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Sugars may have helped fuel the evolution of the human brain, new research suggests

Phys · · 924 words · By University
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What to know about Sugars may have helped fuel the evolution of the human brain, new research suggests

Researchers from the University of Sydney and the University of Glasgow suggest that natural sugars from fruit and honey helped fuel the evolution of the human brain. The study uses modeling to argue that carbohydrates were essential for meeting the glucose demands of growing brains and reproductive needs prior to the widespread use of cooking and agriculture.

Propaganda risk 10%
Claims checked 10
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center80%
Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Sugars may have helped fuel the evolution of the human brain, new research suggests Sadie Harley Scientific Editor Robert Egan Senior Editor Fruit, honey and other naturally sweet foods may have helped fuel the evolution of the human brain, according to new…

Why it matters

Published in Science, the study modeled the glucose needs of humans and their ancestors from 4 million years ago until recently, finding natural sugars may have supplied the energy needed to support growing brains before the advent of cooking made starch-rich…

Common ground

"Raw starch does not release glucose, meaning early humans likely relied on naturally sweet foods long before grains became a regular part of the diet," said lead author Jennie Brand-Miller, a professor of human nutrition at the University of Sydney Charles…

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Researchers from the University of Sydney and the University of Glasgow suggest that natural sugars from fruit and honey helped fuel the evolution of the human brain. The study uses modeling to argue that carbohydrates were essential for meeting the glucose demands of growing brains and reproductive needs prior to the widespread use of cooking and agriculture.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://phys.org/news/2026-08-sugars-fuel-evolution-human-brain.html

