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Annotated Bibliography

Is sugar addiction a real thing? How detrimental is sugar and sugar addiction to our health and

well-being? What are some of the benefits as well as possible downfalls of sugar acting inside

the human body?

Anh Nguyen

Professor Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1103

October 16, 2019

Annotated Bibliography
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O'Connor, Anahad. “How the Sugar Industry Shifted Blame to Fat.” The New York Times, 12

Sept. 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/well/eat/how-the-sugar-industry-shifted-

blame-to-fat.html. Accessed 16 Oct. 2019

In this newspaper, the author reveals the way the sugar industry covered up the correlation

between sugar and heart disease by giving scientists in the 1960s hush money to write articles

promoting saturated fat as the culprit instead of sugar. In the first case, documents show that the

Sugar Association paid three Harvard scientists about $50,000 today to publish their study results

where connections between sugar and heart disease were minimized . The next outstanding case

was that in 1964, John Hickson, a top sugar industry executive, paid the Harvard researchers to

shift public opinion by writing a review which give favors to sugar to debut the anti-sugar

studies. Additionally, the Harvard researchers had to share and discuss with Mr. Hickson to Commented [1]: little confused here

adjust the research paper the way it pleased him before being published. Similarly, in 2015,

Coca-Cola provided millions of dollars to fund a research group who later played down the link

connecting sugary drinks and obesity. For many decades, in order to push attention to saturated

fat, health officials encouraged people to reduce their fat intake which also meant leading them

to consume low-fat and high-sugar food at the same time. The industry-funded research

continues to play an important and informative role in the scientific debate to emphasize

saturated fat as the main factor contributing to heart problems. Overall, the article was well-

written in a paragraph form which is a popular type, therefore easy to read and dedicated to The Commented [2]: was it an editorial?

New York Times subscribers, who would like to expand their knowledge on health and want to be

ensured they’re not fooled by the sugar industry. The author has studied neuroscience and

obtained a psychology degree from Yale University. He has been a journalist and staff reporter
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for The New York Times, one of America’s biggest newspapers since 2003. He composed the

entire paper coherently with various experts’ statements and study outcomes which aren’t biased.

Compared to my other sources, this source is much more accessible to the public and less

academically intensive than academic journals. The article focuses on proving what the sugar

industry is hiding and the motivation behind it. In my paper, I could use this article to explain

why the sugar industry has to do so to maintain its revenue. This relates to my topic because it is

primarily concerned with the sugar industry and some of the consequences of their dishonest

business practices. They prevent releasing studies that show that consuming excessive amounts

of sugar can cause many health problems and promote public awareness that may be detrimental

to sugar companies. It makes me aware that how the sugar industry untrustworthy and corrupt.

The type of research I am doing in this paper is important to make sure people acknowledge that

sugar is not accurately advertised and researched.

Roux, Antoine E., et al. “Pro-Aging Effects of Glucose Signaling through a G Protein-Coupled

Glucose Receptor in Fission Yeast.” PLOS Genetics., vol. 5, no. 3, 6 Mar. 2009,

doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1000408. Accessed 16 Oct. 2019

In this academic journal, the researchers depict the relationship between skin aging and the

amount of sugar. Sugar, a form of glucose, is the major carbon source for metabolism in the

human body, which is then used to synthesize energy for keeping cells to have normal function.

This highlights sugar plays a significant role for life to continue. However, consuming excessive

amounts of sugar acts as a fast-aging and pathogenic factor. The researchers proposed that one’s

life span can be extended by restricting calories and sugar intake in many species like yeast and

mammals. In order to understand the phenomenon and mechanism underlying the aging process,
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researchers set up an experiment using yeast as a model organism. The study included graphing

data suggesting that decreasing the glucose concentration from 2% to 0.05% resulted in a dose-

dependent extension of the life span of yeast. They also found that cells unable to consume

glucose as an energy source are still sensitive to the pro-aging effects of glucose. The team

conducted another experiment which conclude that calorie restriction is archived by reducing the

calorie intake of an organism and represents the most effective way to increase life span. In the

observation, calorie restriction is implemented by culturing the cells on low glucose

concentrations. According to this study, the link connects the rise in age-related diseases and

over-consumption of sugar is demonstrating clear. This is an academic journal published in

PLOS Genetics Journal, a journal that releases articles related to human studies and research on

model organisms. Their topics include gene discovery and function, population genetics, disease

biology, gene expression, and many more. There are seven authors who contribute to this topic.

They are professors from the Department of Biochemistry at the University de Montreal and

Biology Department, Boston College. The information is reliable and objective based on the

experiment and data provided. The audiences are students, researchers who are studying related

topics, looking for evidence-based essays to support when composing a thesis. I would use this

scholarly source to compose my inquiry project. It has expanded my knowledge to have a deeper

look on molecular process that over intake sugar could bring to human’s health. Compared to

other sources I use for my topic, this article journal contains intensive terms and information

within its research area. It also concludes visualized data which is helpful to understand the trend

of the sugar and its consequences’ correlation.

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3rd source

In the reliable website, the author claimed that sugar is addictive and it is tough to put off when it

becomes a habit. Brain cells see sugar as fuels therefore brain recognizes sugar as a reward. It

makes people keep craving sugar, lose control and eat more than they planned. High percent of

sugar contains in candy bar is utilized for quick glucose supplying in the bloodstream whereas

other carbs in fruits, veggies could not spike the blood sugar level. Other misunderstanding could

lead to become sugar addictive, example: complex carbs are found in bagels, chips, or French

fries which easy to be broken down into simple sugar. It does not mean that unsweet food does

not contain sugar. .It is surprised that pasta sauces, which is savory, contains six to twelve grams

of sugar per half-cup. However, there are ways to control and limit the amount of sugar intake

such as retrain the taste buds, cutting sugar as much as possible, switching to natural sweet food

as fresh fruits instead of cake for deserts. Another helpful method would be exercising that wipe

out those sugar cravings and fill in by healthier food. Be knowledgeable about different name of

sugar to realize the ingredients when grocery-shopping. The source is quick review and precise

fact about sugar. The article is split up into a small parts containing a picture and a few sentences

which explain for the pictures. Overall, the article is popular type, accessible for everyone. The

author is… I will use this source for my essay because it answer directly to my inquiry question.

Throughout the text, the authors appeal many products which are not have awareness to health

contain largely amount of sugar, in comparison to my other sources, this article so far the

shortest source but informative.

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KAITLYN’S COMMENTS:
- Put sources in alphabetical order
- Make sure you clarify who “they” are
- Be careful of not putting your opinion at the end while you’re evaluating the source
- Explain in the second source of how your body processes sugar a little more
- Overall, this topic is super interesting! I think you could talk about how scientists and
companies have been hiding health effects to the public for decades, and how that’s
played a role in how Americans view their health. I wonder if you could find studies on
how Americans view their health to contribute to your well-being focus. Great job!