The next time you reach for a rich delicious brownie, or decide you want a Frappuccino instead of an Americano you might want to read the information below.
We have heard it time and time again since we were little kids and our parents would say “You will get cavity’s if you eat too much sugar”, or “It will spoil your dinner” etc… and now you as parents are probably preaching the same song and dance to your children.
Yes, we all know sugar leads to cavities, weight gain, ache, it is very addictive, it can be harmful to your health,
I found an astounding quote from the Wellness Mama that read:
Consumption of processed foods (which are laced with sugar) cost the American public more than $54 billion in dental bills each year, so the dental industry reaps huge profits from the programmed addiction of the public to sugar products. …Today we have a nation that is addicted to sugar. In 1915, the national average of sugar consumption (per year) was around 15 to 20 pounds per person. Today the average person consumes his/her weight in sugar, plus over 20 pounds of corn syrup. To add more horrors to these facts there are some people that use no sweets and some who use much less than the average figure, which means that there is a percentage of the population that consume a great deal more refined sugar than their body weight. The human body cannot tolerate this large amount of refined carbohydrates. The vital organs in the body are actually damaged by this gross intake of sugar.”
This really goes to show how addictive sugar really is … Also sugar is not a food group it has not nutrients what so ever so that means we are ingesting empty calories which is tricking our brain to send off more signals that we are hungry and more importantly hungry for MORE SUGAR!!
I watched a great documentary on Netflix “Hungry for Change” (if you have not seen it I highly recommend it)! This really demonstrates how harmful processed sugars are to us as a nation and individually!
So What exactly does sugar consist of?
- “Dextrose, fructose, and glucose are all monosaccharides, known as simple sugars. The primary difference between them is how your body metabolizes them. Glucose and dextrose are essentially the same sugar. However, food manufacturers usually use the term “dextrose” in their ingredient list.
- The simple sugars can combine to form more complex sugars, like the disaccharide sucrose (table sugar), which is half glucose and half fructose.
- High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is 55 percent fructose and 45 percent glucose.
- Ethanol (drinking alcohol) is not a sugar, although beer and wine contain residual sugars and starches, in addition to alcohol.
- Sugar alcohols like xylitol, glycerol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and erythritol are neither sugars nor alcohols but are becoming increasingly popular as sweeteners. They are incompletely absorbed from your small intestine, for the most part, so they provide fewer calories than sugar but often cause problems with bloating, diarrhea, and flatulence.
- Sucralose (Splenda) is NOT a sugar, despite its sugar-like name and deceptive marketing slogan, “made from sugar.” It’s a chlorinated artificial sweetener in line with aspartame and saccharin, with detrimental health effects to match.
- Agave syrup, falsely advertised as “natural,” is typically HIGHLY processed and is usually 80 percent fructose. The end product does not even remotely resemble the original agave plant.
- Honey is about 53 percent fructose2, but is completely natural in its raw form and has many health benefits when used in moderation, including as many antioxidants as spinach.
- Stevia is a highly sweet herb derived from the leaf of the South American stevia plant, which is completely safe (in its natural form). Lo han (or luohanguo) is another natural sweetener, but derived from a fruit.”
When I read exactly what sugar consisted of and how my body was processing it, it made me take a second look before I reached for that “harmful treat”.
It really just does not taste as good when you are educated and know the effects it is causing to your overall health!
If you not yet convinced here is another great article from the Washington Post on sugar’s affects on lab mice.
I know it can be very difficult to avoid sugars all together, but I believe the more you educate yourself and find the healthy alternative to your favorite treat it will make you look, feel, and perform better for many years to come!
What did you take from this blog Fit Ones?
Post your answers in the comments below…
Fit Chic