Is Sugar Bad for you?

Is Sugar Bad for you?

Whenever you see those irresistible chocolates, crunchy cookies, creamy pastries and fruity scoops ice - creams, it’s hard to resist them as your mouth gets watery and your tummy starts craving for them. But have you ever wondered why its next to impossible to resist them these sugary products? Well, let me explain, but first let us learn few things about sugar.

Sugar is a sweet substance that originates from plants like sugarcane and sugar beets. It is one giant molecule of carbohydrate with the scientific name called sucrose made up of two smaller carbohydrates called fructose and glucose.

Simple sugars like sucrose can be easily identified, however sometimes sugar can be distinguished under fancy names lactose, maltose, dextrose, starch and fructose and glucose.

And since sugar is everywhere, it is vital to know how it impacts our brain and body. Why it is hard to resist, and what happens when it reaches your taste bud? As soon as you take the bite of delicious pastries, it activates the sweet receptors of taste buds on your tongue, which sends signals to different parts of the brain, including the cerebral cortex. And once the cerebral cortex processes the sweet taste, it activates the brain’s reward system and releases the feel good chemical called Dopamine.

Although eating a little sugar is not bad for you as your body needs it to survive but overeating it can lead to series of health issues. For instance, there is a chemical called Leptin, a hormone that is made by fat cells. The way Leptin works is when it rises, your appetite diminishes, which means Leptin is essential in controlling how much you eat as it tells you when to stop eating. But absorbing too much fructose can lead to Leptin resistance, a condition in which we don’t know when to stop eating, resulting in obesity.

Also, if you eat more sugar than your body can use in a day, it states the sugar it doesn’t need in the liver or converts it to fat. When you do this regularly, you damage your liver and build up fat. These extra fats can also enter your bloodstream and form fatty deposits in the blood vessels that increase the risk of stroke, heart attack, and other heart related problems. So, make sure to reduce taking of sugar, to stay fit and healthy.

Did you know sugar can make you look old? Yes, studies have shown that sugar can bind with collagen and elastin in our skin, causing permanent damage to it and making it look wrinkly and saggy.

And you won’t believe, but refined sugar has been linked with disease like arthritis, stress, depression, tooth decay, asthma allergies and even cancer.