Sugar’s Hidden Dangers

The American Health Association suggests that we eat only 3 to 6 teaspoons of sugar for children, 6 teaspoons for women, and 9 teaspoons for men per day. Yet, the CDC discovered Americans average over 19 teaspoons per day! To put it into some perspective how much sugar that is, one can of Coke Classic has over 9 teaspoons of sugar!

Sugar causes cavities in our teeth because it feeds the bad bacteria. We also have bad bacteria in our gut that proliferate when we consume too much sugar. If you have heard of probiotics you know that gut health is increasing in the spotlight. We are in a constant battle to keep balance of our gut bacteria and sugar tips the scale toward the bad bacteria instead of the good bacteria. Additionally, people that suffer from candida, too much yeast in the body, should know that sugar promotes yeast growth.

Obviously, excessive sugar leads to weight gain. Often times the food that contains a lot of sugar is low in nutrients- cakes, cookies, and sodas, for example. These foods give you lots of calories with very little or no nutrition. Our body turns sugar into glucose, the glucose turns to body fat if you don’t use it. Since Americans have moved to a more sedentary lifestyle which does not promote use of the extra glucose we get from our concentrated calorie foods we now consume, it often turns into body fat. Having extra fat around your mid-section leads to a whole host of problems. According to Harvard Health, extra abdominal fat leads to increased LDL (which can increase cardiac events), decreased insulin response (which increases chance of diabetes), and increases chances of “stroke, high blood pressure, cancer, diabetes, osteoarthritis, fatty liver, and depression.”

If that is not enough reason to be alarmed by sugar intake, wait until you hear this:

Sugar also activates reward receptors in the brain. Drugs, alcohol, even acceptance from others cause our bodies release dopamine when we get those kind of stimuli. Sugar also causes our bodies to release dopamine. Our bodies desire the dopamine release because dopamine activates our reward centers in our brain. These reward receptors literally make us crave more sugar. So yes, sugar addiction is real.

Knowledge is power! Now you know these things about sugar, I hope that it will give you a little more willpower to opt for water over soda or to learn to drink your coffee sans sugar. I learned how to skip the sugar in my coffee, it was not easy. It’s not nearly as enjoyable but to save myself from the unwanted health risks of over-consumption of sugar, it’s worth it to me.

Please note: I am not a fan of artificial sweeteners and I will cover that in an upcoming blog.

I have lots of tips for how to cut sugar out of your diet. I have learned how to make these changes in my own life and I have helped others change their eating habits. I have worked with diabetics that risk losing a limb if they did not get their blood sugar down. We had success and we actually lowered their blood sugar levels through diet modification! I am here to help you on your path towards better health anyway I can.

Every pivot towards good health is a step in the right direction, no matter how big or how small. Please call to schedule your complimentary initial consultation and sample 1 on 1 eating for health consultation.

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