Fat people 'like food less'

OBESE people may enjoy eating less than other people. Scientists say a reduced ability to savour food may have a direct link with over-eating.

The obese may eat more to compensate for a lack of response from the pleasure circuits in their brains whereas lean people feel more satisfied after eating less.

The trait appears to be genetically driven, suggesting that some people are born with an over-eating problem.Researchers in the US conducted brain scans to see what happened inside the heads of women and teenage girls when they drank a chocolate milkshake.

They found that the reaction in the part of the brain that generates feelings of pleasure was much weaker in fatter women.