Is Sugar Addictive

The time has come for government to take steps to curb the unhealthy volumes of sugar most Americans are eating on a regular basis according to researchers. Luckily learning with the health science academy is educating me about what I need to eat and I think education is a big key for me. This is why even though its not what I do as a profession I decided to learn about weight loss and in particular cravings and what keeps me stuck.
Research carried out by Nicole Avena, a behavioral neuroscientist, has gone a long way to proving that sugar affects certain chemicals in the brain (opioids and dopamine) in the same way that other addictive substances do. In short, her research suggests that a diet high in sugar results in cravings, withdrawal and bingeing - the classic symptoms of addiction.



The whole grain contains soluble fiber, which helps you feel full for longer because it's digested slowly, according to the Dairy Council of California Soluble fiber can also improve low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels, as well as lower the risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease If you need to sweeten it up a bit, add some fresh or dried fruit to your bowl.
But many things that are not, in fact, necessary for life can stimulate this reward circuitry, including drugs, sugar, fatty foods, and even behaviors such as gambling cerebro and exercise, said Dr. Joseph Frascella, director of the division of clinical neuroscience and behavioral research at the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

For instance, rats maintained on an intermittent sugar schedule display cross-sensitization to amphetamine ( 210 ) and rats sensitized to amphetamine increase their locomotion when exposed to 10% sucrose solution ( 211 ). Furthermore, sucrose intake has been shown to enhance behavioral sensitization induced by cocaine and ethanol ( 212 , 213 ). Thus, intermittent sugar promotes behaviors observed with drugs of abuse.
The ingredients used to create Fruit Mentos are sugar, wheat glucose syrup, hydrogenated coconut oil, citric acid, rice starch, gum arabic, gellan gum, sucrose esters of fatty acids, natural and artificial flavors; carmine, paprika oleoresin, beta-carotene and beetroot red as colors; and carnauba wax and beeswax, as glazing agents.

It is difficult to predict how emerging data on FA can impact policy, particularly given that corporations have fiduciary responsibilities to their shareholders which require them to maximize profits and may compromise other social and ecological goals ( 274 ). Some public health experts propose that we will need to address food corporations similarly to how the tobacco industry was addressed in recent years, with interdiction and litigation ( 275 ). It remains unclear how an understanding of FA will translate to behavior change, however, a recent survey suggests that framing certain foods as addictive may increase obesity-related policy support such as warning labels, similar to tobacco ( 276 ). Other researchers believe that sugar addiction is too narrow and therefore still premature, warning against policy changes that are unlikely to have an impact since sugar is already so ubiquitous in the food supply ( 253 ).
If youвЂve ever known someone addicted to drugs, or have been yourself, then you know there can be a strong physical addiction where the body learns to become dependent on the substance, and a removal of the substance can cause a real physical response.