Looking to reduce the amount of sugar you eat?
(Nearly three-quarters of Americans say they are.)
Here we explore the big debate on sugar and answer some popular questions.
What’s the Big Deal About Sugar?.
Human beings are primed to seek sweetness.
And we’re eating a whole lot of it.
That’s about 17 teaspoons worth, or 68 grams.
The Voorhes
(Natural sugarsfound in fruits, vegetables and dairy products are not considered added.
Plus, these foods come with other nutrients that make them healthy.)
Our problematic sweet tooths have made sugar something of a nutritional pariah.
That panel could indeed be a useful tool in helping people cut back.
(Natural sugars + added sugars = total sugars.)
In fact, many manufacturers have already reformulated their products in anticipation of the new labeling requirements.
“It can be a very powerful tool, because it educates the consumer,” says Micha.
“And food companies need to be able to provide that option to them.”
We’ll even share the recipe.
Sugar Nutrition Facts & Basics
Sugar is a simple carbohydrate, and there are many different types.
Many foods contain more than one kind of sugar.
Your body’s cells normally run on glucose.
Fructose, on the other hand, is processed mostly in the liver.
In excess, this can cause nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, resulting in inflammation and cirrhosis.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease affects up to 24% of all adults in the U.S. (Same goes for other foods with added sugars, like 100% wholewheat bread.)
And voila: 6% of calories were allotted to added sugars and 9% to solid fats.
(No calories got earmarked for alcohol.)
It sends a stronger message to the public that reducing added sugars would be a healthful decision."
Top Sugar Questions
Is sugar addictive?
Itdoestrigger your brain’s reward system, releasing the pleasure neurotransmitter dopamine and encouraging you to eat.
Sugar can also lead to cravings.
“And the evidence in humans is far from compelling.”
The term “emotional eating” may be a better descriptor of an unhealthy relationship with sugar.
Or it could just be habit.
“Basically, sugar is sugar,” says the Mayo Clinic’s Jason Ewoldt.
(It’s that lack of food matrix again.)
That said, natural sweeteners offer some additional nutrientsmaple syrup, for example, has manganese and riboflavin.
Can sugar substitutes help you control you weight?
Yes, at least in the short term.
But the goal, she adds, would be to eventually reduce artificial sweetener intake as well.
(Other nonnutritive sweeteners include saccharin, monk fruit, acesulfame potassium, neotame, advantame and stevia.)
“There are people who believe passionately that low calorie sweeteners are problematic.
But the overwhelming preponderance of evidence does not support that view,” says Mattes.
“The evidence indicates that these sweeteners are relatively neutral, or that they’re beneficial.
Are sugar-sweetened beverages particularly unhealthy?
And they have no nutritional value.
In addition, some studies suggest that these drinks stimulate appetite and spur overeating.
But are they really any worse for you than, say, sucking down Skittles?
It would be harder to precisely tally up the amount of sugar from various foods.
Another 11% comes from coffee and tea that have been sweetened with sugar.
