吃奶酪会上瘾?

Is Cheese Addiction A Thing?

吃奶酪会上瘾？

Cheese is easily one of the most famous and recognized dairy products in the world.

全世界范围内，奶酪是最著名的、最易识别的奶制品之一。

And... well, you'd be hard pressed to not see why. For one thing, it's incredibly tasty, scrumptious and easy to eat, as well as very accessible. It can also be enjoyed in several ways, with the number of food it's been mixed into is countless at this point. The majority of us (at least those who are not lactose intolerant) enjoy it as well, so much that some like to think they have an addiction to it. But is cheese addiction a real thing? Is there any scientific backing behind that claim?

原因显而易见。一方面，奶酪可口美味、方便食用、易于获得。奶酪的食用方法多种多样，还可以与各种食物进行搭配。大多数人（至少是对乳糖不过敏的人）都喜欢吃奶酪，有些人甚至觉得自己吃奶酪上瘾。但吃奶酪真的会上瘾吗？这种说法有科学依据吗？

Cheese Overload

奶酪过量

Per studies, Americans ate around 6 pounds of cheese per person yearly during the mid-1970s. And in 2018, that number has increased to 11 pounds. And while there are many factors that are behind this growth, experts believe it's partly because of a slowly-digested protein called the casein, found in other dairy products as well.

根据研究，在20世纪70年代中期，美国人每年每人大约吃6磅奶酪。而在2018年，这一数字增加到了11磅。尽管很多因素导致了这一增长，但专家认为，部分原因是：其它乳制品中也发现了一种叫做酪蛋白的消化缓慢的蛋白质。

As a protein, casein usually gets broken down by our bodies into smaller compounds, now called casomorphins. These would then cross our blood-brain barrier and attach to our brain's dopamine receptors, causing them to release dopamine, or the hormone that gives us pleasure and feelings of being rewarded.

酪蛋白这种蛋白质通常会被我们的身体分解成较小的化合物，也就是酪啡肽。酪啡肽能通过血脑屏障附着在大脑的多巴胺受体上，使其释放多巴胺或使我们感到高兴和被奖赏的激素。

So in short, cheese makes you feel good, which makes you crave for more of it. Additionally, its high fat content also makes it easy to crave because the release of endorphins after satisfying that craving is also pleasurable and rewarding, which repeats the cycle and makes you want to crave more.

简而言之，奶酪会让你感觉良好，这反过来会加深你对奶酪的渴望。此外，奶酪脂肪含量高，这也是其颇受欢迎的原因之一，因为满足渴望后会释放内啡肽，这也会使人感到愉悦和满足，从而又重复了这一循环，加深你对奶酪的渴望。

Thankfully, cheese doesn't threaten your health at all, despite its mildly addictive properties. In fact, it's also healthy. Of course, most cheese harbors lactose, and so those who are lactose intolerant should avoid it as much as possible.

幸运的是，尽管奶酪具有上瘾的特性，但它并不会对健康造成负面影响。实际上，奶酪有利于人体健康。当然，大多数奶酪都含有乳糖，因此乳糖不耐症患者应尽量避免。

Bottom line is, the mildly addictive and pleasure-inducing properties of cheese are one of the biggest reasons as to why it's the most popular and well-recognized dairy product aside from milk. So, enjoy!

归根结底，奶酪会使人上瘾，但那是一种温和的、令人愉悦的上瘾，所以奶酪是除了牛奶以外最受欢迎和最易识别的乳制品。尽情享受奶酪吧！