Is sugar bad for you?

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How many times have you looked at a nutrition label and thought to yourself “this is no fat and low calories – it has to be OK for my diet!”? Sometimes we get so caught up in looking at the two facts that are right on top – the calories and the fat – that we forget to look any further then that. We often forget about the one little diet destroyer that hangs out a little bit lower on the label… SUGAR! In addition to watching your fat and your calories, it is crucial to monitor your sugar intake; and today I wanted to share with you five of the main reasons why. Keep reading for more!

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1. Sugar is addictive: Like abusive drugs, sugar causes a release of dopamine in the reward center of the brain. Your brain starts to crave this “hit” and will tell you that you’re hungry just to get it. In this study, 94% of rats who were given the choice between sugar water and cocaine actually chose the sugar. They speculated that this was because the stimulation received from sugar was so strong that the rats (and us!) become easily addicted.

2. There’s no nutritional value to sugar: Not all calories are created the same and frankly, sugar is a complete waste. Different foods can have different effects on our brains and the hormones that tell us when we’re hungry or not. Most calories we consume will stimulate an area of our brain responsible for satiety – or feeling like we’re full. Enough stimulation to this area tells you that you are full and need to put your fork down. Fructose (sugar), however, has very little effect on stimulating this area of our brains. You can eat a lot more sugar without feeling full as compared to other foods.

3. The recommended daily amount is much lower than you think: When looking at your food nutrition labels, have you ever noticed anything unique about sugar content? Look at it closely – you will notice that there is never a percentage of your recommended daily amount listed. Did you know that the recommended daily amount of sugar for males is 25 g and four females it is 20 grams?! That’s it! Just for funsies let’s take a look at some common foods that most of us probably eat everyday and see just what kind of sugar content is in there…

1 cup of Lucky Charms cereal: 14 g

1 Yoplait yogurt: 27 g

12 ounce can of Coke: 36 g

Handful of M&Ms: 30 g

1 Tablespoon ketchup: 4 g

2 Tablespoons of peanut butter: 3 g

1 Oreo cookie: 4.5 g

If you were to eat all of these items listed above in a 24-hour period, you would have consumed 119 grams of sugar!! Nearly 6 times the recommended daily amount for women and 5 times the recommended amount for men!!!

So now let’s get real…

4. Sugar is a leading contributor to obesity in adults and children: The consumption of high-fructose corn syrup in America increased 1000% from 1970 to 1990. How your body digests, absorbs, and metabolizes fructose differs greatly from how it metabolizes glucose – its preferred energy source. In fact, according to this study :

“Fructose does not stimulate insulin secretion or enhance leptin production. Because insulin and leptin act as key afferent signals in the regulation of food intake and body weight, this suggests that dietary fructose may contribute to increased energy intake and weight gain.”

Basically – because of the effects of sugar on hormones and the brain, sugar dramatically increases the risk of becoming overweight or obese.

5. Sugar makes you fat, raises your cholesterol, and gives you heart disease: There I said it. I was going to sugar-coat it a little bit, but we’re trying to help you see why that’s a bad thing! Here we go…

According to this study – people who ate less sugar lost an average of nearly 2 pounds over 10-24 weeks. Conversely, people who increased their sugar intake gained 1.7 pounds in less than 8 weeks. The researchers suspect that, unsurprisingly, people who eat sugar get more calories than they burn off with physical activity. As mentioned previously, sugary foods are also less-filling than naturally sweet foods like fruit, which means you’re more likely to overindulge with a soda than an apple. And don’t forget the sweetened snacks—they are energy dense, meaning one box of mini-donuts really packs on the pounds.

But your problems don’t just stop with weight gain. According to this study: the evidence is mounting that sugar, NOT fat, may be one of the leading drivers of heart disease via the harmful effects of fructose on metabolism. In fact, this study shows that large amounts of fructose can raise triglycerides, small, dense LDL and oxidized LDL (very, very bad), raise blood glucose and insulin levels and increase abdominal obesity… in as little as 10 weeks. These are all major risk factors for heart disease.

So there you have them: my top 5 reasons why sugar is wrecking your diet and why you should break up with it immediately! It’s tough, especially if you’re addicted to it. But the reward is absolutely 100% worth it.

Need a little help giving up sugar? Here are 10 tips that worked for me! Click on the image below to be taken to the post.

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Questions or comments about this post? I would love to hear from you!
Leave me a comment below or email me at jared{at}toneandtightenfitness.com

Make it happen,

Jared