Craving Sugar Linked to Gut Bacteria

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https://www.psychologytoday.com/nz/blog/the-new-brain/202501/craving-sugar-linked-to-gut-bacteria?amp

We tend to think of craving as a psychological phenomenon triggered by habits, desires, and emotional swings, but new research shows that a wide range of psychological conditions are generated by the community of bacteria thriving in our gut. These microbes release substances that act as hormones or neurotransmitters to affect mental function. A new study finds that craving sugar is driven in part by particular gut microbes that release a substance that acts much like the new drug Ozempic and similar drugs, that lower blood sugar levels in people with diabetes.

a new study, researchers in China analyzed the blood of 60 patients with type 2 diabetes and compared them with people having normal blood sugar levels and found a tell-tale clue. A protein called FFAR4 was present in much lower levels in the samples from diabetics. Studies in diabetic mice revealed the same thing. This protein is known to activate a hormone, GLP-1, which is a powerful regulator of blood sugar and appetite. It is this hormone that the new diabetic drugs act upon to lower blood sugar and increase the sensation of “feeling full” after eating (satiety). This appetite-suppressing effect is why the drug acting on GLP-1 is also widely used to reduce body weight in people with obesity. The lower levels of FFAR4 in the blood of diabetics could mean that they would have less GLP-1 and, therefore, have higher blood sugar and increased appetite.

To test whether lower levels of FFAR4 caused increased cravings for sugar, the researchers monitored sugar consumption in mice in which the FFAR4 protein had been deleted by genetic manipulation. They found that these mice had a much higher preference for consuming sugar than mice with normal levels of FFAR4, when they were offered the choice between a normal diet, a high-fat diet, and a high-sugar diet.

This finding raises the question of why FFAR4 levels are lower in diabetics. The emerging understanding of the importance of gut microflora (the microbiome) on brain function inspired them to suspect that bacteria in the gut might differ in mice craving sugar.

More at link.