How sugar affects the brain - Nicole Avena

Si ndikon sheqeri ne trurin tone - Nicole Avena

Translator: Aida Musai Reviewer: Helena Bedalli

Picture warm, gooey cookies,

Imagjinoni disa biskota te ngrohta e te lengshme,

crunchy candies, velvety cakes,

karamele krokante,

keke te mendafshte,

waffle cones piled high with ice cream.

kone prej vaferi te tejmbushur me akullore.

Is your mouth watering?

A po ju leshon goja leng?

Are you craving dessert?

Ju vjen deshira per embelsira?

Why?

Pse?

What happens in the brain that makes sugary foods so hard to resist?

Cfare ndodh ne trurin tone

qe i ben kaq te parrezistueshme ushqimet e embla?

Sugar is a general term used to describe a class of molecules

Fjala sheqer eshte nje term i pergjithshem

qe perdoret per te pershkruar nje categori molekulash

te quajtura karbohidrate,

called carbohydrates,

and it's found in a wide variety of food and drink.

dhe gjendet ne nje game te gjere ushqimesh dhe pijesh.

Just check the labels on sweet products you buy.

Mjafton te kontrolloni etiketat e embelsirave qe blini.

Glucose, fructose, sucrose,

Glukosa,

fruktoza,

sukroza,

maltose, lactose, dextrose, and starch

maltoza,

laktozi,

dekstroza,

dhe niseshteja

are all forms of sugar.

jane te gjitha forma sheqernash.

So are high-fructose corn syrup,

Sic jane edhe shurupi i mistrit me nivel te larte fruktoze,

fruit juice, raw sugar, and honey.

lengjet e frutave,

sheqeri

apo mjalti.

And sugar isn't just in candies and desserts,

Dhe sheqeri nuk gjendet vetem tek karamelet e embelsirat,

it's also added to tomato sauce,

ai i shtohet edhe salces se domateve,

yogurt, dried fruit, flavored waters, or granola bars.

kosit,

frutave te thata,

ujerave te aromatizuara,

apo shufrave me mysli.

Since sugar is everywhere, it's important to understand

Duke qene se sheqeri ndodhet gjithandej,

eshte e rendesishme te kuptojme

how it affects the brain.

se c'ndikim ka ai tek truri.

What happens when sugar hits your tongue?

Cfare ndodh kur sheqeri prek gjuhen tone?

And does eating a little bit of sugar make you crave more?

A eshte e vertete se po te hash pak sheqer

deshiron edhe me shume?

You take a bite of cereal.

Kafshon nje shufer grunjerash.

The sugars it contains activate the sweet-taste receptors,

Sheqeri qe ajo permban

aktivizon receptoret e shijet

part of the taste buds on the tongue.

qe ndodhen ne gjuhe.

These receptors send a signal up to the brain stem,

Keta receptore dergojne nje sinjal ne trungun e trurit,

and from there, it forks off into many areas of the forebrain,

dhe nga aty, sinjali shperndahet

ne zona te ndryshme te trurit,

one of which is the cerebral cortex.

njera prej te cilave eshte korteksi.

Different sections of the cerebral cortex process different tastes:

Zona te ndryshme te kortekstit

perpunojne shije te ndryshme:

te hidhuren,

bitter, salty, umami,

te kripuren,

umamin,

and, in our case, sweet.

dhe ne rastin tone, te emblen.

From here, the signal activates the brain's reward system.

Prej ketej sinjali aktivizon

sistemin shperblyes te trurit.

This reward system is a series of electrical and chemical pathways

Ky sistem shperblyes perbehet nga nje sere

ngacmimesh elektrike dhe kimike

across several different regions of the brain.

te zonave te ndryshme te trurit.

It's a complicated network,

Eshte nje rrjet i nderlikuar,

por ai ndihmon ne gjetjen e pergjigjes per te vetmen pyetje te pandergjegjshme:

but it helps answer a single, subconscious question:

should I do that again?

a duhet te vazhdoj?

That warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you taste Grandma's chocolate cake?

Ajo ndjesia e ngrohte, marramendese qe ke

kur provon kekun me cokollate te gjyshes?

That's your reward system saying,

Eshte sistemi i shperblimit qe te thote,

"Mmm, yes!"

"Hmm, po! "

And it's not just activated by food.

Ai nuk aktivizohet vetem nga ushqimi.

Socializing, sexual behavior, and drugs

Shoqerizimi,

sjellja seksuale

dhe drogat

are just a few examples of things and experiences

jane vetem pak nga shembujt

te gjerave apo pervojave

that also activate the reward system.

qe aktivizojne sistemin e shperblimit.

Por kur ky sistem aktivizohet se tepermi

But overactivating this reward system kickstarts a series of unfortunate events:

atehere nisin nje sere ngjarjesh te papelqyeshme:

loss of control, craving, and increased tolerance to sugar.

humbje kontrolli,

uri,

dhe tolerance e tepruar ndaj sheqernave.

Le te kthehemi tek kafshata jone e grunjerave.

Let's get back to our bite of cereal.

Ajo udheton poshte drejt stomakut,

It travels down into your stomach and eventually into your gut.

dhe pastaj drejt zorreve.

And guess what?

Dhe a e di?

There are sugar receptors here, too.

Ketu ndodhen receptore te tjere te sheqernave.

They are not taste buds, but they do send signals

Nuk dallojne shijen,

por ama dergojne sinjale

telling your brain that you're full

qe i thone trurit tend se je i ngopur

or that your body should produce more insulin

apo se trupi duhet te prodhoje me shume insuline

to deal with the extra sugar you're eating.

per te perballuar sheqerin e tepert qe ti po ha.

