Can’t Stop Snacking? A New Study Says It Could Be An Automatic Brain Response

When you’re full after a big meal but still reach for a bag of chips or a box of cookies, you might blame it on a lack of willpower. But a new study suggests it could be due to how your brain responds to snacks, whether or not you’re hungry.

In the study, published in the journal Appetite in March 2026, researchers measured people’s brainwaves after eating and found that despite being full, they still responded to tempting food cues, such as crisps, chocolate and popcorn.

“Cues are huge,” Thomas Sambrook...