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That sugar is as addictive as drugs, scientists announced many years ago. As proof, they cited studies on rats that preferred sugar water to cocaine. Dietitian Dr. Damian Parol does not agree with this thesis, who believes that sugar cannot be called addictive, and that it is compared to drugs by the scientific journalist and physicist Dr. Tomasz Rożek considers it harmful. What’s the truth?
- A statistical Pole consumes a kilogram of sugar per week — says Dr. Tomasz Rożek and adds that even children are addicted to sugar, which he compares to drugs
- With those presented by dr. Rożka’s theses disagree with Dr. Damian Parol and emphasize that the mechanism of addiction is much more complicated
- Dr. Parol also cites research that shows that sugar is much less addictive than many other foods, and the real problem lies elsewhere
- You can find more such stories on the TvoiLokony home page
“Personally, I think that it is illegal to describe sugar as addictive and is not supported by scientific evidence” — writes Dr. Damian Parol on his blog. Dr. Parol, dietitian and psycho-dietician, refers to the film that Dr. Tomasz Rożek, a science journalist, physicist and science promoter running the «Science. I like it”. The film says that sugar is as addictive as drugs. Each of us has probably encountered this statement at least once.
The dietitian defends the sugar. Why?
— There are a number of studies conducted not only on animals, which show that sugar is as addictive as drugs — says Dr. Tomasz Rożek and adds that an average Pole eats 50 kg of sugar annually. In the film, Dr. Rożka says that Even children are already addicted to sugar. As proof that sugar is addictive, Dr. Rożek talks about the dopamine release and the “reward mechanism” that occurs in the brain after consuming sugar. The feeling of bliss and pleasure is associated with the consumption of sugar and the body begins to insist on repeating it.
“It may seem pointless that I am standing up for sugar” — Dr. Damian Parol writes about this film. As he explains, it is about the educational value of the film in which Dr. Rożek compares sugar to drugs.
«There is a very big pedagogical problem with this film. Since sugar is as addictive as cocaine, it is logical that cocaine is as addictive as sugar ”. As an example, he cites a situation in which a young man takes this statement literally and thinks that if he drinks sugar in a cola it is okay to eat cocaine at a party. “I hope you understand the problem this creates and why we need a gradation” — explains Dr. Parol.
In an entry on his blog, Dr. Parol cites evidence that sugar does not addiction such as drugs. «It has been experimentally rehydrated that cocaine and heroin-dependent rodents are able to endure unpleasantness such as electric shocks and nausea to get drugs. However, with sugar, this is not the case, and it is is one of the key differences between sugar addiction and drug addiction«. They also cite studies in which rats preferred sugar water to cocaine, but also preferred rat granules or other food to cocaine.
Dr. Parol has criticized the claim that sugar causes dopamine bursts, so it’s addictive. “This is a shameful simplification” — he marks. He explains that «the addiction process is much more than dopamine bursts and that dopamine is not just an addiction neurotransmitter ». He also explains that dopamine is important for the proper functioning of the brain and that many positive activities, such as exercise, work or a cup of coffee, trigger dopamine bursts. “In short — dopamine bursts and activation of the reward system it is still not enough to talk about addictive properties» — sums up.
Cheese and crisps can be more dangerous than sugar
The dietitian, referring to publications in scientific journals devoted to healthy eating, also cites the results of research on addictive food. The symptoms of addiction were mainly caused by cheese, french fries and crisps (about 30% of addictions), about 25% constituted cakes, cookies, chocolate. Sweet products such as sugar, hard candy and sweetened drinks were in third place (with the result of 5%).
The professor wanted to ban sweets
Dr. The horns are not new. More than 10 years ago, the American pediatrician and obesity specialist, professor Robert Lustig from the University of California in San Francisco, proposed that the sale of bars and all kinds of sweets in schools should be punished.
“The health risk of overconsuming sugar is so great that it justifies regulations similar to those adopted for alcohol or nicotine” — he wrote in the scientific weekly “Nature”. Prof. Lustig also argued that sugar affects the brain in a similar way to cocaine and heroin.
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Not sugar, but processed foods. This, according to the dietitian, is a real problem
According to Dr. Damian Parol the real problem of the modern world is not so much sugar as processed food. «Sugar is not the only fattening part of the diet and it is not the most caloric one. Refined fats have the most calories » — writes. It also emphasizes that the processed food market is adapting to consumers. More and more “sugar-free products” appear (because the public is more and more aware that sugar is harmful), but these products are not healthier at all.
«Sugar consumption is falling, but obesity continues to grow because the main problem remains — we eat too much high-energy processed food. And yet sweets are not the only obesity-promoting products. There are also all kinds of fast food and ready meals that do not have significant amounts of sugar but are still very fattening » — summarizes Dr. Damian Parol.