Todd Moody wrote:

> Is there any information about what causes galanin levels to
> rise?  Is there perhaps a feedback system of some sort?

The only other info I came across is that galanin is released when
the body breaks down body fat, as it does during dieting or when
several hours have passed between meals.  When the body breaks down
body fat, fat particles are released into the blood that travel to
the hypothalamus and trigger galanin's release.

Additionally, eating less fat drops galanin production and the more
fat you eat, the more galanin you make and the more fat you crave.
Dr. Leibowitz showed that those rats that ate diets that were more
than 40 percent fat had twice as much galanin in a certain part of
the hypothalamus than did the rats that ate a diet that contained
less than 20 percent fat.   So, in essence, the study seemed to show
that a high-fat diet fundamentally changes the brain into a
fat-craving machine.  However, it's also reported that galanin
release may also be cut off by eating more protein.

Perhaps the galanin issue relates to why *some* people feel
constantly hungry after eating high-fat meals and are prone to gain
weight due to a stimulated appetite.

Monty