<p>Sugar activates the brain's reward system that releases feel-good hormones. Too much sugar too frequently will hijack this reward system and will cause a loss of control, cravings and increased tolerance to sugar.<br></p><p>Research revealed that obese children have an elevated food reward response, predisposing them to a lifetime of sugar cravings.</p>

Sugar creates intense cravings

<p>A diet high in sugar makes learning difficult by slowing the brain down. Overconsumption of sugar damages synaptic activity in the brain.<br></p><p>When you consume too much sugar, you could develop resistance to insulin, the hormone responsible for regulating the function of brain cells. </p>

Sugar slows the brain down

<p>When you eat too much sugar, your blood sugar levels peak and drop. This causes you to experience irritability, mood swings, brain fog, and fatigue. You may find yourself feeling anxious or depressed. Carb-laden<span> foods create the same response.<br></span></p><p>Chronically high blood sugar levels are linked to inflammation in the brain, which may be a cause of depression.</p>

The sugar crash

<p>Research reveals that the brain is a target organ for damage by high blood sugar.</p><p>A diet that is sugar-heavy could increase the risk of <a href="http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/09/high-blood-sugar-linked-to-dementia/">Alzheimer's disease</a>. Studies found that insulin resistance and blood glucose levels are linked with a higher risk of developing neurodegenerative disorders.</p>

