Research into sugar addiction.

fruttibiscotti · December 2013

Sugar addiction: pushing the drug-sugar analogy to the limit.

AuthorsAhmed SH, et al.
Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2013 Jul;16(4):434-9. doi: 10.1097/MCO.0b013e328361c8b8.

Affiliation
Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France. sahmed@u-bordeaux2.fr

Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review research that tests the validity of the analogy between addictive drugs, like cocaine, and hyperpalatable foods, notably those high in added sugar (i.e., sucrose).

RECENT FINDINGS: Available evidence in humans shows that sugar and sweetness can induce reward and craving that are comparable in magnitude to those induced by addictive drugs. Although this evidence is limited by the inherent difficulty of comparing different types of rewards and psychological experiences in humans, it is nevertheless supported by recent experimental research on sugar and sweet reward in laboratory rats. Overall, this research has revealed that sugar and sweet reward can not only substitute to addictive drugs, like cocaine, but can even be more rewarding and attractive. At the neurobiological level, the neural substrates of sugar and sweet reward appear to be more robust than those of cocaine (i.e., more resistant to functional failures), possibly reflecting past selective evolutionary pressures for seeking and taking foods high in sugar and calories.

SUMMARY: The biological robustness in the neural substrates of sugar and sweet reward may be sufficient to explain why many people can have difficultly to control the consumption of foods high in sugar when continuously exposed to them.

fruttibiscotti · December 2013

Effects of dietary glycemic index on brain regions related to reward and craving in men1,2,3,4
Belinda S Lennerz, David C Alsop, Laura M Holsen, Emily Stern, Rafael Rojas, Cara B Ebbeling, Jill M Goldstein, and David S Ludwig

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Received April 10, 2013.
Accepted June 13, 2013.

Abstract

Background: Qualitative aspects of diet influence eating behavior, but the physiologic mechanisms for these calorie-independent effects remain speculative.

Objective: We examined effects of the glycemic index (GI) on brain activity in the late postprandial period after a typical intermeal interval.

Design: With the use of a randomized, blinded, crossover design, 12 overweight or obese men aged 18–35 y consumed high- and low-GI meals controlled for calories, macronutrients, and palatability on 2 occasions. The primary outcome was cerebral blood flow as a measure of resting brain activity, which was assessed by using arterial spin-labeling functional magnetic resonance imaging 4 h after test meals. We hypothesized that brain activity would be greater after the high-GI meal in prespecified regions involved in eating behavior, reward, and craving.

Results: Incremental venous plasma glucose (2-h area under the curve) was 2.4-fold greater after the high- than the low-GI meal (P = 0.0001). Plasma glucose was lower (mean ± SE: 4.7 ± 0.14 compared with 5.3 ± 0.16 mmol/L; P = 0.005) and reported hunger was greater (P = 0.04) 4 h after the high- than the low-GI meal, respectively. At this time, the high-GI meal elicited greater brain activity centered in the right nucleus accumbens (a prespecified area; P = 0.0006 with adjustment for multiple comparisons) that spread to other areas of the right striatum and to the olfactory area.

Conclusions: Compared with an isocaloric low-GI meal, a high-GI meal decreased plasma glucose, increased hunger, and selectively stimulated brain regions associated with reward and craving in the late postprandial period, which is a time with special significance to eating behavior at the next meal. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01064778.

fruttibiscotti · December 2013

New York Times

DIETING AND WEIGHT JUNE 27, 2013, 12:02 AM

How Carbs Can Trigger Food Cravings

By ANAHAD O'CONNOR

DIETING AND WEIGHT JUNE 27, 2013, 12:02 AM

Are all calories created equal? A new study suggests that in at least one important way, they may not be.

Sugary foods and drinks, white bread and other processed carbohydrates that are known to cause abrupt spikes and falls in blood sugar appear to stimulate parts of the brain involved in hunger, craving and reward, the new research shows. The findings, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, suggest that these so-called high-glycemic foods influence the brain in a way that might drive some people to overeat.

For those who are particularly susceptible to these effects, avoiding refined carbohydrates might reduce urges and potentially help control weight, said Dr. David Ludwig, the lead author of the study and the director of the New Balance Foundation Obesity Prevention Center at Boston Children’s Hospital.

“This research suggests that based on their effects on brain metabolism, all calories are not alike,” he said. “Not everybody who eats processed carbohydrates develops uncontrollable food cravings. But for the person who has been struggling with weight in our modern food environment and unable to control their cravings, limiting refined carbohydrate may be a logical first step.”

