Can sugar affect your mental health?

We all know the feeling, you’ve decided to cut sugar from your diet but night time rolls around and you just can’t seem to satisfy that sugar craving. You’ve tried having ‘one square of dark chocolate’ like everyone suggests but who are you kidding … that’s not going to stop you from devouring an entire tub of cookies and cream ice cream. But why? Could you be addicted to sugar?Research supports the idea that dopamine (a neurotransmitter that helps to control the brain’s reward and pleasure systems) is released in response to sugar, triggering a process of behavioural reinforcement. However over time, the brain adjusts to having increased amounts of dopamine and requires a larger amount to feel the same sense of pleasure.In a study involving obese rats, it was found that dopamine receptors were down regulated causing them to eat more than they originally did in order to receive the same rewarding sensation. This change in reward system is also seen in the brain of cocaine addicts suggesting that sugar can become an addictive substance.So with all these changes in dopamine within the brain, it’s not surprising that we experience a ‘sugar high’, but what goes up must go down right? So how low can these ‘sugar lows’ get? Can a withdrawal of sugar lead to feelings of depression?In a group of rats that were consistently fed sucrose and then injected with naloxone (a drug used to stimulate a withdrawal effect) behavioural characteristics of depression were found when they placed in water with an escape option. When compared to other groups, these rats displayed a decrease in escape efforts suggesting elements of behavioural depression upon withdrawal. The neurobiological changes in the brains of those experiencing withdrawal from drugs such as alcohol or nicotine are similar to those experiencing withdrawal from sugar, suggesting addictive like dependencies."But I get so tired when I’m sitting down all day studying, sometimes I just need that little sugar pick-me-up to help me get through it". Actually, this may be causing the opposite effect.In a study, which provided rats with consistent access to sucrose for 28 days, it was found that performance on spatial memory tasks declined when compared to a control group. Furthermore, changes in the brains hippocampus were observed in rats that were fed a high sugar and high fat diet suggesting a deficit in the potential for learning and processing memories.It seems that while there are many studies demonstrating the effects of sugar on ones physical health, its impact also appears to be consequential to mental health and brain function as well as being linked to some characteristics of psychological disorders.It seems that a spoonful of sugar may actually help brain function go down!