How much is too much? Sugar that is.

 Refined sugar is always made out to be the big bad wolf in the context of a healthy diet.  Where is the joy in food if there is to be no sugar around?  Sugar in all its incarnations, ie. refined white sugar, brown sugar, cane syrup, jaggery, molasses, brings out a unique flavor in foods.  In fact, my mom’s traditional cooking has to have 3 complementing flavors in all foods - salty, sweet and sour.  Sweet foods are also inherent to most cultures appearing in various celebrations and rituals. Like with salt, we simply can't turn our backs on sugar.

The more pertinent question should be how much sugar is acceptable and when does it start becoming a problem?  There is a really neat, interactive infographic that shows how many calories are consumed on an average per day by Americans and where these come from.  Per the graph, in 2008, from a daily total of 2673 calories, added sugar makes up a whopping 459 calories.  To look at it in more measurable terms, that is about 28 teaspoons of sugar!!  Mind you this is only added sugar.....not the sugar that is intrinsic in milk, fruit and carbohydrates which are counted separately in the graph and processed differently by the body.  

Sheesh!  Where is it all coming from?  
I couldn’t believe it when I first saw the infographic.  However that very evening I was scheduled to work the snack bar at my son’s baseball game.  As kids came up with their precious dollars, the only things that seemed to be flying off the shelves were assorted candies some of which I have never even heard of.  The most popular of all was the giant Pixy Stix which is a long straw filled with nothing but sugar (so said an 8 year old who came by twice for just those).  But come on now, that is hardly typical, is it? Maybe not but it is still easy to see how it can add up.  Consider some of the examples

Obvious culprits especially with kids
- cake, cookies, icecream, candy, soda, sweetened beverages, desserts
Innocuous treats
- crackers, fruit juices (from concentrates), waffles, pancakes, jelly, muffins
In staples
- cereals, bread, flavored oatmeal, flavored milk (chocolate, ovaltine, etc.), flavored yogurt, ketchup
Cleverly hidden in seemingly healthy foods
- pasta sauce, soups, deli meat, salad dressing, canned fruits, fruit leather
Unknown
- restaurant foods, ready to eat foods

The list is actually much longer considering that added sugar appears in our foods under many different names - raw sugar, white sugar, brown sugar, cane juice, evaporated cane juice, corn syrup solids, high fructose corn syrup, honey, molasses, fruit juice concentrates, maltose, dextrose, sorbitol, fructose, maltodextrin, xylitol, etc.

I suppose it is not so surprising after all that we have those additional 459 calories or 28 teaspoons of sugar in our diets.  

Much ado about nothing?

I was once asked what the big deal about sugar was and I stumped to give a convincing answer.  When I came home and thought about it, I came up with a few reasons as to why excess sugar is bad for us some of which are backed by scientific research and others which are claims and beliefs of alternative health practitioners.  

• The empty calories displace other nutritious foods from your diet
• Excess sugar is converted to body fat thus increasing chances of obesity and risk of Type 2 diabetes
• Impairs blood sugar regulation causing frequent fluctuations in blood sugar which can negatively impact cardiovascular and kidney health
• New research links excess sugar to heightened insulin levels setting the body up for Type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol and the dreaded “cancer”
• Weakens digestive and gut health potentially leading to more serious autoimmune disorders including inflammatory bowel disease
• Hinders with the absorption of Vitamic C by the body thus reducing immunity
• Aggravates mood and behavioral issues with sugar highs and lows
• Promotes tooth decay and poor dental health
• Sugar is an addicting substance and there is definitely something such as a sugar craving(I should know. I am quite susceptible to those)

Over the years there have been studies conducted by various scientists and physicians on different indigenous populations such as the Inuits, Andean tribes, Okinavans and others with notable levels of good health and longevity.  For generations, these populations had few or no incidences of chronic diseases or cancer  However with the introduction of the so called ‘western diet’ which includes large quantities of refined carbohydrates and added sugar, the incidences of diseases such as cancer and diabetes are becoming more prevalent.  This observation should count for something too.


Last but not the least, there are researchers from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School who are wary of the cancer risks of sugar.  (See Gary Taubes recent article, titled “Is Sugar Toxic?”). When researchers worry about something so should we.  


Naysayers will have you believe that none of this evidence is conclusive enough to cause too much concern.  Hmmn.....I rather think that the evidence is suggestive enough for me to worry.  Besides who are these naysayers?  More likely than not, they are folks with vested interest such as the Big Ag, Corn Refiners Association, sugarcane growers and refiners and their lobbyists.  Gosh, don’t they think we can recognize a conflict of interest in their advertising and public service announcements?

Here to stay?
Sugar does have a special place in most cultures.  Originating in ancient India where it was processed from sugarcane, sugar spread to the Arab world and subsequently to Europe in the 12th century.  It flourished in the new world thanks to a cruel slave economy and in modern times, the sugar industry has been complicit in labor exploitation in developing nations.  In the early days, refined sugar was a luxury reserved for royalty and the wealthy but over time it became more accessible and ironically, today it seems to be the key ingredient in the manufacture of cheap, processed foods.  

Sugar has a pretty tight foothold in the culinary expression of most cultures. Sweetened foods are usually a staple during festivals and religious celebrations in many countries.  Humans especially children also intrinsically seek out sweet flavors.  How then are we to turn away from something that dominates our historical, biological and cultural being?  

We don’t!  Instead we should recognize that the excessive use of sugar has slowly been creeping up on us and we should try to find a balance.  Moderation and making informed choices and/or trade-offs is probably more palatable than simply giving up all forms of refined sugar.  

Last week, my mom and I made a traditional Indian savory bread/snack from millet (bajri) and fenugreek (methi) leaves mixed with spices and we did throw in a bit of sugar to balance out the flavors.  My heart sank when she was pouring in the sugar but after some calculations we determined that we had 1g of sugar per serving (2 pieces).  Compare that with

3g of sugar per serving of Orowheat Whole Wheat bread (1 slice)
5g of sugar per serving of Kashi Heart to Heart cereal (1/2 cup)
9g of sugar per serving of Activia Vanilla yogurt (1/2 cup or 4oz cup. Of the 17g listed, 8g are from naturally occurring sugars in the milk)
13g of sugar per serving of Ragu Chunky Style spaghetti sauce (1/2 cup)

What gives?

I suppose obsessive label reading is in my future while my children look askance at me since I am forever changing rules on them.  My daughter seems to have adapted though.  She did not bat an eyelid at the Dr.’s office and opted for the Barbara’s Snackanimal crackers instead of the obligatory lollipop.  Damage averted?

10g of sugar in the lollipop
3g of sugar in the 5 animal crackers she ate

Next challenge?  To teach my kids that fruits can be a treat too and save dessert for those special days only.