Regardless of the diet they choose, most people who lose a great deal of weight have a difficult time keeping it off for good. For many people, despite their best efforts, the weight returns within six months to a year. But a few studies of weight loss maintenance, including a large one in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2010, have reported some success with diets that limit high-glycemic foods like bagels, white rice, juice and soda.

In addition to raising blood sugar, foods that are sugary and highly caloric elicit pronounced responses in distinct areas of the brain involved in reward. Earlier imaging studies have shown, for example, that the main reward and pleasure center, the nucleus accumbens, lights up more intensely for a slice of chocolate cake than for blander foods like vegetables, and the activation tends to be greater in the brains of obese people than it is in those who are lean.

But do rich desserts have a select ability to change our longer-term eating habits?

To get a better idea, Dr. Ludwig and his colleagues recruited a dozen obese men and then fed them milkshakes on two different occasions separated by several weeks. In each case, the milkshakes were nearly identical: flavored with milk and vanilla, and containing the same amount of calories, carbohydrates, protein and fat.

But on one occasion, the shakes were made with high-glycemic corn syrup; on the other, a source of low-glycemic carbohydrates was used. “These test meals were identical in appearance and tastiness, and we verified that our subjects had no preference for one or the other,” Dr. Ludwig said.

As expected, blood sugar levels rose more quickly in response to the high-glycemic milkshake. But the researchers were especially interested in what happened several hours later, about the time most people are ready for their next meal.

What they found was that four hours after drinking the high-glycemic shake, blood sugar levels had plummeted into the hypoglycemic range, the subjects reported more hunger, and brain scans showed greater activation in parts of the brain that regulate cravings, reward and addictive behaviors. Although the subject pool was small, every subject showed the same response, and the differences in blood flow to these regions of the brain between the two conditions “was quite substantial,” Dr. Ludwig said.

“Based on the strength and consistency of the response,” he added, “the likelihood that this was due to chance was less than one in a thousand.”

Previous research suggests that when blood sugar levels plummet, people have a tendency to seek out foods that can restore it quickly, and this may set up a cycle of overeating driven by high-glycemic foods, Dr. Ludwig said. “It makes sense that the brain would direct us to foods that would rescue blood sugar,” he said. “That’s a normal protective mechanism.”

Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist at Stanford University who was not involved in the new study, said that after decades of research but little success in fighting obesity, “it has been disappointing that the message being communicated to the American public has been boiled down to ‘eat less and exercise more.’”

“An underlying assumption of the ‘eat less’ portion of that message has been ‘a calorie is a calorie,’” he said. But the new research “sheds light on the strong plausibility that it isn’t just the amount of food we are eating, but also the type.”

Dr. Gardner said it was clear that the conventional approach of the past few decades was not working. A more helpful message than “eat less,” he said, may be “eat less refined carbohydrates and more whole foods.”

Derf_Smeggle · December 2013

fruttibiscotti,

Nice reading. Thank you for the posts. I'm going to look up the Times' article to see if they reference the actual studies they are pulling the data from.

Mr_Knight · December 2013

My apologies - I forgot to include "deal drugs to kids" in the list of law-breaking possibilities.

I won't make that mistake again.

Derf_Smeggle · December 2013

Mr Knight,

I think you have a very narrow definition of addiction and you really have not added anything of value here. I'm going to post the definition of addiction here because I'll admit I'm a little shocked at the lack of understanding of what defines addiction.

Addiction

Main Entry: ad·dic·tion Pronunciation: \ə-ˈdik-shən\
Function: noun:

compulsive physiological need for and use of a habit-forming substance (as heroin, nicotine, alcohol) characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal;

broadly : persistent compulsive use of a substance known by the user to be physically, psychologically, or socially harmful.

There are studies posted above that show sugar creates habit forming psychological and physiological changes. There is evidence posted above that demonstrates the removal of sugar can generate physiological symptoms and signs in the brain.

There is growing evidence that the amount/quantity of sugar consumed in the American diet is harmful.

Do you have any research, scientific articles, data that refutes the information already posted?

