According to Dr. Robert Lustig, professor of Pediatric Endocrinology at the University of California, San Francisco (USCF), sugar was “still extraordinarily expensive until the middle of the 18th to 19th century.”
“That expense may have been a blessing in disguise, as it made it virtually impossible for most people to consume in excess. And therein lies the problem. Sugar acts as a chronic, dose-dependent liver toxin (poison) when consumed in excess,” Dr. Lustig explained.
These days, we consume 20 times more sugar when compared to our ancestors and it seems that we have completely lost our control over the amount we use.
Why Is Sugar Bad for Your Liver?
Due to the fact that our liver has limited capacity to metabolize processed fructose, this is the major reason why sugar is detrimental to the liver. The video above explains why sugar may lead to diabetes and how it damages the liver.
According to Dr. Lustig, the liver has the capacity to metabolize only six teaspoons of sugar daily.
Still, an average American consumes about twenty teaspoons of added sugar daily. This excess sugar turns into body fat and leads to many chronic metabolic diseases over time. Among them are:
- Cancer
- Dementia
- Hypertension
- Cardiovascular disease
- Type 2 diabetes
According to SugarScience.org, a product of Dr. Robert Lustig and his colleagues, who have reviewed over 8,000 independent studies on sugar and its effect on heart disease, type 2 diabetes, liver disease and more:
“Over time, consuming large quantities of added sugar can stress and damage critical organs, including the pancreas and liver. When the pancreas, which produces insulin to process sugars, becomes overworked, it can fail to regulate blood sugar properly.
Large doses of the sugar fructose also can overwhelm the liver, which metabolizes fructose. In the process, the liver will convert excess fructose to fat, which is stored in the liver and also released into the bloodstream.
This process contributes to key elements of MetS [metabolic syndrome], including high blood fats or triglycerides, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and extra body fat in the form of a sugar belly.”
Borderline High Blood Sugar Levels Linked to Kidney Damage
The body is designed to have only a teaspoon of sugar in the blood. So, in case the blood sugar levels significantly rise, you are likely to go into a hyperglycemic coma.
In order to prevent this and maintain healthy sugar levels, the body works very hard by producing insulin. Any meal which is high in sugar and grain carbohydrates usually raises the blood glucose levels.
To make it up for this, the pancreas secretes insulin and lowers the blood sugar to prevent a fatal outcome. However, insulin turns the sugar into fat, which means that the more you secrete, the fatter you become.
Regular consumption of foods high in sugar and grains keeps the blood glucose levels high at all times, which in turn makes the body “desensitized” to insulin. Consequently, you become insulin resistant and then diabetic.
According to a recent study, people with slightly elevated blood sugar levels are at greater risk of kidney disease. Those with abnormal sugar levels were 95% more likely to have hyperfiltration, which may lead to kidney damage in diabetes.
Type 2 Diabetes Raises Your Risk of Dementia
Even though insulin keeps blood sugar levels healthy, it is also responsible for brain signaling. According to an animal study, when researchers disrupted to a proper signaling of insulin in the brain, they managed to induce many of the brain changes typical for Alzheimer`s disease.
Higher sugar and grains intake make the brain overwhelmed by the high levels of insulin and the signaling becomes significantly disrupted, causing impairment in memory and thinking abilities.
This may cause permanent brain damage and many other health issues. Therefore, the fact that a recent study linked type 2 diabetes to a 60% higher risk of dementia doesn’t come as a surprise.
A past study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2013 showed that a mild elevation of blood sugar is also linked to an elevated risk for dementia.
Hedonic Hunger: Junk Foods Trick Your Brain into Wanting More Food
The term “hedonic hunger” refers to the desire for food even when the body doesn’t actually need it. This is one of the major causes of obesity in the United States and it always involves cravings for unhealthy, sugary foods.
The more junk foods you eat, the more your body needs them. This works similarly to addiction of drugs and it eventually “forces” the person to eat more junk food in order to keep a feeling of well-being. According to Scientific American,
“Research has shown that the brain begins responding to fatty and sugary foods even before they enter our mouth. Merely seeing a desirable item excites the reward circuit. As soon as such a dish touches the tongue, taste buds send signals to various regions of the brain, which in turn responds by spewing the neurochemical dopamine. The result is an intense feeling of pleasure.
Frequently overeating highly palatable foods saturates the brain with so much dopamine that it eventually adapts by desensitizing itself, reducing the number of cellular receptors that recognize and respond to the neurochemical.
Consequently, the brains of overeaters demand a lot more sugar and fat to reach the same threshold of pleasure as they once experienced with smaller amounts of the foods. These people may, in fact, continue to overeat as a way of recapturing or even maintaining a sense of well-being.”
Reengineering Your Food Environment to Break Junk Food Cravings
According to Michael Lowe, a clinical psychologist at Drexel University, the key to breaking the addiction lies in reengineering the good environment. In other words, you need to avoid bringing junk food home and avoid places where it is offered. The less sugar you eat, the faster your cravings will disappear. The video below brings the story of a man who gave up sugar completely.
He felt irritable at the beginning, but the cravings went away after a week. Besides getting rid of these cravings, his blood sugar, weight, and energy improved!
Are You Addicted to Sugar? Here’s How to Break Free
The energy psychology technique called Turbo Tapping is time-tested and proven to work for most people.
You should avoid processed foods because most processed foods contain hidden sugars. If you are overweight, have diabetes, heart disease, or hypertension, or are insulin resistant, you should limit you sugar intake to 15 grams a day. Others should limit their sugar intake to 25 grams on a daily basis.
Other tricks which can help you break free from your addiction include:
1. Exercise
Those who exercise regularly know that cardiovascular exercises are one of the best ways to eliminate food cravings.
2. Organic, Black Coffee
Coffee contains compounds such as cafestol, which are found in both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee. They attach to the opioid receptors and block the addiction to other opioid-releasing foods.
3. Sour Taste
Sour taste from fermented vegetables works on several levels. Namely, besides reducing sweet cravings, it also promotes gut health.
source: http://www.healthy-holistic-living.com
