Sugar Addiction

A new University of Michigan study confirms what has long been suspected: highly processed foods like chocolate, pizza and French fries are among the most addictive. The first change was the advent of agriculture and animal domestication ~10,000 years ago, leading people to become producers by gathering and securing food supply ( 31 ). Of course, farming depended on climate and plagues which could decimate crops resulting in famine ( 3 ). The second change was the industrialization of food supply (industrial revolution of the nineteen century) allowing for mass production of flour and sugar ( 32 ), with the ulterior manufacturing, in the last decades, of processed and ultra-processed foods that are inexpensive and highly caloric (abundant sugars, salts, fats) ( 11 , 33 ). These two developments are linked to food availability and how food is refined and commercialized.
The average American consumes 19.5 teaspoons of added sugar every day , and 66 pounds of added sugar per year, which, according to the American Heart Association, is just way too damn much There's sugar in our bread, pasta sauces, chips, fruit drinks — any way food manufacturers can sneak sugar into our diet, they'll do it.



There has been new evidence showing not just how alcoholism and sugar addiction are related in terms of trading one addiction for another, but also the fact that children who are more drawn to sugar may be more likely to end up abusing drugs or alcohol, underscoring the genetic component of addiction.
Fat has 9 calories per gram, versus carbohydrate and protein, which have 4 calories per gram, according to the USDA Because fat is so calorically dense, it's easier to exceed your daily calorie needs when you eat a lot of it. A mistake credible some keto dieters make is thinking they can binge on fatty foods as long as they're not eating carbs and they're in ketosis — the metabolic state in which your body is using fat for fuel and creating ketones to provide energy.

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.

One could separate these drugs by their effect on feeding, for example, ACh release is decreased or not changed in the NAc if the drug increases food intake (opioids, alcohol, benzodiazepines) ( 147 - 150 ) while those that act as anorectic (cocaine, amphetamine, nicotine) produce the opposite effect, an increase in ACh release ( 142 , 151 - 153 ). Moreover, cholinergic ablation in the NAc increased sensitivity to cocaine ( 154 ). What is common for most drugs of addiction is that during drug withdrawal ACh is increased in the NAc ( 147 , 149 - 151 , 155 ). In addition, enhanced functioning of the ACh interneuron in the NAc prevents addictive behaviors for cocaine and morphine ( 156 ). The augmented release of ACh in the NAc occurs simultaneously to a decrease in DA release ( 150 , 151 , 155 , 157 ), identical to the response observed during a conditioned taste aversion.
Dana has spent years leading group-based behavior change classes, developing and leading interactive workshops for worksite wellness programs, and providing nutrition counseling to individuals struggling with eating, weight, and chronic health conditions.