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Laura Deleruyelle: Sugar and the Human Body
Posted: Nov 18, 2015
Laura Deleruyelle is dedicated to helping her patients maintain good health and good habits. She educates her patients about how added sugars can devastate the human body. Consuming large quantities of sugar can lead to obesity, fatty organs, tooth decay, diabetes, and even cancer. Before you pick up a second donut, it is important to know exactly what those sugars are doing to your body and the impact they could have on your future health.
Sugar is a complex molecule made up of two simple sugar molecules, glucose and fructose. Glucose is produced by the human body naturally, and is found in every living organism. It is also the fuel for the brain. When you consume glucose, it triggers your pancreas to produce insulin, which takes glucose from your bloodstream and delivers it to different cells as a form of energy. However, sweets that have added sugars have too much glucose and causes a myriad of issues. Elevated blood sugar levels decrease the production of a brain chemical called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). A BDNF deficiency renders our brains unable to form new memories, makes it difficult or impossible to learn new information, and it can cause brain fog and short-term memory loss. Low BDNF has also been linked to depression and dementia. Eating processed foods with added sugar and sweets can cause a roller coaster with circulating blood sugar levels. After ingesting a high sugar food product, the bodies blood sugar levels plummet which causes fatigue. The high amount of insulin that is being produced blocks your body’s production of leptin, a hormone that tells your brain that your stomach is full. This will result in overeating and eventually obesity. If your body goes through this process frequently, then your cells will become resistant to insulin, which can then lead to diabetes.
Fructose is the second simple sugar molecule. Your body does not need fructose and consuming large quantities of it can be harmful. Fructose is metabolized by the liver, if it is consumed in small quantities, then your liver will store it as glycogen to use later on. Once your liver has stored all the glycogen it is capable of, then it will begin turning the fructose into fat. This will lead to a fatty liver which is detrimental to your overall liver function.
Sugar is empty calories. Sugar has no nutritional value at all, it only provides pure energy. This energy not only goes to your body’s cells but also to bacterial cells in your mouth. This leads to overactive bacteria that will decay your teeth.
The worst aspect of consuming large quantities of sugar is the possibility of it leading to cancer. Over consumption of sugar directly affects insulin production. Insulin keeps your cells healthy, it delivers energy to cells whenever you eat and maintains the cells growth patterns. Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells, and unstable insulin production could lead to this growth. Just eating a couple of cookies may not cause these complications and diseases. However daily overconsumption of sugar can cause long term illnesses that could lead to fatal diseases.
Dr. Laura Deleruyelle is a dedicated advanced practice nurse who is focused on all of her patients’ short term and long term health. She advises that diet and sugar consumption are major factors for their long term health.
The Author writes articles for medical and business field. He has also contributed to Wikipedia, Squidoo and Hubpages. His articles have been published in print as well as online magazines.