How sugar affects the brain - Nicole Avena 

The fact that nobody talks about the book Dopamine Enigma Unveiled, speaks volumes about how people are stuck in a trance.

4:43 “A wedge of cake wont hurt you”. Thats how we all started long ago.

Brain is the most powerful organ in the body. -said brain

"Drugs like alcohol" I love that you said that. People still think it's not dangerous, while it's a drug the same as others.

I gave up eating anything with processed sugar 15 years ago. That means no cookies, no cakes, no soft drinks or smoothies. The only sweet things I eat are fruits and I feel very active. It takes discipline but you get used to it.

Trust me sugar addiction is real...i somehow feel like it's my responsibility to finish all the sweets that are lying around in my house.

"Sugar acts a little bit like a drug" "A cake once in a while won't hurt you"

The best way that I can describe sugar withdrawal is that it feels kind of like when you are extremely thirsty, and feel a great urge to drink water. Sugar withdrawal is similar to that - kind of like you are "thirsty for sugar" - and this is definitely quite unpleasant to go through during the first couple days.

When you stop eating sugar for about a month, you stop craving it. I personally don't even enjoy sweet tasting things anymore; it's amazing how we just crave what we eat on a regular basis.

Me: Put 2.5 spoons of sugar into tea. Me: Watch the video. Me: Put 2.49 spoons of sugar into tea.

"Too much of everything is bad for you..."

It's really hard to stop. The addiction is real..

So working in a sugar factory makes you crack dealer.

I had an ED and sugar was always a trigger - I stopped eating sugar 2 years ago ( stopped desserts and I limit as much as possible added sugar) for medical reasons because they also can trigger my mood swings, and I never, ever get sugar cravings, it's an awesome feeling to look at cake and be like "meh, i genuinely don't want that". It benefits the body in so many ways and a bonus is that I've naturally stayed lean!

To those struggling with the effects of sugar like myself, I hope you find balance. It’s not easy at all.

*The best reward is to feel healthy! Presentation conclusion: Consume less sugar, please.* 🙏

Americans : I'm gonna pretend I didn't see that.

The brain is the only organ that named itself and it was surprised to realize that

Whoever animated this is doing a WONDERFUL job!

Sometimes, I feel that sugar should be treated like an addictive drug towards young children

Every comment I see says "The Brain is the most powerful organ in the body. -Said the Brain" -Said the Brain

"A wedge of cake won't hurt you" that's all what I've retained from this video.

To give some encouragement to anyone struggling with eating habits and too much sugar, I was increasingly becoming insulin resistant and developing many conditions that come with it! It surprised me enough that I decided to find out how to reverse it. You can have a low sugar diet and be satisfied and healthy! The conditions have reversed that were affecting me since I've lowered sugar intake, increased protein, fiber, and exercise. It's such a relief and I'm so grateful to have my health 🙏 💛 😌 💓 i hope you all are healthy too!

As a new pastry chef I can clearly see the effects of sugar on my brain since I entered sweet industry. I want to consume sugar regularly and when I dont have something sweet for a longer period of time I feel hungry and restless. It's hard af to concentrate on things like studying. So bad.

Meanwhile, as an asian : RICEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

I like broccoli

I had a sugar addiction, it really can be called that. I had been buying myself a bar of chocolate or a candy bar for a year or more on a regular basis (every couple of days), this is if you don't count the sweet tea that I constantly drink. I just couldn't do without it, I couldn't concentrate on anything until I ate the damn sugar... and yes, my teeth are affected too. The problem was getting worse, and I decided to finally end it. I did not completely give up sweet purchases (I have already said why above), but I reduced the dose gradually, and now buying sweets is an exceptional rarity for me. Saving money and saving your health is what you will have if you prevent sugar addiction.

Mitochondria is the powerhouse of cell!

What's funny is that most people don't realize that probably 90%+ of the food you buy has added sugar of some sort even if it is a savory food. Check your labels, you may be grossly surprised.

I love the insane creativity that went into making of this video.

I become sleepy when I eat sugar. Literally can't control the sleepiness after a drink, a meal or dessert with sugar. But whenever I quit sugar for a while I become incredibly alert and energized.

0:41 Glucose! Sucrose! Dextrose! *Starch: Don't mind me, I'm just being that annoying odd-one-out friend*

The animation makes this video all the more interesting and captivating. Great job, Ted-Ed!

this is my first time watching this video. wow! *Mind blowing* i wish my school lesson are like this..it's so visual, colourful, interesting. *thumbs up*

0:02 Text appears: "TED Ed: Lessons Worth Sharing"

How come the food that's better for us doesn't give us a good response man😭

Socializing has never given me pleasure.

