An increasing number of scientific studies suggest that food, like drugs or alcohol, can have addictive qualities. Ashley E. Mason, PhD, explores how the reward system, located inside the human nervous system, can unduly affect people's appetite. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 36913]

Marion Nestle, Goddard Professor in the Department of Nutrition at New York University, discusses the U.S. food industry being in a highly competitive environment where profits are paramount and public health is not a priority. Series: "Excerpts" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 36753]

Ashley Gearhardt describes significant differences between natural food and the modern food environment and how the human brain could be affected. Gearhardt developed the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) to operationalize addictive-like eating behaviors, which has recently been linked with more frequent binge eating episodes in clinical populations, increased prevalence of obesity and patterns of neural activation implicated in other addictive behaviors. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Show ID: 36381]

Obesity is at the root of silent epidemics such as type 2 diabetes and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Laura Schmidt explores the causes and solutions, taking lessons from tobacco: reducing the availability of harmful substances reduces consumption, thereby reducing harms to health. She talks about the UCSF Healthy Beverage Initiative and the effects it has had on employee health. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 35586]

Four leaders in food policy and law discuss troubling trends of food insecurity, poor diet, chronic disease and obesity along with novel strategies that can be implemented locally and globally. Panelists: Kelly Brownell, Duke University; Laura Schmidt, UCSF; Allison Korn, UCLA; Breanna Hawkins, LA Food Policy Council. Moderated by Emilie Aguirre, Resnick Program for Food Law and Policy at UCLA Law. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33241]

Katie Ferraro, registered dietitian at the UCSF School of Nursing, discusses the consequences of fat-free trends. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34446]

The UCSF Industry Documents Library (IDL) now includes the Food Industry Documents Archive, a brand new collection of over 30,000 documents related to the food industry and its impact on public health. Find out more about these documents that highlight marketing, research, and policy strategies used by food companies and trade groups, and reveal the communications and connections between industry, academic, and regulatory organizations. Part 1. Series: "Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34103]

The UCSF Industry Documents Library (IDL) now includes the Food Industry Documents Archive, a brand new collection of over 30,000 documents related to the food industry and its impact on public health. Find out more about these documents that highlight marketing, research, and policy strategies used by food companies and trade groups, and reveal the communications and connections between industry, academic, and regulatory organizations. Part 2. Series: "Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34389]

Michele La Merrill, PhD, MPH, UC Davis Professor of Environmental Toxicology, discusses how calories are burned and whether some chemicals make it harder for us to burn calories and stay slim. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34086]

John Balmes, MD, UCSF Professor, gives insight into how air pollution may impact obesity and metabolic health. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34087]

Barbara Laraia, PhD, UC Berkeley, reveals why neighborhoods and stress have a major impact on obesity and pregnancy. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34083]

Bruce Blumberg, PhD, UC Irvine Professor of Developmental and Cell Biology and leader in the field of "obesogens," discusses the role of exposures that disrupt our endocrine systems in the obesity epidemic. Obesogens are a chemicals that can interfere with hormones and can cause weight gain. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 34085]

Aric Prather, PhD, UCSF Professor and Co-Director of the Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study, and Treatment (COAST) discusses how social stressors and relationships can act like environmental toxins, a concept called the “social exposome." Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 34082]

An increasing number of scientific studies suggest that food, like drugs or alcohol, can have addictive qualities. Food addiction is a disease which causes loss of control over the ability to stop eating certain foods. Three people share their personal experiences and how they came through. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33583]

Millions attempt some form of diet yet only a small fraction achieve permanent weight loss. Neuroscientists and science writers Sandra Aamodt and Darya Rose suggest what you should do instead. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33595]

Kerri Boutelle, PhD, joins David Granet, M.D., F.A.C.S., F.A.A.P. to discuss eating habits that often result in obesity and the psychology behind it. Series: "Health Matters" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33859]

The way food is described influences how it tastes and how much is eaten. Neuroscientist and science writer Darya Rose discusses how words influence experience. Series: "Osher WISE: Well-being and Integrative Science for Everyone" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33819]

Expert panel explores the relation of food insecurity, stress and nutrition. Panelists: Janet Tomiyama, UCLA – The Stigma of Obesity; Deborah Cohen, RAND Corporation – Stress and Built Environments; Barbara Laraia, UC Berkeley – Food Insecurity During Pregnancy; Annie Gupta, UCLA – Stress, Food, and Reward System; Emeran Mayer, UCLA- Stress and Microbiome. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33237]

Cindy Leung explains the novel mechanism of stress in the relation between food insecurity and health. Food insecurity has direct negative effects on health from infancy into adulthood, most in importantly on cardiovascular health. Food insecurity is a also form of toxic stress that has negative psychological effects. Series: "UCSF Consortium for Obesity Assessment, Study and Treatment" [Health and Medicine] [Education] [Professional Medical Education] [Show ID: 33236]

It is difficult to effectively manage our weight when the world around us is full of enticing and unhealthy options. Kerri Boutelle, PhD, joins David Granet, MD, to discuss how our minds become conditioned to overeat. Series: "Health Matters" [Health and Medicine] [Show ID: 33433]