#healthylifestyle #sugar : as addictive as drugs?!

Sugar-related illnesses are increasing very fastly (obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and dementia). People are consuming more sweet stuff than ever! We know it's bad. We just can't stop. Science shows it's not simply a matter of self-control: sugar might be as addictive as hard drugs.

According to the book "Why Diets Fail: Because You're Addicted to Sugar" (Nicole Avena), the brain can get psyched by sweets due to a surge of dopamine, the feel-good neurotransmitter, in the brain's reward center. Besides, repeated spikes can desensitize that center, which could release less and less dopamine, leaving people needing more and more sugar to score a rush: these are the same brain patterns seen during illicit drug addiction!

Indeed, a recent study suggests that sugary cookies could be as addictive as cocaine or morphine. When scientists scanned the brains of subjects who'd just eaten a high-sugar treat, everyone's nucleus accumbens—the part of the brain that switches on when a person shoots heroin or smokes crack—was lit up like fireworks. By contrast, the control group that swallowed low-sugar fare had no nucleus accumbens activity.

That's not all: for some, sugar dependence could come with withdrawal symptoms like those of a street drug addiction, like lethargy, anxiety, and irritability. Just how vulnerable you are to sugar's sweet allure depends on an unquantifiable mash-up of dosage and genetics. Remember: Addictive or not, too much added sugar remains a health hazard.

Most people are sugar overeaters but don't know it: that's because some "healthy" foods are loaded with hidden added sugar. The FDA has proposed nutrition label changes requiring manufacturers to list natural and added sugars separately. Until then, we have only the "total sugar grams" line to go by. The recommended limit for added sugar is 6 teaspoons or 24 grams per day, study labels

Here we show some examples:

Barbecue sauce: 3.75 teaspoons (15 grams) in 2 tablespoons
Ketchup: 2.25 teaspoons (9 grams) in 2 tablespoons
Fruit-flavored yogurt: 7.75 teaspoons (31 grams) in 6 ounces
Pasta sauce: 3 teaspoons (12 grams) in 1/2 cup
Breakfast bar: 6.25 teaspoons (25 grams) in 1 bar