Sugar Addiction

Scientific Facts About Sugar Addiction

The Society for Neuroscience notes that in the past, addictions to sugar or foods have mainly been joked about in the scientific community. Then, a few years ago, scientists started to look more closely at addiction and sugar. Mainly there are a lot of arguments back and fourth about the issue. Also, most of the research out there right now about sugar and addiction is simply theory.

What Is An Addiction?

The actual definition of an addiction is helpful when talking about addictions to sugar or food.

The term “addiction” is used to describe an individual who has physical dependence on a substance or on an activity. Real addiction is considered a disease. If you have a honest-to-goodness addiction then you’ll be able to build up a tolerance to the item, and when you try to stop you’ll experience withdrawal symptoms. There is also a strong emotional and lifestyle component to addiction. Addictions often result in a disruption of normal life activities – the addict's work or home life may suffer and the user often experiences relationship problems.

Real sugar addiction can also result in long-term chemical brain changes and promote brain adaptations to an activity or substance. This is the closest proof so far that sugar may be an addictive substance.

If you look at sugar, or food addiction, you can clearly see the emotional problems involved, but it creats an actual physical dependence is up for debate. Many researchers believe that the withdrawal feelings someone experiences when they don’t eat as much as normal are more emotion and habit based than actually physically based.

Theory: Sugar Makes Our Brain Happy

Some current studies show that sugar or other foods are not addictive in the same way as say, alcohol or nicotine. However, when you eat sugar your brain may be affected in such a way that it can feel like an addiction. Brain chemicals (opioids) affect drug addictions – sort of promote a drug addiction by creating a pleasurable brain affect when you take them. The same may be true for sugar and other sweet foods. This pleasurable response can make people want the addictive substance in a bad way, whether the substance is heroin or candy.

In part, a system like this is useful. If our brains want food, and have a positive response when we eat, then we won’t starve. We’re willing to spend time eating. On the other hand, sweets can create an extra little push in our brain that is not so positive. We eat more than we need, or we eat non-nutritious and unnecessary food items. The brain issue is complicated but makes sense. You can see a diagram of this scenario in a sugar addiction brain briefing at The Society for Neuroscience.

Theory: You Can’t Ever Be Technically Addicted to Sugar

An article based on Pennsylvania State University sugar addiction research discusses both sides but comes to no clear conclusion. Mostly it discusses why sugar can’t ever be addictive.

One professor of biobehavioral health and medicine at Penn State relates that sugar can never be addictive because the human body never becomes physically addicted to sweets like it does to drugs.

The associate director for the Center for Childhood Obesity Research in Penn State's College of Health and Human Development, Cynthia Bartok, notes that, “"Despite the anecdotal reports of people who claim to be addicted to sugar, and seemingly endless websites devoted to sugar addiction modern science has not yet validated that idea."

Something to consider about sugar and addiction is that you don’t need more and more of it to satisfy your craving. If sugar was technically an addictive substance, you’d have to up your sugar intake as time passes to get the same affect on your body. However, this is not true. If you eat a bowl of sugar today, you’ll get the same bodily and brain affects if you eat that same size bowl of sugar three months from now.

How Do You Explain Sugar Addiction – If There Is No Addiction

If there’s so much controversy about sugar and other food addiction then how come there are countless articles in magazines and online about being addicted to sugar and food?

It probably has something to do with people and guilt. If science can’t without a doubt prove that our bodies can become physically addicted to sugar than we’ll have to blame our own bad eating habits for our sugar intake. We won’t be able to blame a “sugar or food addiction.”

In today’s overweight America it seems like people want someone to blame and an addiction can be an easy target. The truth is, that so far, there’s no scientific proof of real sugar addiction.

Still, that does not mean that sugar or food cravings can’t feel like an addiction. People claim to feel addicted to food and sugar, and those feelings are perfectly normal and validated. Overeating causes many people pain and lifestyle problems. The good news is that since it’s not a true addiction it may be easier to break the hold sugar has on you, easier than say, the hold that an alcohol addiction has on someone.

The best thing to do if you think you may be eating too much sugar or other food items is to talk with your health care provider. They can help you get on a healthy eating plan. Another component you doctor can teach you more about is exercise. You can take responsibility and stop overeating sugar or other foods with the right support.

To learn more and to find support visit the following resources:

• Overeaters Anonymous
• Nutrition and Healthy Eating
• Plans and Programs
• Diet and Fitness