Swollen Feet, Anyone? 5 Bizarre Things That Happen When You OD On Sugar

Source: unsplash.com/Thomas Kelley

Eating high levels of sugar has plenty of adverse effects that you probably already know about – mood swings, weight gain and break-outs.

But aside from that, sugar is responsible for plenty of other bodily responses that you may not have been so aware of. If you’ve ever woken up the morning after a sugar blow-out feeling like a puffed-up balloon, you’ll know what we mean.

Read on for five oh-so bizarre consequences of that light-night sugar fix…

1. Your feet swell up
Consuming an excess of sugar causes your insulin levels to spike, which in turn leads to fluid retention in areas like the legs, feet and hands. So if you get that “fluffy walrus” feeling the night of or morning after a Haribo/Ben & Jerry’s binge, that’s why.

Source: unsplash.com/Sheelagh Brennan

2. Your face gets puffy
Yep, that’d be the water retention again. If you’re eating sugary foods, especially late at night, you’re more likely to retain fluid around the cheek and undereye area. If you hate waking up to a bloated face, keep a couple of teaspoons in your freezer and place them under your eyes in the morning for 15 – 20 seconds, to help bring down that swollen look.

Like this article? Then you’ll love this one: 5 Reasons You’re Craving Sugar All The Time

3. You find it harder to decide when you’re full
Eating high-sugar foods on the regular can seriously shoot down your body’s ability to realise it’s full. That’s because sugar consumption is thought to inhibit leptin, the hormone that tells your brain when your body is nearing fullness.

Source: unsplash.com/Leon Ephraïm

4. Your brain’s pleasure centres start firing like mad
That inner smile when you break off a square of Dairy Milk? It’s not your imagination. Sugar triggers the release of dopamine, which sets off our brain’s pleasure centres. But like anything dopamine-triggering, sugar is addictive, and we can build up a tolerance over time. Hence why one square is just never enough…

5. Your skin loses elasticity
All that sugar in your bloodstream can wreak havoc with your skin, when the molecules attach to proteins to create harmful “invaders” called advanced glycation end products, or AGEs. AGEs work to break down other protein fibres around them, in particular the proteins in collagen and elastin. The result? Skin that’s lacking in firmness and elasticity. Boo.

• eating too much sugar
• Sugar