4:45 "But a wedge of cake once and a while won't hurt you" *Eats entire cake ina second*

1:11 CORRECTION: Sweetness receptors do not reside on a definitive patch of the tongue. Taste mapping like that is a misconception.

This damn background music. I looked down and there was suddenly a martini glass in my hand and I was in a full tux.

I was about to eat a brownie until this popped in my recommendation list and I clicked it. I then grabbed a bottle of water instead.

When I was a kid, I had no problem eating sweets but now that I've grown up my body begins to ache & stuff when I eat sweets

4:41 the conveyor belt of all of the sugary food is really amazing to see how each item of sugary food like cake, cookies traveling through the body is showing us how easy it is to get addicted and how your body is reacting like a machine blindly contining to eat the high fructose food to get our quick addiction fix.

I knew sugar was like a drug for some people but didn't know thé reasons. This is so well-explained. It's gonna help me to explain the addictive mechanisms.

of course I pour myself a bowl of cereal to sit down to watch a random youtube vid and I pick THIS ONE

There was a point in my life where I stopped craving sweets, especially these processed ultra sweet foods. I don't know what happened but kind of I'm glad it happaned.

I lived two weeks without sugar and I didn’t really crave for it. The first week was hard, but after that I felt okay.

The animation here deserves an Oscar. The narration was also super nice.

Doesn't even answer the question, I wanted to know how if affects the brain, not about how addictive sugar can be (that's only part of it)

Thanks! I stopped eating sugar (except for one fruit serving in the morning). I had anxiety for a week, but I got used to not drinking lattes or eating scones, pastries and cookies all day long....I also quit eating refined flours. This has made me feel better and with more energy...and i have a smaller gut!!!

Can we talk about the fact that the ice cream just told me to bite it?

don't know about brain, but it's definitely affecting my teeth

Ouch, it's showing the myth of only a specific part of tongue tasting a specific taste... :/

Advice for anyone who wants it: Eat your meals at a specific time every day Please Otherwise you’ll be left craving food, which is usually the junk food (sugar)

“A wedge of cake won’t hurt you” Me: Ok, I’ve heard what I wanted to hear, time to dip.

Fun fact: The 5 taste receptors are not localized on tongue, instead they are evenly distributed.

this animation is awesomely sick

I’m gonna be honest. For me if I don’t eat dessert or snacks like candy or chips for a long period of time and I see it on the market after I exercised I literally can not move away my eyes it’s like I want it so much. But after I eat like one or two bites those feelings are completely gone and I don’t feel that urge of eating sugary food for at least like 1 month if I’m eating enough calories.

Cutting sugar out of my eating is the best decision I've made so far. Better health, better skin, better breath( I have asthma attack), better mood and I eventually grew taller faster.

the tongue doesn't have specific areas of receptors. they are scattered.

I am watching this because I have noticed a significant decline in my memory, short term specifically, and losing concentration and focus. I forget small things, easily lose my track of mind, and forget what i'm talking about often. It has gotten to the point that it hurts my head to think because I know the information, I just can't remember and it scares me. I know I am addicted to sugar and I have my whole life. I do not eat many fruits or veggies or take vitamins either. It is hard because I don't gain weight and have always been fit, so I assumed I never needed to change the way I eat because I never had an issue, but the real issue is inside and not on the outside. I am also so tired all the time and I have a hard time finishing tasks, thinking with my Dr I may have ADHD. But when the medication isn't "working" my concerns go elsewhere. This video was very informational. I have always been very creative and intelligent, but I am clearly noticing a decline as I get older. Any easy ways to begin shifting my diet would be appreciated.

No one's talking about the Animation effects used in the Video . Absolutely Amazing

Please tell me at 1:10 that is not a "Tongue map". That was disproved ages ago.

I like the style of animation. Great work.

Its funny ... I like salty food more than sugary.

0:26 definition of sugar 1:13 how sugar affects our brain 2:33 dopamine is the major currency of our reward system 3:20 dopamine levels

gotta say that I'm so addicted to sugar that I developed quite a big resistance to it. I can eat lots of sweets without feeling that nauseaus thing. But i'm trying to get over it, but my body keeps asking me for it, its so hard!!

I've been trying really hard to eat healthier and literally cut both Sugar & Salt out of my diet by 70-80%. I had no idea, that to even achieve the level of change that I wanted, would require me shopping at multiple different stores for the food & ingredients that I needed!... But it's totally working and I look & feel so much better than I did 6 Months ago!... 💯💯💯

The video is good and all, but in the beginning, the ice cream said "Bite Me". Like bitch tf you think I am? My two front teeth don't like you but my tongue does so c h i l l o u t i c e c r e a m .

