Study Shows How Orexin Makes You Snack Instead of Sweat

There’s a ton of excuses as to why many of us reach for the wrong foods instead of repping it out in the gym. The pressures of work, a lack of downtime, and feelings of stress or anxiety often play havoc with motivation levels. But how do some people deal with all of this and still manage to prioritize their fitness? Fortunately, science may finally have the answer, and it’s about more than simple ‘will power.’

The study, recently published in Nature Nueroscience, observed that levels of the brain chemical orexin may directly determine whether we indulge in a milkshake or move our muscles. They came to this conclusion by providing mice with their own little milkshake bar and a running wheel. The researchers at ETH Zurich were able to manipulate the mice’s orexin systems to see how this might affect the time they spent snacking versus exercising.

Such a study obviously has important implications for us humans because the World Health Organisation says that more than 80% of adolescents and 27% of adults are failing to complete enough exercise.  So, finding out how these figures (and our figures) can be approved is essential for the survival of our ever expanding species.

What is Orexin?

Orexin, also known as hypocretin is a neuropeptide than regulates a number of bodily functions such as arousal, wakefulness, and appetite. While other chemicals like dopamine can inform some of the choices we make, dopamine doesn’t explain why we might choose snacks over sweating it out, because it is released by both activities.

What were the results?

Those mice in the study with blocked orexin systems spent twice as much time running, and half as much time at the milkshake bar than those who’s orexin levels were intact. Simply put, reducing orexin levels in mice made them choose exercise over snacks when both options were available to them.

“This means that the primary role of the orexin system is not to control how much the mice move or how much they eat,” says Denis Burdakov, Professor of Neuroscience at ETH Zurich commenting on the results to ScienceDaily.com. “Rather, it seems central to making the decision between one and the other, when both options are available.”

For humans, the option to choose physical activity or snacks is usually available to us with a little planning, whether we want to admit it or not, but remains a constant struggle. The good news is that scientist now want to work with humans because they believe that restoring adequate orexin levels will help us on our request to reach for the weight plates rather than the snack plates.

But for most, a miracle pill may not be needed. If you want to boost your own ‘will power’ to choose workouts over eating out, experts also know that glucose is an orexin inhibitor, so the more you say no to sugar in the first place, the easier it will become, to continue to make those life improving decisions.