from recovering alcoholics is that despite the fact that I am not an alcoholic, I understand how their minds work. I have profound respect for all the old sayings in AA. Some are open to interpretation - the "insanity of our disease" is a literal statement. Read Article
Alcoholism September 21, 2012 (328)
How to End an Addiction-Damaged Relationship
Guidelines for Ending an Addiction-Destroyed Relationship © Merlijen Hoek
What do you do when the person you love gets consumed by a disease (addiction) that's beyond your control? How do we know when it's time to leave and how do you manage to adjust to life without your actively addicted partner? Read Article

This website is certified by Health On the Net Foundation. This site complies with the HONcode standard for trustworthy health information.

Find Treatment
Browse by region »
Scan to call us
using your phone camera app