The Sugar Switch - The Bio Science Behind The Addiction
/The Mechanics of the Gut Biome Imbalance
In the inaugural Sugar Switch article, we learned “why” you crave sugar. In this step, we will take a deeper dive into the world of the gut biome and discuss exactly how the candida bacteria take over your mind in Star Trek Borg-like fashion.
If you are in a state where you constantly crave carbohydrates and sugary foods, it is highly likely that you have an intestinal yeast infection. Some call it “SIBO”, or Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth. Others call it “dysbiosis of the gut”, which is basically an imbalance between the types of organisms presently living in your gut.
Did you know that Candida bacteria is a type of yeast? It’s the little monster that is most responsible for causing sugar cravings. When they overpopulate your gut, they can elevate your insatiable desire for junk food.
Here’s a real-world example that illustrates this situation…
When you bake rolls, you use yeast. Yeast must have sugar in order to grow. “Rising” your bread results from yeast reproducing and creating gasses. Candida is a yeast, and also needs sugar in order to rapidly populate.
So, the question remains, how does the Candida bacteria get you to crave the sugar it needs?
Here’s how…
Candida bacteria cause strong carbohydrate and sugar cravings, because they can “urge” you to feed them what they want to eat. The simple explanation is that they produce neurotransmitters that are sent through the bloodstream to your brain, tricking you into craving what they want. That’s why I associate Candida with the Borg.
The reason why you crave sugar is due to a hormone imbalance. Hormones are the messengers of the body that let the brain know what is going on in the gut, organs, and limbs. The appetite-regulating hormones are leptin and ghrelin. They are called “neurotransmitters”.
Leptin sends the signal to the brain that you are satisfied. It turns off hunger. Conversely, ghrelin sends a signal to the brain to increase eating. It is often called the “hunger hormone”. These are 2 very important hormones in the group that regulates satiety. Satiety is simply gratification or satisfaction in eating.
Candida bacteria have the ability to mess up this delicate hormone balance by sending signals to the brain that override your body’s natural signals. In fact, Candida overgrowth is directly connected to a condition called “leptin resistance”. We will get into what that means in a future article.
To put it simply, the Candida monsters constantly bombard your brain with the message “DUMP DOWN MORE SUGAR”. Your brain rewards you for obeying this command when you gulp down that Vanilla Coca Cola or snarf down that dozen of heavenly Krispy Kreme donuts. That’s why they seem to taste so good.
Now you know why sugar is so addictive. The more you eat, the more the Candida overgrowth gets out of control. As the signal becomes stronger due to the rapid growth, the cravings become worse over time. It can be insatiable, because the satiety hormones are thrown out of whack.
When a person with a messed-up gut situation eats junk foods, it causes the brain to release opioids and dopamine. These are the same neurotransmitters associated with the rewarding effects of drug abuse. However, sugar has been studied extensively and has been proven to be more addictive than cocaine.
In my next article, we will learn about what happens when you don’t address your sugar addiction. We will also cover how you can start the process of ending it, and give you plenty of motivation for taking immediate action.
When you become aware of the myriad of inflammatory problems and chronic degenerative disease conditions that arise from sugar abuse, you’ll be ready to get your addiction under control BEFORE you experience the needless, senseless pain and suffering that will develop years down the road.
Carlton Flowers
GO TO PART 3 - The Balance of the Intestinal Ecosystem & Gut Brain Link