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| A Primer
on Sugar Did you know the average American consumes 152 pounds of sweeteners per year? And no wonder why sugar is everywhere. Places where we expect it: children’s cereal, cookies, ice cream, and soda. More concerning, places where we don’t expect it: canned vegetables, baby food, crackers, yogurt, even ketchup! These days it pays to be a food detective. Sugar is a hidden ingredient listed as: corn syrup, dextrose, maltose, glucose, fructose, sucrose, and white grape juice, among others. When in doubt about the sugar content of a food you can look at the list of ingredients and see how many grams of carbohydrates are listed. Unless the carbohydrates are from above ground vegetables you should be concerned that they represent sugars that could alter your insulin levels. All foods fall into the following categories: carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Simple carbohydrates break down into sugar immediately (pasta, bagels, bread). Complex carbohydrates break into sugar more slowly, and are released into the blood stream slower (grains, green leafy vegetables). Complex carbohydrates give us the best kind of fuel for our muscles and brain functions. Protein supports our bodies’ tissue growth and repair, immune integrity, and metabolism (lean meats, eggs, fish). High quality fats (olive oil, nuts and seeds) balance blood sugar, and provide long-term energy. Ideally, each meal or snack should have an almost equal balance of these nutrients. Now that you realize just how much sugar you are eating, you might wonder how bad is it? Sugar puts stress on the body in several ways. First it sets us up with cravings, eat something sweet and you want more sweets. It’s addictive. Eating too much sugar throws off the body’s homeostasis, which is the process of keeping blood sugar on an even keel. Out of balance conditions lead to diabetes and hypoglycemia. Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease. The body can only handle so much sugar at one time. Excess sugar that can’t be used right away is stored as blood fat. Blood fat is another term for triglycerides. Have you ever been told that your triglycerides are too high? The more sugar you eat, the more insulin your pancreas will produce, the higher your triglyceride levels are likely to be. Its interesting to note that even though fat intake has recently gone down in this country, our intake of sugars and refined starches has shot up, and our incidence of heart disease is continuing to climb. So now you’re wondering what can I do to eat less sugar! A few simple strategies: Drink more water - Beverages can be a significant source of sugar. A large glass of juice with breakfast, a can of cola with lunch and for a snack, and a glass of wine or beer with dinner can easily add up to 125 grams of sugar! Reducing sugary soda and replacing it with water will get significant sugar out of your diet. It’s a great place to start. Enjoy the fresh air - A walk around the block is often what you need to calm the body down and re-energize. This is especially helpful after lunch. So walk past the vending machine and grab a breath of fresh air instead of a chocolate bar. Exercise – Use the stairs rather than the elevator, park in the back of the parking lot, try a new sport to add variety to your workout. Add root vegetables to your diet - Sweet potatoes, beets, and carrots will give you the sweet sensation as well as vitamins and minerals needed to fuel the body. Sleep soundly - We often crave sugar when we are exhausted. The body knows it needs a burst of energy. Are getting the quality and quantity of sleep needed for your body to rest and repair? Being informed helps you make smarter, healthier choices.
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