The Lowdown on Sugar

Sugar

How do you distinguish how much sugar is in your diet and how much you should consume. Well here is the lowdown on sugar.

The facts are that the average overweight American consumes  about 47 teaspoons of sugar-485050_640sugar a day. Over 100 years ago people consumed less than 15 grams of sugar a day, plus their jobs were more physical than most jobs today. So where does that leave us?

Too much belly fat and generally way overweight.

Consuming refined sugar, refined carbs, and so many processed foods is affecting the hormone insulin in your body. The pancreas produces insulin to manage your fat and blood sugar. If not controlled it can lead to high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

The lifestyle today is to grab prepared food on the go. It’s quick and it’s easy, only many of us don’t realize how many carbs and sugars are hidden in these fast food products.

We need to get back to a better way to eat. Back to fresh vegetables , lean meats, poultry and fish. There is very little sugar in these foods.

Start reading labels before you purchase a product or better yet don’t buy processed items. I did not realize how much sugar was in milk and milk products.  There are 13 grams of sugar in a cup of milk. Any cookie, donut or sweet treat is loaded with sugar. You are better off to refrain from all those processed food and to eat lower on the food chain.

Sugar is used in many products. Cookies, cakes, ice cream, jellies, jams, sodas. pickles are just a few, so cutting out sugar is hard. But so much better for our bodies and our health.

Sometimes reading labels can be hard, because sugar can be disguised under different names such as fructose, maltose, dextrose and lactose. But they are still a form of sugar with the same effects as pure sugar.

Another side effect of eating too much sugar. Sugar drives up production of insulin while not producing leptin which control your appetite. So you over eat and all that excess food gets stored as fat. So when your body produces leptin it had a decrease  in abdominal fat.

Which is what we all want.

Sugar can kill you too

Belly fat is the outward signs of a high processed, sugar laden diet. But the damage can be so much more. It’s been linked to three very bad diseases that can kill you.

Cardiovascular Disease. Feeding your body a diet of refined carbs and too much sugar will cause inflammation and eventually high blood pressure and high cholesterol. This can lead to heart disease and possibly a heart attack or stroke.

Cancer.  Research has linked sugar intake to one of the worst forms of cancer, pancreatic cancer. also researchers have found a link between excess sugar and colon cancer. Cancer cells love sugar.

Type 2 Diabetes.  Over production of insulin can lead to type 2 diabetes. When you consume to much sugar laden foods your body produces more insulin, which can lead to insulin resistance and the next step is diabetes.

So take care of you body and treat it well and you will reap the results.

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