The Effects Of Too Much Sugar On The Body - 1197 Words

Annie Schindler G Period 2/2/2016 Chemistry Honors Effects of Too Much Sugar on the Body Sugar is added to almost everything we eat and drink in today’s society. It is in everything from candy and ice cream to plain crackers. It appears on nutrition labels in many different names such as high-fructose corn syrup, maltose, honey, glucose, and sucrose (Fed Up). In grocery stores, around 80% of processed foods have sugar added to them (Fed Up). Although it is obvious that overeating foods with too much sugar in them can cause weight gain, there are many underlying drastic effects of consuming too much sugar as well. Overconsumption of sugar has been linked to Type 2 Diabetes, obesity, cancer, heart disease, and many other†¦show more content†¦Dopamine is the hormone that gives the person an emotional lift or happy feeling. Drugs like heroin and cocaine are examples of products that cause the brain’s dopamine receptors to release massive amounts of dopamine (How Sugar Affects the Brain). This flood of dopamine in the brain after consuming drugs is what cause the â€Å"high† or good feeling that people experience when doing drugs. The brain’s dopamine receptors act in a similar way when large amounts of sugar are eaten (How Sugar Affects the Brain). Studies have actually shown that the same exact areas in the human brain light up when a person eats high levels of sugar and when a person does cocaine (Fed Up). Even though the â€Å"high† feeling is way less severe from the sugar, it still draws people back for more, eventually leading to an addiction that he or she is complete unaware of (How Sugar Affects the Brain). If an addiction to sugar is not controlled, one can become obese. Obesity is a growing epidemic in America today. According the Encyclopedia of Science, obesity is when a person’s BMI, body mass index, is over thirty percent. When the body mass index is over thirty percent the person’s body fat hinders the body’s functions, becoming extremely harmful. The cause of obesity is when a person consumes too many calories that they cannot burn off. The calories that cannot be burned off are stored as fat. Obesity can contribute do many diseases such as Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Disease, strokes, and