Sugar is as addictive as (insert drug)

You’ve probably heard this phrase in passing & thought, yeah that makes sense. It’s in news articles and I’ve heard it often so why wouldn’t it be true? Let’s unpack a bit of detail.

Firstly, to understand whether something has a characteristic of addiction, we need to define the term. Addiction is “a complex, chronic medical disease involving complex interactions among brain circuits, genetics, the environment, and an individual’s life experiences. People with addiction use substances or engage in behaviours that become compulsive and often continue despite harmful consequences.”

Similarities between sugar consumption & drug addiction

The similarities between food and drugs that people often refer to is that it ignite similar neural pathways (mainly those associated with reward & pleasure). Eating foods high in energy density, added sugar or fats triggers the natural release of chemicals in our brain such as dopamine, serotonin and opioids. This is undeniable and is a completely normal aspects of eating highly palatable foods. This has links to our forefathers who sought out foods that were high in energy and likely to keep them alive for a longer periods of time. If it wasn’t palatable and creating a reward in the Paleolithic period, we may not have been able to tell the difference between an energy dense food or a poisonous one meaning our evolution may not have progressed to the 21st Century. Our genetic evolution for diet hasn’t changed all that much but the explosion of the energy dense western diet has. This has lead to one of the puzzle pieces for overeating, sedentary behaviour and an obesity epidemic (not the only contributor but a conversation for another article).

So with all these chemicals being fired off in our brain, food and drug addiction may look the same. This is usually where the conversation stops for those who work in absolutes. Similar chemicals in these neural pathways can also be seen when people view pictures of loved ones, exercise, go to a concert or pat a dog. The craving to pat a dog doesn’t consume our daily thoughts though does it? (maybe for some). Below gives some more of the finer details to help understand addiction and sugar intake.

Rat studies are often references for this debate

Many studies that are blindly quoted in this space without context are carried out on rats. While there are similarities in our make ups, we are far from being the same. Also the environment in which these studies take place are highly controlled to show the effect the study wants to show. As mentioned above with humans, when rats are fed sugar, the neural pathways in their brain light up as much as some addictive drugs. The big difference was that addictive like behaviour in rats only happened when they were deprived of sugar or adequate food for a large number of hours. When they had free access to sugar or adequate food, they did not display addictive like behaviour.  Some studies even found that when rats were given the option of simple sugars and an alternate food option, they down regulated the intake (eat less) of the alternative food when given access to sugar. This showed they were offsetting caloric intake to limit overall intake and provides insight into the lack of sugar dependency when there is a normal feeding window.

Restriction leads to binging

When we use phrases like sugar is addictive, it shifts the context to an external problem and creates behaviours for people around full abstinence from something like sugar. This gives people a false external responsibility to blame rather than altering their own food behaviours and relationship with food. It is also very different to the abstinence, behaviours and chemical balance with illicit drug use.  

If we’re constantly told that we need to ‘avoid bad foods’ we create a food environment that isn’t helpful. We restrict food items unnecessarily and this creates a restriction-binge cycle that seems completely out of our own control. When we go on a strict diet for 6 weeks without the sight of a burger or a sugar cube, what’s the first thing we think of when we finish that diet or give ourselves a ‘cheat meal’….a burger or something calorie dense. There’s a saying that “you cannot be out of control around something you’re not trying to control.”

 Similar to the rat studies above, when we allow ourselves to have moderate amounts of food substances like sugar we don’t create an unhealthy view of how it should or shouldn’t be eaten. Complete abstinence from a food or ingredient creates more extreme food views and behaviours. When someone is experiencing sugar cravings in the mid-afternoon, there is likely more factors at play outside of blindly blaming a sugar addiction. A health professional would point to things like adequate portion sizes at lunch, enough protein in meals, snacks being fibrous or overall daily water intake before they demonise sugar alone. It often isn’t the sugar creating the issue, it’s the fact that someone is hungry at the time and in need of an afternoon snack. The choice is then up to them what they wish to eat.

The other point to make here is that if sugar was as addictive as some illicit drugs, you would see many more people seeking it out in it’s purest form. Literally tipping the table sugar upside-down. But we don’t do that in our kitchens or see it at the local cafe. It’s because we seek out food that is enjoyable. Sometimes that food contains sugar and that’s OK. The other point that people often fail to discuss in this conversation is the social context in which we may be consuming these enjoyable food.  A birthday cake serves a purpose for a time of celebration. It isn’t going to demand someone drive back to the shops to pick up 3-4 more cakes for themselves even though they are full.

In no way is this article a defence of consistent or high consumption of simple sugars in someone’s diet. There are many aspects that contribute to poor health & chronic health issues and this sort of poor eating pattern without balance over a lifetime is one of them. But notice the language; eating patterns and balance rather than avoid and ban. Some of the healthiest and best athletes in the world have simple carbohydrates as part of their performance nutrition plan. It serves a purpose in the right context.

Unpacking the definitions

There is a need to differentiate cravings (a strong will to want something) and hazardous use (seeking a substance out regardless of adverse outcomes).The general population often reports food cravingslike chocolate but this pales in comparison to some drug cravings which have much higher intensity, frequency and duration. Food cravings also subside once we are fed. Below is something called the DSM-5. A criteria to determine the effect of a substance on the body. You can see there are some cross overs but also differences between sugar intake and drug use.

Similarities between sugar intake and drug use:

-Ignites similar neural pathways in our brain (but so does patting a dog)

-Cravings can be legitimate if consistently in a poor food environment & there is intermitted access.

Differences/discussion points:

-Animal studies references which are often on unfed mice

-Studies usually show pure sugar consumption. We rarely consume it that way.

-If we were truly addicted to sugar, we would seek it out in it’s purest form (table sugar)

-Restriction leads to bingeing. You can’t be out of control from something you’re not trying to control.

-Addiction is a strong word and allows power to be given to the food substance rather than the actual behaviour.

-Sugar (or food) addiction has several shared features with binge eating disorder (BED). Resolving them with a health professional is much more helpful than blaming a single food or ingredient.

Bottomline- Sugar or simple carbohydrates can release chemicals in our brain linked to reward and pleasure but so too can other foods. The concept of addiction has a lot of nuance behind it. If sugary foods aren’t completely restricted from someone’s diet, it does not show to have the same effects as that of certain drugs. Addictive like food behaviour has more correlation with binge eating patterns and is wiser to seek out a health professional before blaming one product for the downfall of your whole diet.