BY Huda BirkdarWe’ve all craved that specific desert such as cake, cupcakes, or even ice cream and may have finished the entire thing in just one sitting... While we’re usually caught up in the moment due to the serotonin and satisfaction that this specific desert brings us, we disregard and ignore the negative effects that may originate on our bodies in the future. No, not that small stomach ache or sleepiness but rather real disorders and behavioral issues such as aggression, impulsiveness, and depression. A poor diet, especially consisting of sugary foods, results in physical conflicts such as body weight gain or excessive body fat, elevated blood sugar levels, heart complications, and insulin resistance. Along with bodily side effects, the brain and behaviors of individuals are at risk as an increase in low energy levels, attention deficits, and aggression occurs. According to Volume 103 of the Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews Journal, “...sucrose consumption results in pathophysiological consequences such as morphological neuronal changes, altered emotional processing and modified behaviour in rodent and human models.” Just like drug and alcohol addiction, sucrose has the same effects as humans continuously yearn for more of that sweet taste which is called the dopamine system. The dopamine system results in a belief of sugar being a reward to these individual’s bodies causing them to constantly crave it to satisfy their minds and bodies. As an individual is stressed, cortisol is released from the adrenal glands which leads to sugar being released from the liver and an increased blood sugar of the body. Due to this increase of blood sugar, a crave and desire for sugary foods also emerges through cortisol targeting other organs such as the brain in order to inform the body of this massive crave for sugar. This continuous cycle of external stress and the stress from the crave for sugar alters brain function negatively as stress increases the possibility of the emergence of depression and anxiety. The hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis in the brain functions to maintain homeostasis and most importantly controls the response to stress but due to the excessive sugar intake of individuals, sugar suppresses this neuroendocrine unit thus decreasing cortisol responses. The undesirable effect of sugar on cortisone and the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis results in an impaired ability to respond to stress properly, thus resulting in resorting to anger and impatience because there is no relief from the stress. Unhealthy eating habits such as the consumption of sugary foods and meat products rather than healthy intake like vegetables, fruits, fish, and grain can prompt an imbalance in the chemicals of the brain such as endorphin levels, thus leading to mental disorders and complications such as depression because the intestinal flora and neuro-endocrine functions become damaged. Orexin is a chemical in the brain that regulates and stimulates feelings of arousal and the feeling of being awake but once sugary foods are consumed, the chemical orexin is inhibited from producing, thus resulting in a lack of wakefulness and constantly feeling tired. This constant feeling of tiredness and a lack of motivation to complete daily tasks in one’s everyday life occurs and the risk of depression arises. The inability to control stress, the resulting neuro-endocrine complications, and the continuous crave for sugar from the dopamine system results in impatience, decreased bodily energy levels, and mental complications. These sugary foods have impaired many necessary bodily functions and have resulted in undesirable behavioral and mental disorders. It’s important to monitor the connection between food intake and the health of our bodies. References:
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