Sugar blues: How added sweets affect mental health

Kaunistellaan (Finnish), Elsen chikhereer bursen (Mongolian), tsuker-koutad (Yiddish): No matter what language you use to sugarcoat (that’s what those words mean) the harm added sugar does to your body, the real facts keep spilling out.

Chances are, you already know that added sugars and syrups fuel obesity, elevate triglycerides, cause cardio woes, trigger excess insulin secretion and boost inflammation. But did you know that they can amp up your risk for mental health issues, too?

In a new study in Scientific Reports, researchers looked at information collected from 1985 to 2013 on more than 10,000 participants. They found that over a five-year period, men with the highest sugar intake from foods and beverages—more than 2.3 ounces daily—had a 23 percent increase in the risk of common mental health problems such as depression and anxiety, no matter how well or how poorly they took care of themselves or what their sociodemographic characteristics were.

This adds to lab-generated info on other mental health challenges that added sugar causes. It can trigger addictive behavior and cognitive decline: One study showed that it fueled food addiction; another found that rats preferred sugar water to cocaine! Yet another lab study found that a sugar-boosted diet can make rats forget how to get through a maze.

So if you want to keep your sweet attitude and a sharp brain, get tough on sugar. Check all ingredient labels for sugar, syrups, maltose and fructose, any malt, even agave. Leave it on the grocery-store shelf. That’ll leave you smart and smiling.

Mehmet Oz, M.D. is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D. is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. To live your healthiest, tune into “The Dr. Oz Show” or visit sharecare.com.

(c) 2017 Michael Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet Oz, M.D.