Mind the Reward: Nutrition vs. Addiction

Nutrition and reward are two important functions of the brain. To understand their underpinnings we look into the neural processing underlying the mechanisms of reward and nutrition at the interface with cognition. The common denominator of nutrition and reward functions is “food” intake that represents the energy source for all vital functions of an organism. In this chapter, we briefly discuss these two neural systems involving the sensory encoding of taste, the digestive system for nutrition, the reward mechanisms for food and drug addiction, together with its implications on cognition, as well as the neural substrate of human obesity and addiction. Finally, we touch on the idea that some nutrients and rewards require attention in order to prevent obesity and addiction.