Do you ever finish your chocolate bar and suddenly have the urge to eat another? If you didn’t know already, this is all down to the science of our body, so these cravings are quite normal.
While you may have believed your cravings are simply down to being a little greedy, scientists have proven that wanting to eat more sweets is simply down to our body’s natural function.
According to researchers, the reason why you may have a sweet tooth is all based on hereditary features. Our DNA determines which flavours we like the most and whether our taste buds tend to steer towards sweeter or savoury tastes.
The main finding for having a sweet tooth is said to be rooted in the liver, as this organ produces the hormone known as FGF21 which promotes sugar cravings. The desire for sugar differs from person to person, but if you have a certain variation of this gene, there’s a high likelihood that you’ll have a sweet tooth.
The FGF21 hormone isn’t just released when it comes to sugar cravings though, it also plays a role in cell growth, tissue repair and foetal growth.
Scientists have used this discovery to understand more about obesity and have the aim of coming up with a brand-new medicine which could reduce our cravings for sugar. While this wouldn’t necessarily be of importance to the healthy individual, those with diabetes often need to reduce their sugar intake to keep their blood sugar levels stable.
Quite simply, the more food we eat, the more of the FGF21 chemical is released, which sends the body into overdrive to need more sugar. However, after this stage, the desire for sugar is so powerful that it starts to diminish.
Unsurprisingly, it was discovered that children are the age range that crave sugar the most and there’s a very good reason for it. Sugary foods distribute energy and promotes happiness, but over the generations, we have been automatically trained to eat more of it.
As children grow, they’re drawn to foods which are packed with calories. In ancient times, this would have typically been fruit and honey, but candy has become readily available and delivers the same satisfactory response.
There have been many scientific tests that have been carried out to investigate how addictive sugar actually is. As mentioned, the more we eat, the more we crave, but our bodies can also start to relish sweet treats simply by what we see. One particular study found scrolling through social media sites can impact the brain’s activity to crave sweets simply by looking at photographs.
It’s easy to say that while we are surrounded by sweets and chocolate, it’s extremely hard to resist our sweet tooth. During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, this rings even truer as we are forced to remain in lockdown and so turn to candy as a sense of comfort. Providing you eat sweets in moderation, it shouldn’t have an impact on your health and wellbeing.
Take a look at our range of bulk sweets today.
