We May Have Found The Brain Area That Controls Pregnancy Cravings

We know that food cravings can include anything, but how do they start? The part of the brain that seems to control these urges could help ensure that human pregnancies are as healthy as possible in the future.

In tests on pregnant mice, researchers noticed changes in the reward circuits of the brain, as well as brain areas responsible for taste, and sensory and motor systems.

The nucleus accumbens, part of the brain's reward system, was identified as the location of higher levels of dopamine and increased activity from the dopamine receptor D2R.

This finding suggests that the pregnant woman causes a full reorganization of the neural circuits through the D2R neurons.

The cravings would be caused by these neuronal cells and their alterations, since food anxiety, typical during pregnancy, disappeared after blocking their activity.

While the mouse brain and the human brain are similar, the scientists should consider if the same sort of rewiring may happen when human mothers are craving ice cream, chocolate, or whatever foodstuff it happens to be.

It is thought that cravings support embryonic growth in a variety of ways, but there are also potential problems for babies and their mothers.

The offspring of the mice that had been allowed to indulge their cravings for sweet foods had different metabolisms and neural circuits in the next generation.

Many of the previous studies in this area are focused on the analysis of how the mother's permanent habits affect the health of the baby.

The study indicates that short but recurrent behaviors, such as cravings, are enough to increase the psychological and metabolic vulnerability of the offspring.

Potential problems with weight gain, anxiety, and eating disorders were identified in follow-up tests on the mouse offspring. The signs aren't good, but it remains to be seen how this would translate into human beings.

The team behind this study is hoping that the research will help contribute to the guidelines for expectant mothers, so that the overall diet remains healthy and good for both mother and baby.

There is a lot of anecdotal evidence for what happens and why when it comes to food cravings in pregnant women.

There are many myths and popular beliefs about these cravings, although the mechanisms that cause them are not well known.

Nature Metabolism has published the research.