Sugar has become no.1 on the Dangerous Foods List.
Here we take a look at why sugar has such a bad rep and what are some healthy alternatives?
I’ve been there… 3pm at work… you’re tired… you had to skip lunch and still have multiple hours of work left… then you see them out the corner of your eye… Pastries and Donuts!
What’s the harm in one or two, you reason? Well, unfortunately, pastries and donuts – as well as many other foods – contain added sugar. And added refined sugar consumed in excess can damage our health. [1]
Everything in Moderation
“Sugar in small amounts is helpful for our body to function. However, consuming excess foods high in sugar can be harmful,” says Lona Sandon, R.D., an assistant Professor of clinical nutrition at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.
“The naturally occurring sugar in an apple is fine, but if we can reduce some of the added sugar in our diet, we can remove some of the empty calories.”
4 Main Types of Sugar:
1. Glucose
This simple sugar is often found in carbohydrates such as bread, pasta and cereals.
2. Lactose
Lactose is a type of sugar found in dairy, mainly milk. When someone is lactose intolerant, their body is sensitive or has an allergic reaction to the sugar in dairy and dairy products.
3. Sucrose
This is the name of common table sugar. It is made up of 50% glucose and 50% fructose and is what people typically use in their coffee and tea.
4. Fructose
Fructose is sugar typically found in fruits and plants. Most of the time, this type of sugar isn’t harmful since it is often accompanied by healthy nutrients and vitamins from the fruit or plant, but eat in moderation.
The Problem with Sugar:
Most often, when we talk about sugar, we are talking about refined sugar: a mixture of glucose and fructose, commonly found in various foods on our supermarket shelves.
Besides promoting weight gain and obesity, recent research suggests overdoing it on nutrient-poor refined sugar (especially fructose) can lead to many other medical conditions including:
- Liver toxicity
- Cardiovascular disease
- Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)
- Insulin Resistance can progress to Type II Diabetes [2]
Image: Common Foods and the amount of sugar in each.
Changes in metabolism may also have an effect on hormonal signals, resulting in damaging effects to the liver (similar to the effects alcohol has). And one study suggests there may even be a potential for sugar abuse when, like alcohol and tobacco, sugar affects hormone levels in the brain, leading to decreased feelings of fullness and increased consumption dependency (i.e. addiction). [3]
What Helps?
Don’t give up the sugar fight, it might appear to be a losing battle of avoidance because it seems that refined sugar is in so many common and uncommon hiding places, but there are other sugar options to sweeten your food so you aren’t depriving yourself either. Consider using some organic raw honey as a substitute for traditional sugar. It doesn’t give the same blood sugar highs and lows that the normal sugar does, and is tasty alternative to the types of sugar that are causing so many problems.
Low GI Foods are also essential.
Parents, for a great eating plan for Kids, follow this link: Eating Plan for Hyper Kids.
Some Other Sugar Alternatives:
Click Here to Read Part 2 – Natural Sugar Substitutes
* As always consult with your registered Health Professional before making any changes to your diet and lifestyle.
[1] http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1819573
[4] Consumption of added sugars and indicators of cardiovascular disease risk among US adolescents. Welsh J.A., Sharma A., Cunningham S.A.,et. al., Nutrition and Health Science Program, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, Circulation. 2011 Jan 25;123(3):249-57.
[5] High-fructose corn syrup: everything you wanted to know, but were afraid to ask., Fulgoni V 3rd, Nutrition Impact, LLC, Battle Creek, MI, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2008 Dec;88(6):1715S.
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