Sugar is delicious. Anyone who denies that is lying. But because life is unfair, sugar, especially in copious amounts, is really bad for your health. In fact, once you learn about all the ways sugar impacts your body, it’s difficult to look at it the same way (despite knowing how heavenly it tastes).
1. Constant hunger
According to a study published in the journal Hospital Nutrition, sugars produce a greater feeling of satiety than carbohydrates.
However, this feeling of fullness is short-term, meaning that it is very likely that you will soon feel hungry again and want to eat something. This, combined with a lack of exercise and a poor diet, can lead to overweight or obesity.
So, if you are always hungry, even after eating, the reason could be because you are consuming too much sugar and no real nutrition.
2. You’re way moodier than usual.
The blood sugar crash that happens when you’re coming off a sugar high can cause mood swings and leave you feeling crabby. Not to mention, if your energy is also tanking, that just contributes to a bad attitude.
3. Feeling tired
It is true that sugary drinks are usually consumed to gain energy and combat tiredness and fatigue. Many sports drinks contain sugar.
However, the long-term effects, especially when consumed in excess, are not so clear. An experiment conducted by researchers at Cardiff Metropolitan University has shown that reducing refined sugar intake can improve mood and fatigue.
Although the study opened the door to further research on the subject, it is very interesting and enlightening. So, if you feel tired all the time for no apparent reason, it could be because your diet is too high in free sugars.
4. You constantly crave sugary things.
The more sugar you eat, the more you’ll crave it. “More cravings then equal consuming more sugar it becomes a vicious and addictive cycle,” Brooke Alpert, M.S., R.D., author of The Sugar Detox: Lose Weight, Feel Great and Look Years Younger, tells SELF.
This isn’t just because your taste buds have adapted and left you needing more and more to get that same taste, but also because of how sugar gives you a high followed by a crash, just like an actual drug. “By eating a high sugar diet, you cause a hormonal response in your body that’s like a wave, it brings you up and then you crash down and it triggers your body to want more sugar.”
5. You’ve been getting more cavities.
When bacteria chow down on food particles in between the teeth, acid is produced, which causes tooth decay. Our saliva maintains a healthy balance of bacteria on its own, but eating sugar can impact the pH and throw off the natural ecosystem. This gives the bacteria a chance to thrive and multiply, leading to cavities.
6. Aged skin
According to a study published in the journal Clinics in Dermatology, consuming too much sugar can make your skin age faster.
This is because it stimulates the production of molecules known as AGES (Advanced Glycation End-products), which damage collagen and elastin. As a result, the skin ages faster.
7. Joint pain
Although this is a rarer symptom, consuming too much sugar could lead to joint pain. In fact, some research associates excessive intake of carbonated drinks (rich in sugar) with a higher likelihood of developing rheumatoid arthritis in women.
This is also due to the AGES molecules we mentioned; they cause inflammation that can lead to long-term joint pain.
8. You’ve been putting on some weight.
Excess sugar is excess calories, and since it has no protein or fiber, it doesn’t fill you up (so you just keep eating it). It also triggers the release of insulin, a hormone that plays a big role in weight gain. When we eat sugar, the pancreas releases insulin, which carries sugar to our organs so it can be used for energy.
When you load up on sugar, your body’s told to produce more insulin over time, that excessive output can lead to insulin resistance. Insulin resistance means our bodies can’t respond to normal amounts of insulin properly and therefore can’t use sugar the right way.
The initial weight gain from simply eating too many calories from sugar is being compounded by the disruption to your normal insulin response (there’s a link between insulin resistance and obesity). What’s more, when the pancreas works in overdrive for too long you can develop diabetes.
9. Nothing tastes as sweet as it used to.
“Eating too much sugar basically bombards your taste buds,” Alpert says. “This sugar overkill causes your taste bud sugar tolerance to go up, so you need more and more sugar to satisfy that sweet craving.” When your taste buds need lots of sugar to feel like something is sweet enough, it can be tough to lower your base level. However, it you cut back and suffer through it in the beginning, you’ll eventually lower your tolerance again and be content with minimal sugar. You might even start to feel like things are too sweet for you and gasp! be happier consuming sugar in moderation.
References: nationaldailyng.com, femalle.net
