Biology & Treatments for Compulsive Eating & Behaviors | Dr. Casey Halpern

My guest is Casey Halpern, M.D., Chief of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and Professor of Neurosurgery at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Halpern’s research and clinical practice focus on using deep brain stimulation to treat compulsive and movement disorders—for example, binge eating disorder, bulimia, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor and dystonia. We discuss using deep brain stimulation to help patients who suffer from movement and compulsive disorders and its application to patients afflicted with binge eating. We also explore the use of this technology for other conditions such as OCD, anorexia and tremor, and examine future therapeutic directions involving non-invasive brain stimulation approaches, including transcranial magnetic stimulation and ultrasound, for the treatment of other psychiatric illnesses and conditions. This episode will interest those curious about the biology of eating, anorexia, bulimia, compulsive thoughts and behaviors and movement. Thank you to our sponsors AG1 (Athletic Greens): https://athleticgreens.com/huberman ROKA: https://www.roka.com/huberman Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/huberman InsideTracker: https://www.insidetracker.com/huberman Supplements from Momentous https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman Social & Website Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hubermanlab Twitter: https://twitter.com/hubermanlab Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hubermanlab TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@hubermanlab LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-huberman Website: https://hubermanlab.com Newsletter: https://hubermanlab.com/neural-network Dr. Casey Halpern Penn Medicine Profile: https://www.pennmedicine.org/providers/profile/casey-halpern Twitter: https://twitter.com/halpernc LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/casey-halpern-a1569749 Responsive Neurostimulation For Loss Of Control Eating (DBSLOC) Study: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03868670 Articles Pilot study of responsive nucleus accumbens deep brain stimulation for loss-of-control eating: https://go.nature.com/3Sc1ZA1 Timestamps 00:00:00 Dr. Casey Halpern & Disordered Eating & Brain Stimulation 00:03:18 ROKA, Eight Sleep, InsideTracker 00:07:19 Momentous Supplements 00:08:28 Neurosurgeon’s View of the Brain, Neurosurgery Specialization 00:13:05 Deep Brain Stimulation & Other Unexpected Positive Effects 00:17:20 Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Prescriptions & Cognitive Therapies 00:25:40 Brain Areas in OCD, Risk, Rewards & Addiction 00:31:11 AG1 (Athletic Greens) 00:32:27 Facial and Vocal Ticks, Stimulants, Stress & Superstition 00:39:28 Nucleus Accumbens, Reward Circuits, Eating Disorders & Obesity 00:47:18 Stimulation of Nucleus Accumbens, Continuous vs. Episodic Stimulation 00:49:49 Binge Eating Disorder & Loss of Control Eating 00:53:02 Developing Binge Eating Disorder: Predisposition, Environment, Stress 01:02:07 Electrodes in Nucleus Accumbens, Identifying “Craving Cells” 01:11:41 Effects of Stimulation, Interrupting Craving, Intermediate Stimulation 01:16:46 Anorexia, Obesity & Compulsions, Potential Treatments for Anorexia 01:23:14 Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation 01:32:27 MRI-Guided Focused Ultrasound: Tremor, Essential Tremor & Parkinson’s 01:36:40 Future of Non-Invasive Brain Stimulation, Epilepsy & Depression 01:41:51 Pre-Behavioral States in Compulsion & Awareness, Mood Provocation 01:48:02 Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence & Compulsion Predictions 01:53:05 Neurosurgeon Hands, Resistance Training & Deadlifts 01:59:00 “Neurosurgeon Calm,” Quality Time & Prioritization, Neurosurgeon Training 02:09:53 Daily Habits: Sleep, Exercise, Mediation 02:11:59 Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Momentous Supplements, Neural Network Newsletter, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn The Huberman Lab Podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.