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Understanding What Sugar Really Does to Your Brain
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Reward Response
For many people eating a little sugar stimulates a craving for more. Sugar can lead to intense feelings of hunger.
Sugar has addiction-like effects in the reward center of the brain, causing a loss of self-control, overeating and weight gain.
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Sugar Addiction
Sweet foods can be more addictive than cocaine, one study found.
Over time, greater amounts of the substance are required to reach the same level of reward.
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Memory
Even a single occasion of increased glucose levels in the blood can harm your brain. It can impair your memory and attention.
High sugar consumption causes inflammation in the brain. But, it can be reversed by following a low-sugar, low-GI diet.
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Mental Capacity
Raised blood glucose damages blood vessels. Damaged blood vessels are a major cause of vascular complications of diabetes. It leads to injury to blood vessels in the brain and eyes and can lead to difficulty in learning, memory, motor speed and other cognitive functions.
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Artificial sweeteners
It is commonly believed that the consume of artificial sweeteners helps reduce the intake of calories., resulting in less chances to develop a heart disease. However, there are ups and downs also ...
The traps of the artificial sweeteners
While artificial sweeteners can help you reduce weight and even the risk of developing a heart disease, you should consider consuming only the ones officially approved, such as saccharin or stevia. Furthermore, it is not recommended to consume extra sweets just because you are reducing the intake of sugar by consuming artificial sweeteners. One next point to be taken into account refers to the danger to consume of these products while lying to yourself that they are not the real staff, therefore you cannot possible gain weight. Well, that is not so accurate and you risk ending up with many extra pounds. Finally, the biggest threaten posed by these products is the addiction: you might realize, a bit too late, that you are too much into artificial sweeteners
Consuming artificial sweeteners
The moderate consumption of artificial sweeteners can lead to weight loss as well as to less chances of getting a cancer. However, there are a few risks that one should take into account when consuming these products, such as metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. The safest option would be to consume foods that contain sugar in their natural form, as whole fruit and as few as possible artificial sweeteners and sugar itself.
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Key Ideas
Sugar creates intense cravings
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 tol...
Sugar slows the brain down
A diet high in sugar makes learning difficult by slowing the brain down. Overconsumption of sugar damages synaptic activity in the brain.
When you consume too much sugar, you could develop resistance to insulin, the hormone responsible for regulating the function of brain cells.
The sugar crash
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 foods create the same response.
Chronically high blood sugar levels are linked to inflammation in the brain, which may be a cause of depression.
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Sugar Substitute
Stevia, a sugar substitute, is generally regarded as safe by health and food safety organizations. The studies that they rely on are industry-funded, so we have to take their take on this artificia...
Artificial Sweetener Stevia
Though Stevia is 300 to 400 times sweeter than sugar, the Center of Science in the Public Interest, which is a food advocacy group, considers it safer than other substitutes and artificial sweeteners.
Many products club Stevia with other sugar alcohols like erythritol, which can cause digestive complications.
Long Term Usage of Nonnutritive Sweeteners
It can cause metabolic effects, and may not be helpful for weight loss.
Sweeteners are also associated with obesity, diabetes and heart disease, apart from affecting our gut microbes.