12 Myths About The Human Body Debunked
9. There Is No Such Thing As A Sugar Rush
The myth here is that giving children something sweet and full of sugar will cause them to be hyperactive. Despite the pleas of countless parents, and conventional wisdom passed from generation to generation, there is no evidence for this so called sugar rush.
Although there are many reasons why you should not allow children excessive consumption of sugar (see the first entry of this list for one), these sugar rushes are not one founded in science.
Countless studies have been performed at the behest of anxious and worried parents on the effects of sugar and hyperactivity. Not one has ever found a conclusive link between sugar consumption and levels of altered activity in children, with kids receiving no or low sugar showing the same levels as someone who consumed high amounts of sugar.
What studies have shown is that parents who thought their child had ingested sugar, when they had actually been given a sugar free substitute, rated their child as more hyperactive than they were without the sweet treat.
Kids are just naturally hyperactive, and may just be enjoying themselves more after being fed something sweet or being able to play with their toys and friends. Therefore, this hyperactivity myth of the sugar rush lies solely on their parent’s perceptions.