SUGAR MORE ADDICTIVE THAN COCAINE? REALLY?

A QUESTION THAT HAS DIVIDED SCIENTISTS FOR DECADES.
In recent years, it has become common to hear or read that sugar is THE modern drug to which we become addicted through daily consumption. However, comparing sugar to drugs remains a contentious issue within the scientific community, and consequently in everyday conversations. Can we equate sugar consumption with cocaine addiction? Here are some elements of the answer.

Sugar is supposedly more addictive than cocaine: a notion that has divided the scientific community for many years.

In fact, this question was addressed in a meta-analysis published by three North American researchers in the *British Journal of Sports Medicine* in 2017.

In this publication, over sixty studies were analyzed, and the researchers concluded that “sugar consumption produces effects similar to those of cocaine consumption, particularly on mood by activating the brain’s reward circuits, leading to a craving for more sugar.”

To demonstrate that sugar might be more addictive than cocaine, they cite numerous studies conducted on rats, such as the study published in 2008, which showed that sugar induces the release of brain opioids and dopamine, typically characterizing a state of dependence.