Hidden SugarWhy we should avoid sugar, where to look out for

hidden sugar and what to replace sugar with.

Why Should We Eliminate Added Sugar From Our Diet?Sugar contains no essential nutrients and it provides a lot

of extra calories, which is why it’s often referred to as ‘empty calories’.

What Might Happen if You Keep Eating Too Much Sugar?

Insulin Resistance, which can lead to Type 2 Diabetes

Chronic Inflammation

Weight Gain

Energy Crashes and Mood Swings

Tooth Decay

What Exactly is Insulin Resistance? The North American Diet and lifestyle for many

people puts stress on the natural glucose control mechanisms.

Insulin Resistance which leads to Type 2 Diabetes is a chronic metabolic problem which is characterized by elevated fasting blood sugar levels.

Most Type 2 Diabetes can initally be controlled by diet alone, and should be the first treatment option. Often returning to a healthy weight can restore proper sugar management.

I’ve Heard A Lot About Chronic Inflammation, What Is It?

Inflammation is your body’s first line of defense against toxins, infections and injuries and it’s an important part of how your body heals from injury.

It’s the state of chronic inflammation that we want to avoid. Harvard Medical School says chronic inflammation is a key driver of heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions.

About 70% of our immune cells are in the digestive tract. The immune system can be triggered by bacteria in food, allergens in food or hormone imbalance (like insulin).

According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition processed sugars and high glycemic starches increase inflammation.

Weight Gain

The simple fact of the matter is that calories in excess of your daily requirement creates excess weight over time.

Sugar crowds out other nutrient dense foods BUT it doesn’t fill you up!

Gherlin is the hormone that signals when we’re full. When our blood sugar spikes gherlin turns off so we keep eating excess calories!

Excess sugar causes insulin highs and lows which can cause you to store sugar as fat.

Energy Crashes & Mood Swings• Swings in blood sugar can

lead to irritability and plain old bad moods or being “hangry”

• Snack if you’re hungry (good options are nuts, hummus and crackers, cheese and fruit, hard boiled eggs) to avoid reaching for something sweet in a pinch.

Tooth Decay Bacteria in the mouth

combine with mucous and food to form plaque.

The bacteria in the plaque feed on sugar and slowly leach the calcium and phosphate from the tooth, leading to decay and erosion.

If you do have sugary snacks (especially sticky ones) be sure to brush your teeth after!

Floss every night.

Where’s Sugar Hiding? Ketchup and BBQ Sauces

Salad dressings

Pasta sauces

Flavored Yogurt

Fruit Juices

Packaged snacks like granola bars

Cereals

Crackers

Store-bought bread

Restaurant Food and Take-Out

Sneaky Names for Sugar Sucrose

Evaporated Cane Juice

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Anything that ends in an ‘-ose’

Dextrose, maltose etc

Organic brown rice syrup

Barley malt

How Many Teaspoons of Sugar in a Serving? The amount is provided in grams .

Divide this figure by 4 to see how many teaspoons of sugar you are consuming per serving.

This example is about 5 teaspoons of sugar.

Now check the serving size. Are you having 1 serving, 2 servings or the whole container.

The % of Daily Value has not been established for sugar but the WHO recommends no more than 10% of daily calories come from sugar. This is 50g or 12 tsp.

The American Heart Association recommends no more than 6 tsp for women and 9 tsp for men of added sugar.

Note that is dairy products the first 11g/cup or 5g/100g is natural dairy sugar (lactose). Natural sugar (fructose) is found in fruit.

What About Fructose? Fruit is high in the natural sugar fructose. Fruit is full of nutrients, antioxidants and fiber. Fruit are not to be eaten as freely as

vegetables due to the high calorie count and sugar content.

Eat fruit as your grandparents would have- a few pieces a day, not unlimited!

Eat whole fruit more often. Try to eliminate prepared fruit juices and use dried fruit sparingly.

Avoid jams and jellies, substitute with nut butters and fruit slices or savory options like mashed avocado to top toast.

Fructose vs glucose. Fructose in fruit has “chewing resistance”, fiber and nutrients and fills you up, plus you eat it slower. Fructose in soda has the opposite effect, zero nutrients, zero satiating effect and it hits your liver quickly!

Are There Healthy Sugar Alternatives?

• So what’s the deal with the so-called healthier alternatives to sugar? For the most part they are just well-marketed versions of sugar.

• They’re not healthier. You can’t eat as much of them as you want. They cause all of the same negative reactions in your body.

• Sweeteners like agave, coconut sugar and even brown sugar are touted as healthy options but all of these sweeteners are heavily processed.

• They’re usually more expensive as well (to pay for the pretty packaging).

How to Sweeten Without Sugar. Sprinkle with cinnamon Sprinkle with Coconut Flakes Add a dash of Vanilla Extract Brew some Chai Tea Caramelize onions to use as a topping Roast Vegetables Add peas to your rice, salads, add grated carrot to

your pasta sauce Try coconut water instead of soda

Get Through a Sugar Craving

Grab a “snack-size” not a “king-size” Choose something sweet but better for you like dark

chocolate Have a piece of fruit Have a piece of cheese Drink some water or a cup of tea Go for a walk or call a friend as a distraction

Andrea Beazley-FublerRegistered Holistic Nutritionist

www.goodhealthgirl.com