Inside Health Can you be addicted to sugar?
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Apr 22, 2025 Join Professor Susanne Dickson, a neurobiology expert, Professor James Brown from Aston University, and dental hygienist Claire McCarthy for a sweet discussion on sugar addiction. They unveil the science behind sugar cravings and the brain's reward system. The trio dives into how stress influences sugar consumption and its parallels with traditional addiction. Plus, Claire shares humorous and invaluable dental tips to balance enjoyment and hygiene, ensuring your teeth stay healthy while indulging in those Easter treats!
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Difficulty Defining Sugar Addiction
- Addiction involves consuming beyond healthy amounts despite negative health effects.
- Sugar addiction is hard to define as it lacks clear withdrawal or tolerance patterns seen in substances of abuse.
Brain Reward Drives Food Craving
- The brain's reward system drives craving and wanting, motivating us to seek pleasurable foods.
- Dopamine response diminishes with repetition of the same food but renews with different foods, promoting dietary diversity.
Sugar's Reward and Anticipation Effects
- Sugar strongly activates brain reward in animals but human studies are difficult and expensive.
- Anticipatory reward, the drive before consumption, may increase in those who consume more sugar.