analyticsAnalysis

10%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5
info Single Source 2
help Insufficient Evidence 1
verified Verified 1
verified Verified By Reference 1
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Claim 1: “previous University of Sydney research showing honey is nature's original antibiotic”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found after searching for the claim regarding honey as nature's original antibiotic from the University of Sydney.
info
Claim 2: “Children... their brains are claiming as much as two-thirds of their basal metabolic rate during development”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provided defines 'Basal Metabolic Rate' but does not contain the specific claim that children's brains consume two-thirds of their BMR.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the rate of energy expenditure per unit time by endothermic animals at rest. It is reported in energy units per unit time ranging from watt (joule/second) to ml O2/min or…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basal_metabolic_rate
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web search NEUTRAL — Basal metabolic rate (BMR) estimates the minimum number of calories a person needs to burn to sustain their basic life functions during a 24-hour period of rest. Examples of such functions include
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/basal-metabolic-ra…
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web search NEUTRAL — Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is your resting metabolism. This represents the energy, or calories, that your body requires to function when completely at rest. It includes all your normal bodily fun…
https://www.inchcalculator.com/bmr-calculator/
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Claim 3: “natural sugars may have supplied the energy needed to support growing brains before the advent of cooking made starch-rich foods like tubers and grains easier to digest”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources explicitly state that natural sugars provided energy for brain growth before cooking made starches in tubers and grains digestible.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — New modeling suggests fruit, honey, and other natural sugars supplied glucose that helped fuel human brain growth before cooking made starches easier to digest.Natural sugars may have helped power the…
https://www.technologynetworks.com/proteomics/news/did-fruit…
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web search NEUTRAL — They found that natural sugars may have supplied energy—in the form of glucose—to growing brains before cooking made starchy foods easier to digest. Eli Stark-Elster.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meat-wasnt-the-onl…
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web search NEUTRAL — Natural sugars may have helped provide the growing brain with the energy it needed. This was at a time when cooking began and starch-rich foods like tubers and grains were no longer easily digested.
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/food/human-brains-grew-fivefo…
verified
Claim 4: “Glucose is the brain's primary energy source”
VERIFIED
Strong consensus across scientific web results and educational sources (Chegg, etc.) that glucose is the primary energy source for the brain.
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web search NEUTRAL — “The human brain is unusually large for our body size and requires substantial amounts of energy,” Professor Brand-Miller said. “Glucose is the brain’s primary energy source, and for much of human evo…
https://www.sydney.edu.au/news-opinion/news/2026/08/07/sugar…
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web search NEUTRAL — The overall reaction is as follows: C6H12O6 + 6 O2 (g) --> 6 CO2 (g) + 6 H2O (l). Calculate the change in enthalpy when a “power bar” containing 28 g of glucose is metabolized in your brain to CO2 and…
https://www.chegg.com/homework-help/questions-and-answers/gl…
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web search NEUTRAL — Other Energy Sources: While glucose is the primary fuel for the brain, another source that can be used under special conditions is ketone bodies. These are produced during times of prolonged fasting o…
https://brainly.com/question/28009542
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Claim 5: “reproductive females required substantially more glucose than other adults because of the needs of the fetus, placenta and milk production”
CORROBORATED
Web search results explicitly state that reproductive females require significantly more glucose due to the needs of the fetus, placenta, and lactation.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The study also sheds light on nutritional needs during pregnancy and lactation. Researchers estimate that women during their reproductive years require significantly more glucose than other adults, du…
https://www.downtoearth.org.in/food/human-brains-grew-fivefo…
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web search NEUTRAL — It did not significantly increase with body mass, except in some pregnant individuals (or those concurrently pregnant and lactating). Resting metabolic rate increased during reproduction and reached p…
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/250067302_Dimension…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — adult males and females, and pregnant and lactating females), in order to describe how the microbiota dif-fers among different reproductive stages over the complex life history of this species.
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/jo…
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Claim 6: “new research from the University of Sydney and the University of Glasgow... published in Science, the study modeled the glucose needs of humans and their ancestors from 4 million years ago until recently”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm a study published in Science regarding the glucose needs of humans and ancestors over 4 million years, involving researchers like Professor Brand-Miller (University of Sydney).
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The following well-known people have studied or taught at the University of Glasgow since its inception in 1451. Historical lists of chancellors, rectors and principals of the university are contained…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_University_of_Glasgow_…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as Glas. in post-nominals; Scottish Gaelic: Oilthigh Ghlaschu) is a public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in 1451 [O.S. 1450], …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Glasgow
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC) is the world's largest international debating tournament and one of the largest annual international student events. WUDC is held in the British Par…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Universities_Debating_Ch…
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 7: “The earliest evidence of seed grinding is 65,000 years ago, when we see the first evidence of grinding stones to make flour”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for this claim consists of dictionary definitions of the word 'earliest' and unrelated Wikipedia entries about US states and grammar. No archaeological evidence regarding seed grinding was found in the provided results.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of 50 states and a federal district (Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States). The U.S. also possesses five major territor…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_and_territories…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The is the definite article in English. The, or THE, may also refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_(disambiguation)
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 8: “Over a period of 4 million years, human brain size increased from around 300 grams in early hominins to about 1,500 grams in modern humans”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web sources confirm the brain size increase from approximately 300 grams in early hominins to 1,500 grams in modern humans over 4 million years.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 300 is a 2006 epic historical fantasy action film directed by Zack Snyder, who co-wrote the screenplay with Kurt Johnstad and Michael B. Gordon. Based on the 1998 Dark Horse Comics limited series of t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_(film)
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Humans (Homo sapiens, meaning 'thinking man' or 'wise man') are the most abundant and widespread species of primates, characterized by bipedalism, minimal body hair, and large, complex brains enabling…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Human cannibalism is the act or practice of humans eating the flesh or internal organs of other human beings. A person who practices cannibalism is called a cannibal. The meaning of "cannibalism" has …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_cannibalism
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 9: “the earliest hominins (such as "Lucy," whose brain was the same size as a chimpanzee, Homo habilis and Homo erectus) were likely highly reliant on carbohydrate-rich foods, particularly fruit”
CORROBORATED
Web search results specifically mention that early hominins like 'Lucy', Homo habilis, and Homo erectus likely relied heavily on carbohydrate-rich foods, especially fruits.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The earliest migrations and expansions of archaic and modern humans across continents are believed to have begun approximately 2 million years ago with the early expansions out of Africa by Homo erect…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_human_migrations
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Homo ergaster is an extinct species or subspecies of archaic humans who lived in Africa in the Early Pleistocene. Whether H. ergaster constitutes a species of its own or should be subsumed into H. ere…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_ergaster
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Homo floresiensis ( ), also known as "Flores Man" or "Hobbit" (after the fictional species), is an extinct species of small archaic humans that inhabited the island of Flores, Indonesia, until the arr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_floresiensis
+ 3 more evidence sources
info
Claim 10: “Brand-Miller, et al. SWEET – sugars, diet and human evolution, Science (2026). DOI: 10.1126/science.aed8437”
SINGLE SOURCE
While Wikipedia confirms Jennie Brand-Miller is a nutrition academic at the University of Sydney, the specific paper title, 2026 date (which is in the future relative to standard training but presented as current in the prompt), and DOI are not independently verified in the provided evidence snippets.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In marketing, brand management refers to the process of controlling how a brand is perceived in the market. Tangible elements of brand management include the look, price, and packaging of the product …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand_management
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Hard science fiction is a category of science fiction characterized by concern for scientific accuracy and logic. The term was first used in print in 1957 by P. Schuyler Miller in a review of John W. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_science_fiction
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Janette Cecile Brand-Miller (born 1952), also known as Jennie Brand-Miller, Janette Cecile Brand and GI Jennie, is an Australian academic who holds a chair in human nutrition in the School of Life an…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jennie_Brand-Miller
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.