The major currency of our reward system is dopamine,

Monedha kryesore

e sistemit tone te shperblimit eshte dopamina,

an important chemical or neurotransmitter.

nje neurotransmetues i rendesishem kimik.

There are many dopamine receptors in the forebrain,

Ne pjesen e perparme te trurit ka shume receptore dopamine,

but they're not evenly distributed.

por ata nuk jane te shperndare njetrajtesisht.

Certain areas contain dense clusters of receptors,

Ne disa zona gjenden ishuj te dendur receptoresh,

and these dopamine hot spots are a part of our reward system.

dhe keto pika te nxehta

jane pjese e sistemit te shperblimit.

Drugs like alcohol, nicotine, or heroin

Drogat si alkooli,

nikotina,

apo heroina

send dopamine into overdrive,

e cojne ne qiell nivelin e dopamines,

leading some people to constantly seek that high,

gje qe i nxit disa njerez te arrijne gjithnje ate nivel te larte,

in other words, to be addicted.

e thene ndryshe, te krijojne varesi.

Sugar also causes dopamine to be released, though not as violently as drugs.

Edhe sheqeri nxit prodhimin e dopamines,

por jo ne nivele aq te larta sa drogat.

And sugar is rare among dopamine-inducing foods.

Dhe sheqeri eshte nje nga ushqimet e rralla qe nxisin prodhimin e dopamines.

Broccoli, for example, has no effect,

Per shembull, brokoli nuk ka asnje efekt,

which probably explains

gje qe ndoshta shpjegon se pse

eshte kaq e veshtire t'i bindesh femijet te hane perime.

why it's so hard to get kids to eat their veggies.

Teksa flasim per ushqimet e shendetshme,

Speaking of healthy foods,

let's say you're hungry and decide to eat a balanced meal.

supozojme se ti ke uri

dhe vendos te hash nje vakt te balancuar.

You do, and dopamine levels spike in the reward system hot spots.

Ti e ben kete, keshtu dopamina ngacmon

ishujt e ndjeshem te sistemit te shperblimit.

But if you eat that same dish many days in a row,

Por nese ti ha po te njejtin ushqim per disa dite rresht,

dopamine levels will spike less and less, eventually leveling out.

niveli i dopamines do te ulet gjithnje e me shume,

derisa te arrije ne zero.

That's because when it comes to food,

Kjo ndodh sepse, kur flitet per ushqime,

the brain evolved to pay special attention to new or different tastes.

gjate evolucionit truri u mesua t'i kushtonte vemendje te vecante

shijeve te reja ose te ndryshme.

Why?

Pse?

Ka dy arsye:

Two reasons:

first, to detect food that's gone bad.

e para, per te kuptuar nese ushqimi ishte apo jo i prishur.

And second, because the more variety we have in our diet,

e dyta, sepse sa me shume varietet

te kemi ne dieten tone,

the more likely we are to get all the nutrients we need.

aq me e lehte do te jete

qe te marrim gjithe lendet qe na duhen.

To keep that variety up,

Ne menyre qe t'a mbajme te gjalle kete varietet,

we need to be able to recognize a new food,

duhet te jemi ne gjendje te dallojme nje ushqim te ri,

and more importantly, we need to want to keep eating new foods.

dhe c'ka eshte me e rendesishme,

duhet te kemi gjithnje deshiren per te ngrene ushqime te reja.

And that's why the dopamine levels off when a food becomes boring.

Ja pse niveli i dopamines bie

kur ushqimi behet i merzitshem.

Now, back to that meal.

Tani le te kthehemi tek vakti jone.

What happens if in place of the healthy, balanced dish,

Cfare ndodh nese ne vend

te atij vakti te shendetshem e te balancuar,

you eat sugar-rich food instead?

ti vendos te hash ushqime me permbajtje te larte sheqeri?

If you rarely eat sugar or don't eat much at a time,

Nese e ha rralle sheqerin

ose nuk ha shume prej tij pernjeheresh,

the effect is similar to that of the balanced meal.

efekti do te jete i njejte me ate te nje vakti te balancuar.

But if you eat too much, the dopamine response does not level out.

Nese ha shume,

atehere niveli i dopamines nuk do te bjere.

In other words, eating lots of sugar will continue to feel rewarding.

E thene ndryshe, nese ha shume sheqerna

do te ndihesh gjithnje i shperblyer.

In this way, sugar behaves a little bit like a drug.

Ne kete drejtim, sheqeri sillet paksa si drogat.

It's one reason people seem to be hooked on sugary foods.

Kjo eshte nje prej arsyeve perse njerezit krijojne varesi

ndaj ushqimeve te embla.

So, think back to all those different kinds of sugar.

Tani, kujtoni te gjitha llojet e ndryshme te sheqerit.

Each one is unique, but every time any sugar is consumed,

Secili prej tyre eshte unik,

por sa here qe njeri prej tyre hyn ne sistemin tone,

it kickstarts a domino effect in the brain that sparks a rewarding feeling.

ai nxit nje efekt domino ne trurin tone

qe prodhon nje ndjesi shperblimi.

Too much, too often, and things can go into overdrive.

Eshte e forte, dhe ndodh shpesh,

prandaj ndodh edhe qe te kalohet limiti.

So, yes, overconsumption of sugar can have addictive effects on the brain,

Pra, konsumi i tepert i sheqernave,

mund te krijoje varesi te trurit,

but a wedge of cake once in a while won't hurt you.

por nje copez kek nje here ne kaq nuk do t'ju sjelle asnje te keqe.