2023-09-29 13:57:22
September 29, 2023
“Being addicted to sugar”. If the expression is well known, does it nevertheless refer to a scientific reality? Is sugar addictive like drugs? What happens in our brain when we consume it? Answers.
The notion of food addiction to sugar is a very controversial subject among scientists. Foods can certainly have a psychotropic effect because they have a pleasure component: certain foods bring us well-being, and our natural inclination leads us towards those which give us the most well-being. Some of us will therefore tend to consume a certain sugary drink or food, precisely to seek this pleasure. But can we still talk about addiction?
Giving sugar to pigs…
It is to answer this question that researchers from the University of Aarhus in Denmark recently conducted a study on an animal model. In this case pigs. For 12 days, these scientists gave the animals two liters of sugar water daily. At the same time, they performed brain imaging from the beginning to the end of the experiment. Their conclusion is clear: “ sugar influences brain reward circuits in a manner similar to that observed during drug use “. And to continue: “After just 12 days of sugar consumption, we were able to see major changes in the brain’s dopamine and opioid systems. In fact, the opioid system, which is the part of the brain associated with well-being and pleasure, was already activated from the first dose ».
The debate has begun
This conclusion seems to close the debates, at least on the surface. Because other scientists put forward another hypothesis. According to them, sugar does not cause withdrawal syndrome or addiction phenomena inherent to taking drugs. On the contrary, they assert that pleasure “ decreases with consumption until it becomes unpleasant when we reach satiation », We can read on the site filsantejeunes.com. “ According to them, an addictive process could indeed occur, but only in situations of eating disorder (…) in reaction to discomfort.. »
When are we dependent?
To be dependent is to not be able to do without something. But to be considered an “addict”, there are certain criteria to meet. To know :
- a tyrannical and pressing need to consume;
- loss of control (consuming thoughtlessly);
- the time spent consuming (or thinking about it);
- a physical feeling of lack when there is no consumption;
- the continuation of consumption despite physical inconveniences.
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