You add sugar to your morning cup of coffee or tea. You bake it into pastries, cakes and cookies. You even sprinkle it all over your breakfast cereal or your oatmeal for added flavor. It’s also hidden in some beloved “treats” that people consume on a daily basis, such as sodas, fruit juices, candies, ice cream and in almost all processed foods, including breads, meats, and even your favorite condiments like Worcestershire sauce and ketchup.
Sugar is toxic, addictive and deadly – This intense addiction to sugar is becoming rampant, not just among adults, but in children as well.
Why Is Excessive Sugar Bad for Your Health?
Today, an average American consumes about 32 teaspoons of sugar per day, which is 26 pounds per year.
People are consuming excessive sugar in the form of fructose or high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). It is found in almost all types of processed foods and drinks today. HFCS is metabolized directly into fat.
Effects of Consuming Too Much Sugar – Dr. Robert Lustig, a professor of Clinical Pediatrics in the Division of Endocrinology in the University of California and a pioneer in decoding sugar metabolism, says that your body can safely metabolize at least six teaspoons of added sugar from natural and manufactured sources per day.
Sugar: The Bitter Truth video. Here is a full version has been viewed almost times 7.8 million times https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
This short version speaks about high-fructose corn syrup https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCjatB98vw0
Here are some of the effects that excessive sugar intake has on your health:
- It causes weight gain, abdominal obesity, decreased HDL and increased LDL cholesterol levels, elevated blood sugar, elevated triglycerides, and high blood pressure.
- One of the most severe effects of eating too much sugar is its potential to damage your liver, leading to a condition known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
- Your liver metabolizes alcohol the same way as sugar — as both serve as substrates for converting dietary carbohydrate into fat. This promotes insulin resistance, fatty liver and dyslipidemia (abnormal fat levels in your blood).
- Fructose causes superoxide free radicals to form, resulting in inflammation.
- Fructose can directly and indirectly stimulate the brain’s “hedonic pathway” — creating habituation and dependence, the same way that alcohol does.
- Sugar is a primary dietary factor that drives obesity and chronic disease development.
- It “feeds” the cancer cells, promoting cell division and speeding their growth, allowing the cancer to spread faster.
- There is a powerful connection between a high-fructose diet and your risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, through the same pathway that causes Type 2 diabetes.
- According to some experts, Alzheimer’s and other brain disorders may be caused by the constant burning of glucose for fuel by your brain. Other diseases that may potentially arise because of too much sugar consumption include: Hypertension, Lipid problems, Heart disease, Polycystic ovarian syndrome.
How to Manage or Limit Your Sugar Consumption – Avoid processed foods and beverages like soda. According to SugarScience.org, 74 % of processed foods contain added sugar stealthily hidden under different names.
Here is a link to 56 names of sugar https://blog.virtahealth.com/names-for-sugar/
Severely limit your consumption of refined carbohydrates (waffles, cereals, bagels, bread, etc.) and grains, as they actually break down to sugar in your body, resulting in insulin resistance.
As a general recommendation, keep your total fructose consumption below 25 grams per day, including that from whole fruit. Keep in mind that although fruits are rich in nutrients and antioxidants, they also naturally contain fructose.
Avoid artificial sweeteners like aspartame and sucralose.
Here are some additional dietary tips to remember:
- Increase your consumption of healthy fats, such as omega-3, saturated and monounsaturated fats such as organic butter from raw milk, (unheated) virgin olive oil, coconut oil, raw nuts like pecans and macadamia, free-range eggs, avocado and wild Alaskan salmon.
- Drink pure, clean water – The best way to gauge your water needs is to observe the color of your urine (it should be light pale yellow) and the frequency of your bathroom visits (ideally, this is around seven to eight times per day).
- Add fermented foods to your meals, they provide detoxification support, which helps lessen the fructose burden on your liver. Some of the best choices include kimchi, natto, organic yogurt and kefir made from grass fed milk, and fermented vegetables.
This has been condensed from Dr. Mercola’s Post https://articles.mercola.com/sugar-side-effects.aspx
Please see his Post for the References to the supporting studies.
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May you Live Long Healthy.
Yours truly,
Lydia Polstra
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Email: lpolstra@bell.net
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