Saturday 23 January 2016

Sugar


(Photo from popsci.com)


Sugar! Are you closing your eyes and licking your lips right about now thinking of that sweet taste?
Well you are among the many that do. You maybe say that you have a "sweet tooth". 
Is it really a sweet tooth or an addiction to sugar? Maybe you say " but I don't eat a lot of sugar" The question is but are you? 
Some people say they don't eat chocolate bars, drink pop and perhaps don't order dessert after dinner, however they just might be eating processed foods, packaged foods, fast foods, energy/sports drinks, flavoured  yogurts, white breads & white pasta for example. These foods all contain sugar. So it could really seem that you don't consume much sugar but is the sugar consuming you and you just don't it? The answer could be yes. To find out how much sugar you are consuming try reading the labels on those favourite foods to see just how much you are consuming. You just may be SHOCKED!

FYI:
Did you know that sweet is the first taste humans prefer from birth?

Did you know that food labeled "Fat Free" are often loaded with sugar? The sugar ( plus other unhealthy ingredients ) is making up for the flavour lost from the fat. So are we really better off eating "Fat Free" products?

If you are finding yourself having sugar cravings the best foods to help decrease and or eliminate them are whole foods. Whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds & legumes. Yes I hear you saying "but fruits are high in sugar" or most anyways. This is very true, however this would be your very best choice for a sweet snack unlike a Twinkie as fruits are loaded with fiber, vitamins, minerals and healing properties. Where as for example a Twinkie is loaded with sugar & chemicals. This is what you would call an empty calorie. The Twinkie has no nutritional value. Therefore doesn't satisfy our taste buds or stomachs like fruits do. Believe it or not by eating more fruit you will start to change your taste buds into preferring this natural sweetness over the other unhealthy foods you were consuming to get your sugar fix.


    ( Photo from diet-blog.com )

Here's an article with this question: Is Fruit Good or Bad For Your Health? The Sweet Truth

    Is Fruit Good or Bad For Your Health? The Sweet Truth

    authoritynutrition.com › is-fruit-good-or...

Other helpful tips to help with sweet cravings is  try drinking more water, eat more leafy greens, consume fermented foods & drinks, eat smaller meals throughout the day & get at least 30 minutes a day of exercise. But some of you may also be asking "do we need to cut sugar out 100%?" No we need to choose the right healthy foods and control the amounts of non-healthy foods that are causing our sweet cravings. With everything in life there is balance. Here below are the US & CDN recommendations. 

How many sugar is acceptable?

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the maximum amount of added sugars you should eat in a day are (7): Men: 150 calories per day (37.5 grams or 9 teaspoons). Women: 100 calories per day (25 grams or 6 teaspoons)


According to the Canadian Sugar Institute. 
It is estimated that Canadians consume approximately 11% of their energy (calories) as added sugars, equivalent to about 53 g of added sugars per person per day. This is considered a moderate amount and well below the suggested maximum of 25% in the Dietary Reference Intakes that form the basis of Canada's dietary guidance.

Why we need to cut down on our sugar consumption.
The Consequences & potential out come of eating to much sugar are:

Addiction  
Weight gain
Insulin resistance
Diabetes 
Cognitive decline 
Nutritional deficiency +

Health Effects of Eating Too Much Sugar - Mercola

articles.mercola.com › sites › 2015/10/21

Most of us don't really know what HOW MUCH SUGAR looks like. We only hear & read the numbers. 
Here is a great website I found showing a visual of just how much sugar is in the foods we eat. A great eye opener. I think this example you will find is clearer then reading the numbers.



How Much Sugar in Condiments? - Sugar Stacks

www.sugarstacks.com › sauces


To finalize this blog, I'm ending on what became the beginning of the blog. I don't use You Tube much unless I come across videos from accounts I follow through social media. This one was linked to @Lakanto ( from Tremendousness Collective ) through Twitter that I just discovered today. It's A MUST WATCH. A clear visual, educating & descriptive video on how sugar effects the human body. 
Hope you give it a view. 
Educating is knowledge. We all deserve it to ourselves to be our own advocates for our good health & well being. After all if we don't who will? 


The Sugary Truth: Video

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