Hello there friends and welcome to my 90 th Blog.
I am pretty sure that most of you will agree that sugar has become Public Enemy Number 1. I feel that this is particularly noticeable in the health and wellness industry. While I am definitely not suggesting that sugar itself is a nutrient-dense ingredient, it does seem that it may have been unfairly linked to numerous and many dreadfully awful outcomes. We have actually become frightened by the very word. Could there possibly be some misinformation that has accompanied this whole sugar fable? The demonization of sugar is not really new, but due to social media overtaking our lives and our world, we are now witnessing it on rather a magnified scale.
As we cast our minds back to the nineties (not so far back) we remember the fat-free diet craze that took the world by storm. This was the time wat was taken out of products, which resulted in food tasting disgusting. This could not continue. So, Hey Presto, in comes le sucre to the rescue!! Sugar quickly replaced the unmentionable butter and oil, and this jazzed up the flavour of packaged food. What was also absolutely fabulous was that it did not add any grams of the afore mentioned terrible fat! What a win!
For a decade or so this was the case, and everything was groovy, until it was not.
Scientists, thankfully, in their inimitable fashion, started unbundling this whole story. They discovered a whole host of serious health issues that were manifesting as a direct result of this low-fat high sugar diet. There was increased inflammation, high triglyceride (which could increase the risk of heart disease or stroke), low levels of HDL (good cholesterol), type 2 diabetes, to mention but a few.
Boom! Suddenly fat became our friend as extensive research highlighted the fact that it is the type of fat that we eat which matters, and that fat can actually be super nutritious. Think of the tasty extra virgin olive oil that is now drizzled on most of the delish salads that we eat, as well as the tasty nuts and creamy avo that adds super value to so many meals and snacks.
Moving swiftly along. Sneaky sugar determinedly eased its way into most of the food we ate, In 2020 the nutrition facts label was updated. This highlighted the hectic amount of added sugars present on food labels, which was quite scary and rather an eye opener. A new wave of sugar haters erupted throughout the world.
Oh boy!!
What to do and what to think?
As I have repeated, and often, food is not good or bad, it is either nutritious or it is not. I needed to make sense of this all.
So, i went exploring again, and below are just a few of my thoughts and others, on sugar.
- I should not eat fruit.
Sugar in fruit is supplied by nature and comes packaged with vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants and has numerous beneficial nutrients. Fruit is considered a low-density food which means it makes you feel full and satisfied, so you may eat less. Some fruits are more nutritious than others. Also, some folk can eat more fruit than others depending on their DNA, and other factors. Importantly, you should eat the fruit in its entirety. including skin where possible and try to drink water rather than fruit juice (which has all the sugar but none of the fibre that whole fruit has). Drink water rather.
2. Artificial sweeteners are brilliant.
There is ongoing research surrounding artificial sweeteners and they have a mixed reputation. They were thought to cause cancer, but this has not been substantiated. However, they may cause insulin resistance because your body still thinks that sugar is coming in and produces insulin anyway. That being said, they are considered safe by the FDA, although quite honestly, their long-term effects are not known. People who use artificial sweeteners often eat a little more during the day because they feel they can do this as they are not eating normal sugar. Artificial sweeteners also do not signal energy to the brain the way regular sugar does, so you may find that you reach for high calorie foods late in the day having consumed artificial sweeteners earlier. It does seem that further exploration, with well-designed large-scale studies in the general population, is required for us to definitively establish what these sugar substitutes are actually doing to our bodies.
- Natural sugars do not count toward your overall sugar intake.
I am not disputing the fact that natural sweeteners, like honey and maple syrup, are most definitely healthier than sugar. They have antioxidant content, and they have bioactive substances (compounds that may promote good health). However, they do count towards your daily intake of added sugars and should be consumed in moderation. One must also not forget about the natural sugar in lactose, found in all dairy products. I maintain that we must pay attention to the overall ingredients on a food label. To try to eat whole foods mostly, and to look at the added sugar number, as opposed to where the sugar source is coming from. Just my opinion.
- Sugar free diets are the bomb.
Sugar free seems to be one of the many serially misused and abused marketing claims. A sugar free diet means that one should abstain from industrially produced sugar. Foods that claim to be sugar free have replaced the sugar with chemical sugar alcohols like sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol, or saccharin and Splenda, most of which are still high in carbs and calories. They also often cause diarrhea if consumed in copious quantities.
5. Consuming anything with sugar will send my blood sugar levels sky high.
This is so not true. Firstly, blood sugar responses vary from person to person. Secondly, carbs are one of the macros, and by pairing it with other whole foods containing protein, fat and or fibre, one may actually be able to manage one’s blood sugar more effectively, and not cause it to spike, and then drop.
