What is sugar?
The sweet, indescribable taste when it hits your mouth. The unforgiving flavor bursts and makes you crave more and more. Sugar is used in almost everything that tastes delicious and many more. Currently, the global production of sugar is about 180 million metric tons annually, which suggests that it is definitely an integral part of the human diet. Sugar is made up of a molecule called sucrose which contains many carbon atoms, hydrogen, and oxygen.
What happens inside your body?
We all know that rush we get when we take a bite of that chocolate, sweet, or pastry. This is because of a neurotransmitter, dopamine, that is being released, which significantly affects the brain and gives us this massive craving for more. It is very tempting not to consume something as delicious as a pastry from France, however, once the addiction hits, it can be as lethal as anything else.
Effects on the body
Not only can the overconsumption of sugar cause high blood pressure, weight gain, and inflammation, but worse effects such as cardiovascular disease, fatty liver disease, and heart attack. The real question is, does it cause cancer?
Relationship between Sugar and Cancer
The rebel cell. Benign or metastatic, cancer can have a major impact on you and your life. Cancer is caused by many external and internal factors, such as heredity and passing it on through generations. It can also be caused by mutagenic factors like carbon tetrachloride or even pollution. Luckily, there is no direct link between sugar and cancer, but it's known that sugar fuels cancer cells, making it easy for them to survive. But how?
Cancer cells rapidly divide and grow very quickly, so they need lots of energy, known as glucose, for this to happen. Since glucose is a form of sugar in the body and is carried throughout the bloodstream to each cell, sugar is the primary source of energy providers in the body; it's easy for the cancer cells to live when they are being provided with as much energy as possible to sustain themselves. That said, sugar provides energy for every cell in your body, not only cancer cells.
Although there is no direct link to the cause of cancer from sugar, it's a factor that must be taken into consideration when trying to avoid cancer, as the overconsumption of sugar can lead to obesity, which can cause cancer. Nonetheless, cutting out sugar entirely from your diet isn't good either, as your body still needs glucose to provide energy for your healthy muscle cells.
Reference List
cycles, T. text provides general information S. assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct D. to varying update and Text, S.C.D.M. up-to-Date D.T.R. in the (n.d.). Topic: Sugar industry. [online] Statista. Available at: https://www.statista.com/topics/1224/sugar/#topicOverview.
Publishing, H.H. (2022). The sweet danger of sugar. [online] Harvard Health. Available at: https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/the-sweet-danger-of-sugar#:~:text=This%20is%20why%20it%20is.
UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine. (n.d.). Sugar and Cancer. [online] Available at: https://osher.ucsf.edu/patient-care/integrative-medicine-resources/cancer-and-nutrition/faq/sugar-and-cancer.
UK, C.R. (2023). Sugar and cancer – what you need to know. [online] Cancer Research UK - Cancer News. Available at: https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/2023/08/16/sugar-and-cancer-what-you-need-to-know/.
www.cancer.org.au. (n.d.). Does sugar cause cancer? [online] Available at: https://www.cancer.org.au/iheard/does-sugar-cause-cancer.
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