Food News.

Byline: Christine M. Palumbo

Chocolate Attraction

C hocolate cravings seem to be related to bacteria living in the digestive tract, say scientists at the Nestle Research Center in Switzerland. They found that men who desire chocolate daily show signs of having different colonies of bacteria than noncravers. (Women weren't studied, to avoid the influence of the menstrual cycle, but they will be included in follow-up research, says the lead study author, Sunil Kochhar.) Cravers also had lower levels of unhealthy LDL cholesterol and higher levels of a beneficial blood protein, albumin. The research indicates that individuals' food preferences affect their gut bacteria and metabolic state, and "that in turn may have long-term health consequences," Kochhar says. He anticipates that it may someday be possible to alter the bacteria "to nudge a person's metabolism to healthier status." The study also supports the association between regular chocolate intake and heart health, he says.

Hyper Appetite

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder may be a predictor of abnormal eating behavior. In a review of eight studies, Samuele Cortese, a children's neuropsychiatrist at Robert Debre Hospital in Paris, revealed significantly higher than expected rates of binge eating among people with ADHD. Cortese says the link isn't clear yet--it's possible that ADHD contributes to bingeing, or vice versa, or that they both stem from the same biological basis. Although it's premature to assume that binge eaters have a higher rate of ...