After looking at the anatomy of the human body, how could anyone ever say there is no God? He is real and alive. His creation is perfect because He is the creator. All glory to God! ❤

If you're think about it, it'll be like *Human eat bad thing* Brain : "MORE MORE MORE !" *Human eat good think for his body* Brain : "NOOOOOO, I DON'T LIKE IT"

i once tried to stop eating any sugar.. just managed to do that for 3 days till cravings became to strong (and finding things without sugar became to much work). dont understand why drugs are illegal but sugar with the potential of a class 1 drug is actively added to everything.

*im eating candy at the dentist while watch this video.*

This is my go-to learning place

I like spicy. 🌶

can we all pause and appreciate how artistic and beautiful this is video is, kudos to the editor and layout artists for this

1:09, Thought that was a colossal titan...

All such "smart people" forget to say the main thing: sugar is the main source of energy for the nervous system, including the brain.

Honestly you’re better off avoiding processed sugar as much as possible. Since it’s in everything you buy from the store the wedge of cake isn’t the only thing you have to worry about.

TED-Ed is truly an incredible way to bring people entertaining knowledge. Thank you for putting so much effort into your videos. I enjoy watching a couple of these videos before getting my day started!

If you bite into an ice cream ur a psychopath

Whenever I have any food with high sugar, I start feeling sleepy after some time.. I've learnt it the harr way

I do believe that I am addicted to sugar...I eat huge amounts of sugary foods, processed foods...is really hard and is starting to affect my health

"Picture warm guey cookies" My mind exploded.

I think there is a slight confusion. Sugars are note necessarily bad for you, it is just the fact that most of us, like, probably almost everyone in the US, eat way too much of it in general; And way too much of particular types of sugars as well. Also, I will say that I think we hone in on Bleached Granulated Cane Sugar (Table Sugar) when we hear the word sugar, but other sugars like fructose (When eating a fruit) and Honey are much better for you.

I've spent this whole month intermittent fasting and detoxing my body from sugar well as much sugar as I can anyway. I've lost 16 lb and I'm very happy but man sugar addiction is real

maybe this probably might be why i just aggressively ate a bunch of candy like i hadnt seen food for days when i came home from school

I recently stopped eating sugar, even fruit, and I instantly felt a boost in my mood and a decrease in stress levels. My brain dopamine levels were clearly evening out. Incredible!

0:15 "Eat me" "Lick me" "Chew me" "Bite me" With...Fucking...Pleasure

I was lazy to the point, I developed diabetes and heart disease. I had a eating disorder. If I didn’t eat food I would cry. I used to 40-90 cookies a day. Drinking about 20-30 sodas. In like two days in total.

Umami always makes me think of Ross saying UNAGI

That's the issue. As a once overweight and obese person who loved sweets, even now when I'm at a healthy weight when I eat sweets I totally binge out, and almost always the whole day. Like I become a psycho eating sweets. I can eat 20 cookies and eat a burrito and although I'm dying of fullness I eat other shit. How do I control that? That's why I'm scared of eating sweets because of my lack of control which really isn't healthy for you. And it puts all my hard work to waste. Anyone has any tips??? Thanks loves.

Starch is NOT just sugar, it is a polysaccharide, or a complex carbohydrate, unlike sugar which is usually a monosaccharide (though disaccharide is also common). Not articulating the distinction in how these molecules are metabolized is not doing this topic justice. Also, presenting the brain's craving of variety in food being due to a strategy to gain varied micronutrients is a misrepresentation as it doesn't account for the brain's fundamental preference for variation/diversity/novelty in nearly all areas. Also, this video didn't at all examine insulin resistance and increasing need for higher levels of sugar to promote similar blood glucose levels as the initial surge and that such promotes further sugar consumption, unlike a balanced meal.

Who is here after eating Cookies 🍪 🤔

In my case there is no such thing as addiction to sugar, after eating a lot of sugar you get that unwanted feeling of yours that feeling of sick which discourages you from eating sugar again. But a little sugar once is very useful.

"eat me, lick me, chew me, bite me"

That's why you are the best channel on RU-vid, so well explained. Thank you ❤️

It's all about balance. I have been struggling with eating disorders, eat blinge, but now I'm good. I don't take to much sugar I as used to, just one time per week. I'm going to have lettuce for lunch, but I must confess that I'm thinking about the delicious ice cream I'm gonna have in the next 10 days. It will be worth the wait.

The fuzzy awesome feeling of eating a milky red bean icecream bar *while* watching this video put a huge sweet smile on my face.

I think RU-vid realised that I’ve been eating way to much sugar the past week I can literally tell I have an addiction