Your Brain On Sugar

 

Here is an informative, non-preachy article on how excess sugar consumption affects your brain. Its a pretty short read. I say "excess" sugar because your brain needs a certain amount of sugar to function. Your brain needs it because sugar is actually its main fuel. Our brains run on glucose just like every other cell in our bodies. But while glucose is imperative for normal, healthy brain and body functions, the relationship between sugar and a healthy brain is one that depends on moderation.

Sugar is a unique food in that consumption is characterized by the release of dopamine, which makes you feel good, but also causes a craving for more sugar. Other foods can produce this same result initially but with continued consumption the effect disappears. However sugar does so every time you consume it. This can lead to an addiction that’s hard to break. Sugary foods also cause inflammation in the body, leading to weight gain and other health problems like diabetes or heart disease.

Because sugar is ubiquitous (aka everywhere) in soft drinks, fast and processed foods it can be hard to avoid eating too much of it. Worse, most of the sugar in such foods is added sugar, that is, it is added to the food during processing. Natural sugar is sugar that is naturally occurring in food.  Added sugar is sugar that has been added to food items during processing to sweeten or enhance the flavor. Sources of natural sugar like fruits and dairy typically come from nutritious foods that contain a variety of other nutrients. Added sugar is simply calories. A diet containing foods with natural sugars will provide all the glucose your brain needs without any added sugars.

The easiest way to avoid added sugars is to limit the foods commonly made with them. These include:

• Regular, non-diet soda
• Baked goods
• Candies
• Sweet sauces (such as barbecue sauce and ketchup)
• Low-fat foods
• Some ready-made meals (read the labels)

Now that added sugar is listed separately it's important to read the ingredients list on food packaging. Remember, an estimated 74 percent of packaged foods contain added sugar, and added sugar can be found under 61 different names.