India, April 5 -- Images of cheerful people eating sugary ice creams may paint a picture of happiness, yet the reality may be less joyful and more complex. Sugar, found in such sweet treats or any other food loaded with it, can significantly impact our health in more ways than one. It has the potential to play more than one villainous role - beyond contributing to weight gain and diabetes, sugar can also impact our brain health. High sugar intake is creating an addiction in the brain, with certain sections of the medical community even terming it as 'the new tobacco'!

One of the earliest studies that has linked high sugar intake with mental health can be attributed to a 2002 study titled A cross-national relationship between sugar consum...