be pretty full, he crosses a metal platform that gives his feet electric shocks just to

get a sweet reward.

Sometimes our love of sugar makes us go a little overboard.

We've all been in that situation where we've had one cookie and then suddenly… the whole pack is gone.

And then, we crave more. So can you be addicted to sugar?

Let's revisit our mouse friend – that brave little guy who risked his life just

for some sugar dissolved in water.

When he did this, a pathway was lighting up from the hunger and feeding region of his

brain to another region important for motivation and reward.

He'd developed a reward seeking habit.

Looking at this pathway is like zooming in on our larger reward-processing centre.

Researchers found that activating it increases compulsive overeating and binge eating behavior.

And they found that shutting down the pathway decreased that sugar seeking behavior.

But it didn’t stop normal healthy eating behavior, like having dinner.

For us, a reward seeking behavior is going to the fridge or pantry and getting a cookie.

We're hardwired to love sugar because it has energy-dense calories.

And it keeps activating our brain’s reward system,

and these behaviors aren’t new to research.

In an established animal model, rats are food deprived for 12 hours and then they're given 12 hour access to sugar water and food.

As a result, they drink a lot of the sugar water, especially when it becomes first available.

After a month on this feeding schedule, the rats display behaviors similar to those seen

in drug abuse. They binge on the sugar, and show withdrawals, cravings and even depression

when it's not there. After this sugar bingeing the rats show a similar pattern of brain activity

as other rats who are morphine-dependent.

Many studies have compared sugar addiction to drug addiction, because they show similar

symptoms. Like increased tolerance, withdrawals and unsuccessful attempts to quit.

Could sugar really be as bad for us as drugs?

Some experts think so, arguing that sugar is toxic, messing with our hormones and harming our organs.

The “sugar is toxic” argument is mainly related to fructose – it's one sugar primarily

found in table sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Fructose can only be processed by our

liver, so consuming too much puts a lot of stress on it. It’s been suggested that over

time this can lead to metabolic syndrome, which in turn can lead to type 2 diabetes.

Not everyone agrees with these claims that sugar is evil. Some of the studies that link

fructose to health problems have been criticised – because in them animal or human participants

consumed way more fructose than most people would. And animals metabolise fructose differently

to humans. Studies show that mice and rats convert as much as 50% of fructose into fat,

while for humans it's more like one percent. What a fat rat.

And it's important to remember that many things, apart from sugar and drugs, can stimulate our brain's reward circuit.

Like exercise, gambling and to a lesser extent, fatty foods.

It doesn't necessarily mean we’re addicted to those things, we just find them pleasurable.

It's pretty clear that sugar is an addictive food. But even if you like eating chocolate

or donuts every day it doesn't mean you’re addicted. Very few people are.

Still, if you are finding it impossible to reduce sugar cravings, doing regular exercise,

eating dairy products and even chewing gum have been shown to help.

Whatever you do, just don't cross a metal platform that gives your feet electric shocks

to get a sweet reward. It’s not gonna end well.

If you haven't already, check out my last episode on what sugar does to our bodies.

And subscribe to BrainCraft! It's pretty sweet.