Sugar Addiction

Sugar is one of the most addictive foods we can put into our bodies. In animals, it is actually more addictive than even cocaine, so sugar is pretty much probably the most consumed addictive substance around the world and it is wreaking havoc on our health,” cardiovascular researcher, James DiNicolantonio, a coauthor of the study, told the Guardian.
The average American consumes 19.5 teaspoons of added sugar every day , and 66 pounds of added sugar per year, which, according to the American Heart Association, is just way too damn much There's sugar in our bread, pasta sauces, chips, fruit drinks — any way food manufacturers can sneak sugar into our diet, they'll do it.



So, it is not surprising that high prevalence of FA occurs in the underweight category ( 248 , 260 ) and normal weight category in the case of BN ( 261 ). Recently investigators have suggested that FA data can be incorporated into the case conceptualization of EDs from a trans-diagnostic perspective ( 262 , 263 ). Conclusions suggest giving more consideration to the impact of highly palatable foods for some people seeking ED treatment.
In addition to promoting weight gain, sugar has been linked with a number of other health conditions, including fatty liver disease; the brain and sugar insulin resistance - and the accompanying increased risk of metabolic syndrome and diabetes; cancer; and tooth decay.

Over the last few years, some fascinating research has come to light in the field of epigenetics — the study of the body's chemistry that switches genes off and on. Not surprisingly, your diet and your environment change your body chemistry, and scientists are learning how this affects the switching on and off of certain genes that affect how your body processes food.
Given that adolescence is a critical period of neurodevelopment, it appears as though exposure to sucrose during this time (rodents from postnatal day 30-46) leads to an escalated intake during the exposure period and a subsequent decrease in c-Fos-immunoreactive cells in the NAc (measured at postnatal day 70) which is involved in the processing of hedonic properties of sweet foods ( 162 ). In this experiment, adult rats consumed less sugar after heightened exposure in the adolescent period, which is consistent with other findings ( 163 , 164 ). These studies also demonstrate that sugar-exposed adolescents exhibit higher preference for cocaine ( 164 ) but not alcohol ( 163 ) in adulthood.

A large population-based study from Harvard School of Public Health tracked the diets of more than 120,000 men and women over 20 years, and found that those who reported eating the most French fries gained the most weight over the four-year study period.
Rats fed daily intermittent sugar and chow escalate their sugar intake and increase their intake during the first hour of daily access, which we define as a binge” ( Colantuoni et al., 2001 ). The animals with ad libitum access to a sugar solution tend to drink it throughout the day, including their inactive period.