Sugar is the universal name for sweetened, solvable carbohydrates, many of which we incorporate in our daily nutrition. Sugars can be found in the tissues of most plants and exists in sugarcane and sugar beet in many different forms for skilled economic extraction. The world production …show more content…
Originally our primate ancestors derived to seek out sugary sweet foods for their high-energy content. This was to raise their chance of survival when food was sparse. Nowadays food is readily available, yet we still can’t get enough of the sweet stuff. The reason for this is all in the brain. Sugar gets you hooked through feelings of euphoria triggered by dopamine, the pleasure-inducing chemical in our brain. This is the area of the brain that is associated with reward. This is a very similar process that addicts struggle with when it comes to drug use. Due to the happy mood and the reward factor, this is why we get those sugar cravings. We are always left wanting more to continue the feeling of exhilaration. Even when we consume a normal range of sugar we can discourage dopamine transporters, which can lead to us needing to eat even more sugar to get the same pleasure reward as before. It becomes an endless cycle that is not easy to break, hence why sugar addiction is …show more content…
And just like an addict, you need more and more of that substance to get the same rush. Which is why Americans are addicted to sugar. Those who regularly consume sweet foods, build up a resistance. Feeling less reward and needing to eat more and more each time to accomplish the same gratification felt originally. Several studies advise that highly-enjoyable, highly-processed foods can produce behaviors and changes in the brain that one would use to diagnose an addiction, like drugs and alcohol. Not only that, but it’s been reported that continuous exposure to sugar can cause eating disorders and change the behavior of