Added sugar is the single worst ingredient in the modern diet. This is not natural sugar found in fruits and vegetables, but sugar that is added to food. There are many different names for sugar: sucrose, dextrose, maltose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, dehydrated cane juice, etc. Beware of sugars labeled “healthy” such as agave, honey, coconut sugar or cane sugar. In the end, it’s all sugar no matter what you name it.
Americans consume over 150 lbs of added sugar and 78 lbs of high fructose corn syrup every year. The maximum amount of sugar a person should consume in a day is 25g (6 teaspoons), but the average American consumes 76 grams a day (16 teaspoons).
Sugary junk foods stimulate the same areas of the brain as abused drugs, Sugar can cause people to lose control of their consumption, which is why it is called an addiction.
Excess sugar causes: *Type II Diabetes (non-insulin dependent), *Cardiovascular disease, *certain cancers, *tooth decay, *fatty liver disease (non-alcoholic) , *mood swings, *depression & *obesity. 69% of US adults are overweight or obese.
How can you minimize sugar in your diet? Start by limiting soda, soft drinks, fruit juices, sweets, fruits in canned syrup & dried fruits. One thing a lot of people don’t know is that one of the biggest sources of added sugar is in LOW FAT & DIET FOODS! (They replace the fat with sugar to make it taste better). Reading labels is a very important way to limit sugar intake. Look at the servings per container & multiply to get accurate amounts of sugar and fat. Avoid processed food as much as possible. If a packaged food has sugar in the first 3 ingredients, or more than 1 type of sugar in it, avoid it. We are overfed but we are starving to death because processed foods are mostly chemicals, no nutrients. Your body only needs a certain amount of sugar to use as fuel. The excess sugar is converted into fat by a process called lipogenesis. It’s not fat that makes you fat, it is sugar that makes you fat. If you are interested in learning more, or in participating in our sugar detox program, contact us today!
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