Ball-and-stick model of a glucose molecule, image available in the public domain
Addiction to the most natural of fuels
In the human species, sugar is a natural part of the diet yet seems to be addictive. The resolution to this paradox is that it is the frequency of eating sugar, not the quantity eaten per se, that has caused modern maladies including obesity, diabetes and possibly cancer. What causes addiction is not the substance itself but rather the hormonal imbalance caused by its stimulation of the pancreas to release insulin repeatedly within each day.
Robin and the Honey Badger, 15 March 2016