The Reclassification of Sugar as a Drug
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Date
2006-04
Authors
Lyle, Marie-Hélène
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Lethbridge Undergraduate Research Journal
Abstract
Sugar is traditionally classified as a food “used to improve the palatability
of many foods” (ISMA, 2005). As such, it is the “cheapest instant source of
energy” (ISMA, 2005) containing no nutritional value. Recent research,
however, has proven that “under select dietary circumstances, sugar can have
effects similar to a drug of abuse”(Rada, Avena & Hoebel, 2005). There are
other health risks as well: as Hunt (1999, p. 18) argues, “The average American
consumes his weight in sugar every year (152 pounds),” leading to
complications such as cavities, mood swings, and weight gain, or to more
serious complications such as diabetes. 1 As a result, it is increasingly difficult
to ignore the powerful negative affects sugar may have on the physiology and
psychology of consumers. In this paper, I will argue that sugar in fact has many
drug-like properties that need to be taken into consideration when classifying
this substance purely as a food in order to understand the benefits and dangers
of sugar to our minds and bodies.
Description
Keywords
Sugar Analysis
Citation
Lyle, Marie-Hélène (2006). The Reclassification of Sugar as a Drug. Undergraduate Research Journal, 1(1).