Fishshtick · December 2013

Seems like folks get hung up on black or white definitions and some of the social side-effects that go with 'addiction'. I have no problem believing that many substances can trigger varying degrees of neurological addiction. Why would all addictions have to be of the same magnitude to count as addictions? More over, most of the criminal activities tied to illicit substances are more manifestations of scarcity, cost, sensory impairment or changes in psychological state. Sugar is cheap and easily available and does not cause overt sensory impairment or psychosis so it's not likely cause illegal activity. I don't see why that would somehow mean it couldn't have addictive properties to some degree.

Sabine_Stroehm · December 2013

You kinda got pwned. Just say: you're right, my bad. Or something similar.

sloth3toes · December 2013

Ah, I see.... so your thread is different from every other sugar is / is not addictive thread.

Got it now.

Derf_Smeggle · December 2013

Well..it is different from the threads I've personally seen so far. Granted, I've not seen them all. However we have people actually utilizing the internet to post and find relevant scientific research on the subject in this thread.

Do you actually have anything constructive along those lines, or just tired, worn out, pretentious commits masked in jaded indifference? Opinion based on nothing of substance? If that is all you have, then, brother, I'll tell you that has been around since the days of 56k dial up bb's.

Come on, man. Put up some relevant research. That's what I'm looking for.

QuietBloom · December 2013

Frankly, I'm not that interested in playing your little game. Go do your own searches in pubmed. Or not. I'm not that interested. Plus I can tell by your attitude that nothing about an ensuing discussion of scientific facts would be pleasant.

Derf_Smeggle · December 2013

Bloom, there is no game, but for an apparent few trying to derail this. Am I annoyed by that? Sure, a little. I asked for folks to share the actual science they've found. That's it. Nothing more.

If that's not your cup of tea it's no sweat off my brow.

PaleoPath4Lyfe · December 2013

For those of you that don't believe that sugar is addicting..............try living with someone that is a sugar addict.

I don't buy it. He sneaks and eats it at work. He "has" to have it.........goes through similar withdrawal symptoms that someone that is an alcoholic goes through when he doesn't have sugar.

At home he way over consumes fruit, fruit and more fruit. He loves the sweetest fruits. It throws his blood work off.

It's very frustrating to say the least.

fruttibiscotti · December 2013

I care, and I am curious about the research out there. I find it fascinating. The question, "is sugar addictive?" Is a good one. Research outcomes that display for or against the point are what is being asked for at this forum, to be evaluated, discussed, compared and contrasted.

sloth3toes · December 2013

Actually, I don't think I've expressed an opinion. You may have assumed my opinion by the 'tone' of my posts.... you might be surprised by my actual opinion. But, as you've stated, you're not looking for opinions. You want facts. For that, I got nothin'.

tigersword · December 2013

1. The consumption of sugar is actually lower than it was 100 years ago, why is it suddenly harmful now if it wasn't then?

2. Exercise has been shown to have those same brain effects. As I've already said, those are generally normal mental functions that illicit drugs co-opt. They aren't "drug addict reactions" that food somehow emulates.

3. There really isn't enough science to even come close to validating the "sugar is an addiction" hypothesis. The closest I've seen is a study where scientists said it MIGHT be possible.

Someone recently posted a study refuting the entire hypothesis, but I don't have it in front of me, and I seem to have lost the thread it was in. I'll try to track it down.

QuietBloom · December 2013

Great! I never said it wasn't a worthy topic of discussion. What you really want to do is look for primary research. The results of scientific studies, rather than news articles or magazine articles where the author is trying to sum up the data from these published scientific studies. Because then you are exposed to the author's bias.

Go here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

Have fun! :flowerforyou:

QuietBloom · December 2013

So what does he do? Buy bags of sugar and eat it straight? I don't get how a sugar 'addiction' works.

fruttibiscotti · December 2013

Thanks, Bloom.

Derf_Smeggle · December 2013

Here is an interesting study on the effects of bingeing on sugar in human subjects and mice. The findings reported that bingeing appears to have no effect, regarding addictive indicators and behaviors, in the human population of this study. It does report that a steadily high consumption of sugar over time is more likely to generate addictive indicators and behaviors. I will admit I'm a bit fuzzy on where that second conclusion was demonstrated in the study.

Morris, Kahlilia (2009) "Of Mice and Men: A Comparative Study Assessing Behavioral Indicators of Sugar Addiction in Mice and
College Students," Journal of Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Research: Vol. 1, Article 2.
Available at: http://knowledge.e.southern.edu/jiur/vol1/iss1/2
(There is a link to the full research paper on this page)

Research into sugar addiction.

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