Dangers of Sugar Addiction: Eat a Lot of Sugar? You Must Read This!
Dangers of Sugar Addiction:
Sugar – all of us crave it. Who wouldn’t? It’s “sugary” sweet and makes just about everything taste better (at least that’s what our brains and taste buds are telling us). If you’ve been trying to cut back on sugar, you probably already know how hard it can be, even experiencing withdrawal symptoms. This is because when we eat sugar, it overstimulates our “reward” centers, causing a drug like sugar addiction.
by Greg Montoya
Sugar Addiction Can Be Serious & Damaging as Cocaine or Heroine
Besides triggering the reward centers of the brain, when we eat sugar a massive amount of dopamine is discharged. This reaction is what makes eating sugar so addictive. When we eat a lot of foods that are high in sugar, we end up building a tolerance that causes us to eat more to soothe that craving. Eventually we end up addicted to sugar for the simple reason that it makes us feel great when we eat it. Because of the powerful influence sugar has on the brain, it exhibits addictive qualities that are similar to drugs like cocaine or heroin.
Sugar Toxicity
There are basically two types of sugars that are prevalent in the American diet – naturally occurring and added sugars. One of the worst and most toxic is added refined sugar. This category can have devastating effects on the metabolism, promotes inflammation, and leads to the development of a number of serious diseases and health conditions. Sugar consumption is actually a major risk factor for the development of heart disease, obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and more. Bottom line, there’s no doubt that an excessive amount of sugar can be toxic and it’s only a matter of time before it will be accepted as a causative component of most cancers.
It’s Not Just Raw Sugar That Can Be Toxic
It’s important to note that when we mention “sugar,” we mean ALL versions. This means that when you consider your sugar consumption, you shouldn’t just count the amount of table sugar you use, or the sugar found in the foods and beverages you consume. You also need to include other types of sweeteners, especially those found in processed foods, including corn-based sweeteners such as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), agave, honey, etc.
There’s Still Time to Make Healthy Choices
The healthiest choice is to avoid refined sugar, instead eating organic, whole foods, and reading packaged food labels before you buy. Since it can be difficult to entirely cut out sugar, the very least we can do is consume the minimum amount and choose natural alternatives. If you are going to eat sugar, at least go for the natural kind like the sugar, fructose, found in fruit. It is far better to get your sugar fix from naturally sweetened fruit than processed foods. By doing this, you will be able to satisfy your “sweet” craving while still benefiting from of the nutrients your body requires to fight diseases like cancer. That said, fruit is high in sugar, so don’t go overboard. The key is to not consume more than 25 grams of fructose per day and never consume more than 7 grams within a 2 hour time period. If you exceed this amount you may trigger an insulin response thus leading to the release of cortisol. Not a good thing!