How sugar—and even artificial sweeteners, like Splenda—could increase anxiety and depression, writes Psychobiotic
Our intestines are efficient at splitting sugar into its components, glucose and fructose. Sugar causes the pancreas to release insulin, which shepherds the glucose into our cells for energy. Excess glucose is stored as glycogen and fat.
If we consume a large amount of sugar, it will overcome our pancreatic attempts to deal with it, and glucose levels will rise in our blood, as measured by the glycemic index. Foods that raise our glycemic index too high can damage our metabolism and microbiota. For instance, sugar promotes the, a microbe associated with colorectal cancer and metabolic disorders.
The story starts with beneficial microbes that attach directly to our gut lining and stimulate special immune cells called Th17. Besides their immune duties, Th17 cells also prevent lipids from being absorbed by our gut, helping to prevent metabolic disease, weight gain, and type-2 diabetes. But when we eat sugar, other bacteria come to dominate, and that interferes with the Th17 effect.
Disruptions in the gut microbiota and Th17 cells can lead to “leaky gut,” where the gut becomes permeable enough to allow toxins and even bacteria to breach the lining and reach the bloodstream. From there, gut microbes can infect every organ in the body, leading to systemic inflammation. Almost every chronic disease can start like this, including heart disease,
, arthritis, type-2 diabetes, colon cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. Scientists are starting to appreciate Hippocrates’s maxim that “all disease starts in the gut.”Up to half of Americans consume artificial sweeteners , specifically to regulate weight and lower their blood sugar levels.
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