food

Metabolic Inflexibility Drives Increased Appetite

IRP Research Could Aid Personalized Weight Loss Recommendations

person eating an over-sized burger

We all know the stereotype of the picky child who shuns vegetables unless they’re smothered in ranch dressing or cheese. Surprisingly, the human body can also be similarly choosy about how it fuels itself. New IRP research shows that people whose bodies prefer to raid their sugar depots rather than use stored fat during a period without food consume more calories after their fast, suggesting a possible explanation for why some people are more prone to gaining weight over time or have less success with certain weight loss interventions.

Cooking Up a Recipe for Healthier Eating

IRP’s Tonja Nansel Probes the Hidden Forces Behind Our Food Choices

person holding an apple and a donut

As legendary chef James Beard once said, “Food is our common ground, a universal experience.” Beyond a basic need to stay alive and obtain healthful nutrients, food is a source of pleasure, a reflection of culture, and a link to others. However, for many of us, food is also a challenge. There’s the food we love and the food that’s good for us, and the two aren’t always the same.

As we celebrate World Food Day on October 16, we spoke with IRP senior investigator Tonja Nansel, Ph.D., who is seeking explanations for the nutritional choices we make.

“The dietary quality of the U.S. population is well below recommended guidelines, and that’s the case regardless of income, education, and background,” Dr. Nansel says. “Simply put, we’re all eating badly.”

Digging Up the Roots of Food Allergies

IRP Research Aims to Explain the Perils of Peanuts and Other Foods

foods that can trigger food allergies, including shellfish, peanuts, and eggs

If you are a parent of school-age children, you’ve probably received a list of prohibited lunch foods and bans on birthday cupcakes. Going out to eat or cooking for guests can present a similar minefield of ingredients that many people must avoid. If it seems like food allergies are on the rise, it’s not your imagination. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that the prevalence of food allergies has increased by 50 percent since the 1990s, making it a serious public health concern.

This May, Food Allergy Awareness Week reminds parents, kids, teachers, food service workers — really all of us — that we must remain vigilant to the risks of reactions to certain foods. These allergies affect nearly 32 million Americans, including 1 in 13 kids. If you think about the average classroom, that could be two or three children with severe allergies in one room. For many, even a tiny amount of an allergen can trigger a serious, even life-threatening response by the body’s immune system. To address this growing concern, IRP senior investigator Pamela A. Guerrerio, M.D., Ph.D., and her colleagues in the Food Allergy Research Section at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) are working to unravel how genetics, immune system development, and environmental factors interact to cause food allergies in children.

Hunger Hormone Feeds Alcohol Cravings

IRP Researchers Pursue New Approaches to Treating Alcohol Use Disorder

man eating pasta

While most adults in the U.S. consume alcohol in moderation, for nearly 30 million of them, going even one day without alcohol feels nearly impossible. For these Americans, alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a serious condition that harms their health, relationships, and career. Unfortunately, only a small percentage of people with AUD receive treatment, and even then, for many patients, the chances of a relapse are high.

As the search for a reliable and effective treatment continues, IRP senior investigator Lorenzo Leggio, M.D., Ph.D., is exploring the biological processes that underlie alcohol cravings to unlock new approaches to therapy. April is Alcohol Awareness Month, so we took the opportunity to speak with him about recent discoveries made by his IRP team and its collaborators.

Boosting Brain Activity to Suppress Snacking

Non-Invasive Stimulation Method May Improve Self-Regulation Around Food

a box of donuts

Marketers make a living from the fact that merely seeing an advertisement for junk food can spur a sudden craving for potato chips or sugary cereal. Some people have an easier time than others resisting such urges, and over-consuming that sort of food can have problematic consequences for health. Findings from a recent IRP study suggest that stimulating a particular part of the brain might help people who struggle with obesity by enhancing their ability to control their desire to snack.

IRP’s Shannon Zenk Elected to the National Academy of Medicine

Nursing Research Leader Sheds Light on How Neighborhoods Influence Health

Dr. Shannon Zenk

When you think about public health, city planning might not be the first thing that comes to mind. Yet where we live — the quality of the buildings, the availability of places to walk and play safely, and the types of schools and stores in the neighborhood — can profoundly affect our health. This relationship has been emphasized by the COVID-19 pandemic, as close, stuffy living conditions, the need to take public transportation to essential jobs, and inequities in access to testing and vaccination sites all contributed to the larger reduction in life expectancy for Black and Latino Americans compared to Caucasians over the last two years.

Shannon N. Zenk, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.N., F.A.A.N., Director of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2021 for her research into how neighborhood characteristics affect the health of residents and contribute to the health disparities seen between communities with different racial and ethnic makeups and different levels of income.

Three-Minute Talks Pit Researchers Against the Clock

IRP Scientists Keep it Short and Sweet in Competition’s Final Round

timer

Science is so closely associated with long, jargon-laden lectures that scientists like Neil deGrasse Tyson and the IRP’s own Anthony Fauci have become celebrities for their ability to explain complex scientific concepts in a succinct and understandable way. On June 25, 17 postbacs, graduate students, and postdocs from across NIH showcased their own communication chops in the final round of the IRP’s annual Three-Minute Talks (TmT) competition.

A Hiatus From Food Could Benefit Asthma Patients

asthma inhaler

Between fast-food outlets, vending machines, and food trucks — not to mention good old-fashioned home cooking — many people face no shortage of opportunities to eat. But as satisfying as a crisp potato chip or a moist pork chop may be, people with asthma and many other conditions may prefer to resist tasty temptations if it means alleviating some of their symptoms. In a small pilot study, IRP researchers found evidence that abstaining from food for 24 hours could inhibit some of the cellular processes that cause asthmatics’ breathing problems.

Six Paths Forward in Biomedical Research

NIH Clinical Center

Last month I moderated our annual retreat with the NIH Scientific Directors, those individuals tasked with leading their Institute or Center (IC)-based intramural research program. We were joined by many of the IC Clinical Directors. And this year we decided to do something a little different: listen to a series of talks about exciting, new IRP research.