Brain Wash

Why it’s on the list: David and Austin Perlmutter’s 2020 book on how modern technology and food hijack the brain’s reward circuitry.

The passage Kyle saved:

“Anything that repeatedly overactivates this powerful circuitry will change the brain and have major consequences. As we know, craving-related behavior is not always beneficial. When we find ourselves pleasure seeking 24-7, chasing instant gratification and pushing those chemical buttons, we reinforce neural pathways that keep us constantly craving and silence the prefrontal cortex by weakening its ability to exert control over the lower, limbic brain. And this manifests itself, among other ways, as internet surfing, smartphone scrolling, one-click shopping, gobbling up high-calorie foods, and checking posts on social media.”

As Kyle captured it (August 2020 quick capture, verbatim):

• “Anything that repeatedly overactivates this powerful circuitry will change the brain and have major consequences. As we know, craving-related behavior is not always beneficial. When we find ourselves pleasure seeking 24-7, chasing instant gratification and pushing those chemical buttons, we reinforce neural pathways that keep us constantly craving and silence the prefrontal cortex by weakening its ability to exert control over the lower, limbic brain. And this manifests itself, among other ways, as internet surfing, smartphone scrolling, one-click shopping, gobbling up high-calorie foods, and checking posts on social media.” Brain Wash, David Perlmutter books-to-read Technology that enhances you rather than enthralling you

Connections

• David Perlmutter