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When a female mouse is fed a high-fat diet her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have a greater risk of obesity and addiction — because of changes to the brain reward system.
Diet can mess with the brain. Animal studies have shown that the offspring of mothers consuming a high-fat diet have a less sensitive reward system: they need to consume more food or pleasure-enhancing drugs to feel full or satisfied. Therefore, these individuals are more likely to become obese and addicted to drugs.
Daria Peleg-Raibstein at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology and …