We all love our sugar, especially during the holidays. Cookies, cake, and candy are simply irresistible.

While sugar cravings are common, the physiological mechanisms that trigger our “sweet tooth” are not well defined.

A University of Iowa-led study in mice shows that a hormone produced by the liver, fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21), suppresses the consumption of simple sugars. The researchers report that FGF21 is produced in the liver in response to high carbohydrate levels. FGF21 then enters the bloodstream, where it sends a signal to the brain to suppress the preference for sweets.

“This is the first liver-derived hormone we know that regulates sugar intake specifically,” says Matthew Potthoff, assistant professor of pharmacology in the UI Carver College of Medicine. Potthoff is co-senior author on the paper, published online in the journal Cell Metabolism, with Matthew Gillum, professor at the University of Copenhagen (Denmark).

Full article can be found in the IowaNow.