Age-related cognitive decline

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<p>We know that too much sugar is bad for <a href="http://www.webmd.com/diet/20130114/sugar-excess-weight">our waistlines </a>and our <a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/eating-too-much-added-sugar-increases-the-risk-of-dying-with-heart-disease-201402067021">heart health</a>, but now there's mounting evidence that high levels of sugar consumption can also have a negative effect on brain health -- from cognitive function to psychological wellbeing.</p>
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<p>While sugar is nothing to be too concerned about in small quantities, most of us are simply eating too much of it. The sweet stuff -- which also goes by names like glucose, fructose, honey and corn syrup -- is found in 74 percent of packaged foods in our supermarkets. And while the Word Health Organization recommends that only 5 percent of daily caloric intake come from sugar, the typical American diet is comprised of <a href="http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/3/5/who-slash-sugar-intake-to-5-to-10-percent-of-diet.html">13 percent calories from sugar</a>.</p>
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<p>It's easy to see how we can get hooked on sugar. However, we should be aware of the risks that a high-sugar diet poses for brain function and mental well-being.</p>
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<div><strong>Here's what you need to know about how overconsumption of sugar could wreak havoc on your brain. </strong> </div>
<div><strong>It creates a vicious cycle of intense cravings.</strong> </div>
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<p>When a person consumes sugar, just like any food, it activates the tongue's taste receptors. Then, signals are sent to the brain, lighting up reward pathways and causing a surge of feel-good hormones, like dopamine, to be released. Sugar "hijacks the brain's reward pathway," neuroscientist Jordan Gaines Lewis <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/health/chi-brain-on-sugar-20150228-story.html#page=1">explained</a>. And while stimulating the brain's reward system with a piece of chocolate now and then is pleasurable and probably harmless, when the reward system is activated too much and too frequently, we start to run into problems.</p>
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<p>"Over-activating this reward system kickstarts a series of unfortunate events -- loss of control, craving, and increased tolerance to sugar," <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/how-sugar-affects-the-brain_n_4562173">neuroscientist Nicole Avena explained in a TED-Ed video</a>.</p>
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<p>In fact, research has shown that the brains of obese children actually <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141212091748.htm">light up differently</a> when they taste sugar, reflecting an elevated "food reward" response. This suggests that their brain circuitry may predispose these children to a lifetime of intense sugar cravings.</p>
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<div><strong>It impairs memory and learning skills.</strong> </div>
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<p>A <a href="http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/this-is-your-brain-on-sugar-ucla-233992">2012 study</a> on rats, conducted by researchers at UCLA, found that a diet high in fructose (that's just another word for sugar) hinders learning and memory by literally slowing down the brain. The researchers found that rats who over-consumed fructose had damaged synaptic activity in the brain, meaning that communication among brain cells was impaired.</p>
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<p>Heavy sugar intake caused the rats to develop a resistance to insulin -- a hormone that controls blood sugar levels and also regulates the function of brain cells. Insulin strengthens the synaptic connections between brain cells, helping them to communicate better and thereby form stronger memories. So when insulin levels in the brain are <em>lowered</em> as the result of excess sugar consumption, cognition can be impaired.</p>
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<p>"Insulin is important in the body for controlling blood sugar, but it may play a different role in the brain," <a href="http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/this-is-your-brain-on-sugar-ucla-233992">Dr. Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, the study's lead author, said in a statement</a>. "Our study shows that a high-fructose diet harms the brain as well as the body. This is something new."</p>
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<div><strong>It may cause or contribute to depression and anxiety. </strong> </div>
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<p>If you've ever experienced a <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/avoid-the-sour-side-of-a-sweet-tooth/2013/04/02/4a7be0ce-970a-11e2-b68f-dc5c4b47e519_story.html">sugar crash</a>, then you know that sudden peaks and drops in blood sugar levels can cause you to experience symptoms like irritability, mood swings, brain fog and fatigue. That's because eating a sugar-laden donut or drinking a soda causes blood sugar levels to spike upon consumption and then plummet. When your blood sugar inevitably dips back down (hence the "crash"), you may find yourself feeling anxious, moody or depressed.</p>
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<p>Sugar-rich and carb-laden foods can also mess with the neurotransmitters that help keep our moods stable. Consuming sugar stimulates the release of the mood-boosting neurotransmitter serotonin. Constantly over-activating these serotonin pathways can deplete our limited supplies of the neurotransmitter, which can contribute to symptoms of depression, <a href="http://brainhealthbook.com/brain-sugar/">according to Dr. Datis Kharrazian, functional medicine expert and author of <em>Why Isn't My Brain Working?</em></a>.</p>
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<p>Chronically high blood sugar levels have also been linked to <a href="http://www.drperlmutter.com/reduce-inflammation-protect-brain/?hvid=1RxroH">inflammation in the brain</a>. And as some research has suggested, neuroinflammation may be one possible <a href="https://www.huffpost.com/entry/depression-brain-inflamma_n_6555222?1422461538">cause of depression</a>.</p>
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<p>Teenagers may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of sugar on mood. A <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/11/141118141852.htm">recent study </a>on adolescent mice, conducted by researchers at Emory University School of Medicine, found a diet high in sugar to contribute to depression and anxiety-like behavior.</p>
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<p><a href="http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/195/5/408">Research has also found</a> that people who eat a standard American diet that's high in processed foods -- which typically contain high amounts of saturated fat, sugar and salt -- are at an increased risk for developing depression, compared to those who eat a whole foods diet that's lower in sugar.</p>
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<div><strong>It's a risk factor for age-related cognitive decline and dementia. </strong> </div>
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<p>A growing body of research suggests that a sugar-heavy diet could increase risk for developing Alzheimer's disease. A 2013 study found that insulin resistance and blood glucose levels -- which are hallmarks of diabetes -- are linked with a greater risk for developing neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's. The research "offers more evidence that the brain is a target organ for damage by high blood sugar," <a href="http://newoldage.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/09/high-blood-sugar-linked-to-dementia/">endocrinologist Dr. Medha Munshi told the New York Times</a>.</p>
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<p>Some researchers, in fact, have even referred to Alzheimer's as<a href="http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/25/bittman-is-alzheimers-type-3-diabetes/?_r=0"> "Type 3 Diabetes"</a> -- which suggests that diet may have some role in an individual's risk for developing the disease.</p>
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We know that too much sugar is bad for our waistlines and our heart health, but now there's mounting evidence that high levels of sugar consumption can also have a negative effect on brain health -- from cognitive function to psychological wellbeing.

The Mental Health Effects Of Eating Too Much Sugar

Sugar creates intense cravings

Sugar slows the brain down

The sugar crash

Age-related cognitive decline

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