7 Reasons Why You Might Want to Avoid Sugar
Throughout the past decade, we’ve seen more and more experts promoting “low carb diets.”
Low carb is seen as a healthy substitute to modern diets. It’s seen as a cure to weight problems, mental health problems, and much more.
And as a result, we’ve seen different types of low carb diets emerge, which include…
- Ketogenic diets
- Carnivorous diets
- Intermittent fasting
Do I Have to Eliminate All Carbs?
You have to cut them drastically – especially if they contain high levels of sugar.
Sugar is considered a silent killer. It damages our bodies the most, and is responsible for most of our health problems.
Below, we’ll analyze sugar a little further. We’ll discuss 7 drawbacks of its consumption.
Read the list, and be sure to share!
#1 – Causes Weight Gain.
Our brain loves sugars, since sugar is easy to metabolize by the body.
The more we consume sugar, the more our brains get hooked on it. This leads to a sugar addiction that drives us to eat more.
Sugar is Like a Drug.
Research shows that regular consumption of sugar has a similar effect to drug abuse (source).
In fact, the dopamine release is similar to that of heroin and cocaine consumption, making it effectively an addiction!
But unlike heroin and cocaine, sugar can be consumed regularly and in high doses (without being directly fatal).
And this leads to binge eating, and eventually weight gain.
Also, sugar is hard to give up. There are withdrawal symptoms you experience when giving it up, similar to giving up opiates (source).
Think of it This Way.
Obesity doesn’t come from consuming fats and oils.
It comes from baked products, alcohol, and fast-foods that use sugar as a filler.
Sugar comes from food that’s easy to access and consume. So there’s less waiting required, and immediate chemical rewards to its consumption.
#2 – Increased Risk of Cancer and Diseases.
We often worry about carcinogenic items in our meals, without realizing that sugar is the worst we consume.
How is Sugar a Carcinogenic?
Excess body fat is linked to high risks of cancer. And as mention previously, sugar contributes greatly to obesity.
According to the American Institute for Cancer Research (source), sugar and obesity contribute to the most common types of cancer, including…
- Breast
- Colorectal
- Stomach
- Prostate
However, according to the previous source, sugar doesn’t directly feed cancer cells, which is a common misbelief in the health community.
More Links Between Cancer and Sugar.
The most cancer-mutated gene recorded thus far exists in the phosphoinositide-3-kinase, which is an enzyme responsible for insulin regulation (source).
And what does insulin do? It tries to regulate the body’s intake of carbohydrates.
When we consume too much sugar, that enzyme pathway gets over-activated. And with that comes a great risk of cancer.
Additionally, it was found that the over-activation of those pathways contributes to feeding cancer cells.
And that’s where the idea that sugar feeds cancer comes from.
#3 – Increased Risk of Depression.
Research shows that sugar consumption is responsible for failing long-term psychological health (source). And that can be due to a number of reasons.
First, there’s the obesity issue.
With obesity comes a sense of self-consciousness about one’s body. This leads to lower self-esteem, which contributes to frequent bad moods.
In fact, obese people are at greater risk of psychological problems (source).
Thyroid Issues.
Sugar can negatively affect thyroid functioning, which is responsible for metabolism, growth and body temperature (source).
Changes in those can lead to mood problems, which are sharper in those prone to depression.
Blood Sugar Spikes.
Strong spikes in blood sugar are caused by carbohydrate dense diets.
Almost everyone knows the drawbacks of sugar spikes. They start with a strong high, only to end with sharp drops in energy levels.
Blood sugar spikes lead to a sense of psychological instability. And that’s because they lead to energy drains, and altered levels of consciousness.
#4 – Sugar Drains Your Energy.
Blood sugar spikes occur when simple sugars build up in your blood.
White sugar consumption is a frequent culprit. It enters your bloodstream the fastest, and it’s also absorbed too fast.
Here’s a Time Chart…
Blood sugar spikes drain our energy levels in 2 hour cycles.
First, your blood sugar begins to rise within 15 minutes of finishing a meal.
It’ll then reach its peak within an hour.
After that hour, your blood sugar begins to drop off, going back to normal within the 1-2 hour mark after eating (source).
The end of the 2 hour mark is when we experience an energy drain.
And the result? We need to keep eating sugars (every 1-2 hours) just to keep our energy levels up, ensuring we aren’t drained throughout the day.
The Results.
Beyond obesity, this type of consumption is impractical. It’s not good for a productive lifestyle, and the constant energy swings are uncomfortable.
Experiencing energy drops continuously leads to loss of focus, more mood problems, and less impulse control.
#5 – Accelerates Cognitive Decline.
Sugar has a negative impact on cognitive functioning (source).
According to the previous source, aging individuals are more susceptible to sugar-induced cognitive declines than others.
Additionally, that effect can be tracked starting with middle-aged individuals too.
Thus, the cognitive decline happens as a result of a lifelong habit of bad eating. It’s where the brain gets more sensitive to sugar the older an individual is.
Diabetes – Another Factor.
Diabetes is a consequence of the body’s inability to process high levels of sugar.
High insulin resistance is associated with lower blood flow to the brain. And that lower blood flow leads to reduced memory.
Memory is an important aspect of cognitive functioning. And taken to an extreme, this leads to Alzheimer and dementia – both associated with diabetes (source).
Diabetes can also lead to blood vessel damage in the brain, which leads to other forms of cognitive impairment.
#6 – Accelerates Skin Aging.
Sugar accelerates aging in all the body’s tissues, the skin included (source).
Glucose and fructose (simplest forms of sugar) cause cross-links within the body’s proteins (cells collagen fibers).
Those cross-links make it difficult for the body to repair those tissues. This leads to aging, and a premature death of those cells.
Other Harmful Effects on the Skin.
Sugar can lead to acne development.
Sugar has oxidative effects that can lead to breakouts. Those breakouts are inflammations, and in many cases can spread throughout the entire body!
#7 – Leads to a Fatty Liver.
An often ignored harm, but one with negative consequences.
Fat can build up on your liver, even when you aren’t overweight. And it builds up due to the liver overproducing fructose.
It’s similar to the damage from too much alcohol.
Fortunately, fatty livers can be reversed by abstaining from sugars (though it is a two week or more process).
In Summation.
Sugars are often seen as a silent killer.
Not only do they make you age fast (and reduce your life expectancy). But also, they reduce your life quality through a variety of complications.
We’ve mention the most important ones in this article. Be sure to read it thoroughly, and share it with loved ones!
