Have you ever wondered why the foods you crave don’t always leave you feeling your best after eating them? What if you knew these foods are designed to be addictive and play with our dopamine levels? This is what happens in ultra-processed foods. But what do we mean when we say ultra-processed food? How do they impact our health and how we experience eating? In this two-part series, we speak with Barry Smith, PhD, sensory expert, founding director of the Center for the Study of Senses, and a scientist that has worked with food companies and learned how hard they work to hijack our food cravings, about what defines ultra-processed foods, how companies work to make these foods addictive, and what exactly is happening in our brains to crave these unhealthy foods.

<p>Have you ever wondered why the foods you crave don’t always leave you feeling your best after eating them? What if you knew these foods are designed to be addictive and play with our dopamine levels? This is what happens in <a class="react-spectrum-RichTextEditor-link" href="https://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slideshow-processed-food" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ultra-processed foods</a>. But what do we mean when we say ultra-processed food? How do they impact our health and how we experience eating? In this two-part series, we speak with <a class="react-spectrum-RichTextEditor-link" href="http://flavoursense.com/ask-the-scientist/professor-barry-smith" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Barry Smith, PhD</a>, sensory expert, founding director of the Center for the Study of Senses, and a scientist that has worked with food companies and learned how hard they work to hijack our food cravings, about what defines ultra-processed foods, how companies work to make these foods addictive, and what exactly is happening in our <a class="react-spectrum-RichTextEditor-link" href="https://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20240725/what-you-need-to-know-about-ultraprocessed-foods" target="_blank" rel="noopener">brains </a>to crave these unhealthy foods.</p>

WebMD Chief Physician Editor Neha Pathak, MD, and Chief Medical Officer, John Whyte, MD, MPH, explore fascinating stories to find the unexpected things that help us understand our health.

Health Discovered

Have you ever wondered why the foods you crave don’t always leave you feeling your best after eating them? What if you knew these foods are designed to be addictive and play with our dopamine levels? This is what happens in . But what do...