Oreo cookies are known for being addictive. All of America seems to eat them, after all their slogan is “America’s favorite cookie.” Just as it is America’s favorite cookie, it seems to be that way with lab rats, too. Recent research shows that the lab rats ultimately opted for the Oreo, just as we do when choosing between sweets and healthy food. They are irresistible.

Joseph Schroeder, an associate professor of neuroscience at Connecticut College, Lauren Cameron, a senior at Connecticut College, and co-author Jamie Honohan, all took part in the lab rat experiment. In this experiment, they placed the rats in a maze where there was an Oreo at one end and a rice cake at the other. The researchers timed the lab rats for how long they spent on each side. In the next part of the experiment, the researchers injected cocaine, morphine, or saline in the rats once they arrived at the end of the maze. The rats took  the same amount of time for the drugs as they did with the Oreos.

Some may ask, “Why Oreos?” Well, countless amounts of people are addicted to their taste because of their high amounts of fat and sugar.

“They have high amounts of fat and sugar and are marketed heavily in areas where people tend to have lower socioeconomic status and higher obesity rates,” CBS News concluded from Jamie Honohan’s explanation.

CBS News reports Joseph Schroeder saying at a press release, “Our research supports the theory that high-fat/high-sugar foods stimulate the brain in the same way that drugs do. It may explain why some people can’t resist these foods despite the fact that they know they are bad for them.”

This Oreo cookie research explains how high-fat and high-sugar are very addictive, just as addictive as drugs. The research was also done to prove and show the dangers of these addictions. It demonstrates how addicts cannot stay away from what truly hurts them, either with drugs or foods.