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Article copied from here. (I especially like the reference to the Genome Organizing Device in paragraph five. )

Sugar Addiction

Nutritionists have debated for a while whether there's such a thing as "sugar addiction". (I have a name for this kind of debate- I call it "ridiculous". I put it in the same class as the "debate" among conventional doctors over whether there's such a disease as chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia. How clueless are these people?)

So, yes, I've long since made up my mind that sugar addiction "exists", and so have plenty of people who have experienced it themselves. But it's always nice when science backs up our own intuitions. A recent study by graduate student Maglie Lenoir and her colleagues at the University of Bordeaux in France showed that rats given a choice between highly sweetened water and intravenous cocaine overwhelmingly picked- you guessed it- the sugar water!

And their preference was just as intense regardless of whether the liquid was sweetened with saccahrin or sugar (diet soda drinkers note well).

As Rachel Dvoskin explains in this month's issue of Scientific American: Mind, hypersensitivity to sugar and the taste of sweetness probably evolved when sugar was scarce in the diet and it's presence indicated a high-calorie (and therefore nutritious) meal. But the excessive sugar and sugar-substitutes in our modern diet may just overstimulate the sweet receptors in the brain, leading to a loss of self-control mechanisms and the risk of addiction.

Remember, even the sweet tooth had an evolutionary purpose. We humans are unable to manufacture our own vitamin C. And vitamin C is normally found in sweet things like fruits. Add this to the fact that many bitter plants are poisonous, and you can see a sound evolutionary reason for the Genome Organizing Device (GOD) to give us a nice strong sweet tooth- it kept us away from poison and made us seek out vitamin C containing foods.

But the modern diet has sent these normal control mechanisms into overdrive and driven us literally crazy. Remember, drugs and food both activate reward pathways in the brain, and sometimes these reward pathways get "hijacked". When they do, it takes more and more of the craved substance to get the same "high", and "regular" pleasures don't even register on our inner pleasure meter. We're addicted. Like the rats to sugar water.

Other research has also shown that rats can become quite dependent on sugar and act exactly like addicts when it's taken away- shivering and shaking and exhibiting typical symptoms of addiction and withdrawal.

So no, if you think you might be addicted to sugar, it's not necessarily "all in your head". The good news is that you can kick it. The bad news is that it's not the easiest thing in the world to do. But the best news of all is how great you'll feel once you're off the roller coaster of blood sugar hell.

Note: A good way to start your crave-busting program is with heaping tablespoons of L-glutamine. The brain uses it for fuel, and it seems to calm cravings. A second thing you can do is make a deal with yourself that you can have whatever it is you're craving if you just wait 15 minutes and do something else first (like walk around the block, do 50 push-ups or take a warm bath). Cravings- even the worst of them- tend to die out after 15 minutes. You just need to learn to outsmart them.

Yeah, like u didn't already know, right?

Tea Extract Could Reduce HFCS-Diabetes Link

Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a compound found in tea, may reduce the association between high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and diabetes, according to researchers from Rutgers University.

HFCS, a liquid sweetener commonly used in soft drinks that contains both fructose and glucose, has been accused of causing diabetes, particularly in children, and a recent study further supported this theory.

The study investigated 11 different soft drinks and found "astonishingly high" levels of reactive carbonyls, which are thought to cause cell and tissue damage.

Reactive carbonyls are associated with diabetes, as they're found in higher levels in the bloodstreams of people with the disease. Reactive carbonyls are linked with the unbound structure of fructose and glucose molecules in HFCS, and are not found in table sugar.

However, the team of researchers found that adding EGCG to the soft drinks reduced the levels of reactive carbonyls.

The finding may spur the creation of "healthier" soft drinks from companies like Coca Cola and Pepsi Co, which are looking to downplay some of the negative press that soft drinks have been receiving.

Gymnema Sylvestre, also known as Gurmar and Meshashringi, whose Hindi name literally means 'sugar destroyer', has been used in Ayurveda for several centuries to regulate sugar metabolism.

The hypoglycemic (blood sugar-lowering) action of gymnema leaves was first documented in the late 1920s. This action is gradual in nature, differing from the rapid effect of many prescription hypoglycemic drugs. Gymnema leaves raise insulin levels by regeneration of the cells in the pancreas that secrete insulin. Other research has shown that gymnema also improves uptake of glucose into cells by increasing the activity of the glucose utilizing enzymes, and prevents adrenaline from stimulating the liver to produce glucose, thereby reducing blood sugar levels. The leaves are also noted for lowering serum cholesterol and triglycerides. It also abolishes the taste of sugar, which effectively suppresses and neutralizes the craving for sweets. The leaf extracts contain gymnemic acid which inhibits hyperglycemia and also acts as a cardiovascular stimulant.

The primary clinical application for this botanical is as an antidiabetic agent. Gymnema has been the subject of considerable research since the 1930s, with promising results for types 1 and 2 diabetes. Gymnema has been successful in controlling the blood sugar level without reducing it to below the normal blood sugar level, an effect seen with the use of insulin or oral hypoglycemic sulphonylurea compounds.