The Skinny on sugar
We all love sugar, and we all eat way too much of it. Sugar comes in many different forms but for simplicity we will refer to sugar as simple and complex.
Simple sugars break down rapidly in the body. The rapid breakdown causes a spike in blood sugar followed by a crash in blood sugar. This typically ends in you getting cravings for sweets and feeling sluggish.
On the other hand, complex sugars break down slower and do not spike your blood sugar levels. A quick look at the nutrition facts label will tell you how much simple and complex sugars are in a food. Check out the making sense of nutrition facts labels blog to learn how to read and understand nutrition facts labels.
It is ideal to keep your sugar intake below 30g per day. That is not a lot of sugar, especially if you log your current daily sugar intake. Keep in mind that this is the amount of sugar and not carbohydrates for the day.
When looking at the nutrition facts label, pay attention to the amount of total sugar. For more information on this read the making sense of nutrition facts labels blog.
Keep in mind that for someone experiencing a medically low blood sugar level, only 15g of sugar (½ cup of fruit juice) is needed to raise the blood sugar level to normal.
Why?
It is ideal to keep sugar intake down for two main reasons. First, sugar does not provide any nutrition and is referred to as empty calories. These increase the possibility for weight gain. There are times during prolonged exercise that simple sugars are beneficial to performance, however it is not needed in large amounts either.
Second, consuming over 40-50g of sugar in one meal can cause low grade inflammation in the body. An occasional high intake will not cause long-term health problems for the body however, repetitive high intake throughout the day can. Long-term low-grade inflammation can lead to heart disease, diabetes, allergies and many other health problems.
What about honey, blue agave, sugar in the raw?
All of these and many of the numerous other “natural” sugars are all simple sugars and have the same effect in the body. If you think about it, table sugar typically comes from sugar cane which is also a natural source of sugar.
Most sugars will undergo some form of processing and refining to extract the sugar itself. While some argue that certain sources of sugars provide minerals, the actual amount of those minerals is so minimal that you would have to consume several cups of sugar for any real benefit.
Honey can provide some other benefits such as improving allergies however, it has to be a local honey to your region. Just remember that sugar is sugar no matter what its original source was. There is no lab made sugar currently besides sugar alternatives (ex, Splenda, aspartame, Sweet-n-Low).
Don’t I need sugar for energy?
Even though sugar can give you an energy boost, it is typically short lived. Complex sugars can give you more sustained energy than simple sugars.
Although neither sugar will give you long lasting energy throughout the day. In order for your body to have sustained energy it is important to consume a balance of protein, carbohydrates and fats throughout the day. This will be discussed further in a future blog so keep your eyes out for that one!
If you are unsure of how much and what you should be eating, schedule a free consultation to get started on your personalized nutrition plan.
What if I replace sugar with an artificial sweetener?
Artificial sweeteners or sugar alternatives are useful in reducing calorie intake while satisfying our sweet tooth. Even though the immediate craving is satisfied, sugar alternatives also cause future sugar cravings and are often more intense. So much for a product that is intended to reduce our overall calorie intake.
When we consume sugar certain pleasure areas of our brain are triggered and we feel good as a result.
When we consume sugar alternatives our brain is alerted that sugar is on the way, but it never reaches it.
Because sugar alternatives are not digested and absorbed, they never reach the brain, and we never get that full satisfaction we get from consuming sugar. The brain will then increase your craving for sugar and lead to bingeing on a bag of sweets later in the day.
SO, what’s best to do?
You are already taking the first step by simply reading this blog and being aware of how sugar can negatively impact the body in large amounts.
After reading this blog, start by keeping a log for a few days on your total daily sugar intake. This will give your baseline intake and make it easier to make adjustments. Once you have a baseline daily sugar intake start by reducing it by 5-10g per day for a week.
If you consume 100g per day, then start with 90g per day for one week, then 80g per day etc. Keep following the weekly reduction until you achieve 30g per day. If you want a personalized nutrition plan and weekly meal plan to get you on track, schedule a free consultation to get started!
Written by: Adam Skowyra MPPD. RDN, LD
