War on Drugs

New study finds that heroin and cocaine are less addictive than Oreos, destroying the lying rational behind the war on drugs.

"According to Schroeder, “some people can’t resist these foods.” It would be more accurate to say that some people don’t resist these foods, perhaps because they do not have exactly the same values, tastes, and preferences as Schroeder and Honohan. Instead of considering that possibility, Schroeder simply assumes that people who eat things “they know…are bad for them” cannot help themselves. His explanation for this unproven premise is that “high-fat/high-sugar foods stimulate the brain in the same way that drugs do.” But if the neurological effects of Oreos make them impossible to resist, how is it that most people manage to resist them, consuming them in moderation or not at all?"

"Furthermore, when the researchers “used immunohistochemistry to measure the expression of a protein called c-Fos, a marker of neuronal activation, in the nucleus accumbens, or the brain’s ‘pleasure center,’” they found that “the Oreos activated significantly more neurons than cocaine or morphine.” Given the latter finding, perhaps we should credit Connecticut College’s publicity department with restraint for not announcing that Oreos are in fact more addictive than cocaine or heroin. Or to put it another way: Cocaine and heroin are less addictive than Oreos. Which makes you wonder why people go to prison for selling the drugs but not for selling the cookies, especially since Oreos and similar foods “may present even more of a danger.”"

This is a fantastic article.

The criticism of this study was instantaneous, but the criticism applies to studies of drugs as well as Oreos as the Forbes article points out.