6. Sugar is a drug and an addiction.
A very controversial issue. Experts know that eating sugar stimulates pathways in the brain that are associated with feelings of pleasure and reward. The overlapping paths may produce effects similar to substance use, but that does not make them addictive like drugs. So why do some people get such a rush when they eat sugary snacks and feel like they need a regular fix to keep from crashing? Eating the sweet stuff causes your blood sugar to spike and quickly drop, which can leave you tired and with a headache. People seek out for more sugar to stabilise their blood sugar and help them feel better. A recent analysis found little evidence to support the idea that sugar actually has addictive, druglike properties. People may crave sugar, but it is unlikely the average person is addicted. Addiction is a serious medical condition based on actual brain changes that make it difficult for people to stop the use of a drug. Casually comparing sugar to drugs makes light of addiction.
- All sugar is unnecessary.
This is bullocks! Glucose, which is the sugar created when carbs are broken down, is the primary source of energy for your cells, particularly your brain, which uses half of your body’s sugar energy. Your muscles also use glycogen, which is stored glucose, to fuel your workouts. This does not mean you have to indulge in sugary foods to fuel yourself. Glucose can be made from complex carbs (long chain carbs) which typically also have fibre, minerals, and vitamins. So, eat those complex carbs and fruit together with other nutrient dense whole foods.
8. Sugar makes kids hyperactive.
There have been many studies on the relationship between sugar and hyperactivity. The majority of these studies so far have not found a connection between sugar and hyperactivity. Research has shown that parents who believe that their children’s behaviour is affected by sugar are more likely to feel that their children as hyperactive when they see that their child has just had a sugary drink or a sugar laden cookie. So, it’s a perception, not necessarily a fact.
- Sugar causes obesity.
If you eat a lot of sugary foods, like cakes and biscuits and if you drink sugary sodas, you will gain weight. However, it is because you are consuming a lot of calories, not because sugar is inherently fattening. If your calorie count is within a normal range, eating sugar is not going to create love handles or a jelly belly.
10. All sugar is created equal.
We have spoken about the diverse types of sugar molecules before, but a brief refresher is a clever idea for the purpose of refuting this statement. There are simple sugars, monosaccharides, which have one molecule, and these are glucose, fructose and gala. Disaccharides is the sugar formed when two monosaccharides are joined. and include lactose, sucrose and maltose. These sugars have differing chemical structures and are metabolized in slightly diverse ways. These sugars are the natural sugar. Added sugars include any sugars that are added to foods or beverages, like table sugar or honey. Your body can not tell the difference between natural sugars and added sugars, they are all processed as sugar in the body. What is important here is that sugar in a choc bar adds no extra nutrients whereas sugar in a strawberry has significant amounts of vitamins, minerals, and fibre.
- Brown sugar is the business.
Technically brown sugar does have some trace amounts of nutrients, thanks to the molasses which makes it brown and gives it a unique flavour. However, it is considered to be nutritionally equivalent to white sugar. Also, coconut sugar, whole or raw cane sugar differ from refined (table) sugar taste but have pretty similar calorie and sugar counts as the traditional granulated stuff.
- Sugar free products do not contain sugar.
Wrong. Sugar free products can contain less than 0,5 grams of sugar and although this may appear insignificant, it can still add up to a few grams of sugar a day. Also, no added sugar means that no sugar or sugar containing ingredient like honey or corn syrup was added to the product. However, it may still contain natural sugars from other ingredients like wheat, oats, or fruit. No problem with this, but it needs to be taken into consideration if you are trying to track your sugar levels.
- Too much sugar causes diabetes.
This is an extraordinarily complex narrative. Type 2 diabetes happens when the body no longer makes enough insulin to properly manage sugar levels. It is not just sugar that causes this, there are a variety of risk factors including, genetics, lifestyle, being overweight, not exercising, if additional calories come from sugar and are consumed and not burnt, they may be stored as fat.
My concluding thoughts are that we need to look at sugar holistically. Let us try to minimize the white stuff that is added to so many things and rather eat the nutrient dense whole foods containing all the macros and foods as close to their natural state as possible.
As I have said and will repeat often, we do not have all the answers, and even when we think we do, these answers change often and consistently. This makes health science constantly exciting.
With thanks toi Maren Baumgarten, Lauren Wicks and Marygrace Taylor.
I am dedicating this blog to my dear friend Jacqueline, who passed away on September ninth. I will miss her so , especially her amazing support of me and my blogs. May she now truly Rest in Peace after suffering for so long..