Researchers discover why fructose doesn’t satisfy hunger like glucose
News
Same calories, different brain signals: scientists found that fructose and glucose influence hunger and food cravings in surprisingly different ways.
– Monell Chemical Senses Center
– A new study found that fructose and glucose may look the same on a nutrition label, but the brain treats them very differently. In mice, glucose strongly reduced activity in hunger-promoting brain cells, while fructose had a much weaker effect. High-fructose corn syrup triggered a stronger response and was preferred by the animals. The findings suggest that the type of sugarânot just the caloriesâcan influence appetite and food preferences.
Details
Fructose and glucose are two common sugars found in many foods and drinks. Although they contain the same number of calories, new research suggests the brain responds to them in very different ways.
Scientists at the Monell Chemical Senses Center discovered that fructose and glucose communicate with the brain through separate gut-brain pathways. Their findings indicate that these differences may influence food and beverage preferences and could help explain why certain sweetened products are especially appealing.
The study, published June 10 in the journal Neuron, identified a specific signaling route that allows fructose to communicate with the brain. In experiments involving mice, researchers found that this pathway was far less effective than the one used by glucose when it came to reducing activity in neurons associated with hunger.
Analysis
“This work adds to our growing understanding of how modern diets, especially those high in fructose or high-fructose corn syrup, interact with the neural systems involved in appetite,” said senior author and Monell Member Amber Alhadeff, PhD.
How Fructose and Glucose Affect Hunger Neurons
To investigate how the sugars influence the brain, researchers recorded neural activity in mice after exposure to fructose and glucose.
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