Our bodies are simply not made to process the high quantities of the types of sugar that we consume nowadays.
Sugar is in no way nutritional and it actually depletes the body of its vitamin and mineral resources. High sugar consumption is tied to mental disorders, lower IQ, anxiety, aggressive behavior, hyperactivity, depression, eating disorders, fatigue, learning difficulties, and premenstrual syndrome among others.
One of the most important factors in brain aging and inflammation is sugar. Insulin triggered by sugar triggers oxidative stress which leads to mitochondrial damage, which in turn contributes to insulin resistance. Insulin also triggers the inflammatory cascade, including cytokines like TNF alfa and interleukins which spreads the damage into the brain and body in general.
Sugar produces high levels of insulin which is the main cause of our chronic disease epidemic and an important factor in mood disorders and dementia. Our insulin response is designed to handle vastly lower levels of sugar than what we consume today. For example, the body can process fruit sugar, but not high fructose corn syrup, which is a potent form of sugar that is sweeter than regular sugar, increases appetite, promotes obesity more than regular sugar, is more addictive than cocaine, and leads to diabetes and an inflammation of the brain.