It’s difficult to say no to that slice of cake and refrain from eating your favorite mithai for days. You must accept the fact that sugar is addicting.
However, knowing that sugar is nothing short of a devil for our health, some of us try to avoid it whenever possible. Is sugar, however, so terrible that we should abstain from it entirely?
People don’t understand it, but sugar comes in a variety of forms, including white sugar and sugar from secret sources. One teaspoon of ketchup, for example, has one teaspoon of sugar.
According to the FDA, sugar should not account for more than 10% of your daily calorie intake. The World Health Organization, on the other hand, has cut this number from 10% to 5%. WHO advises only 6 teaspoons of sugar, or 25 gram of sugar, for an adult with a normal BMI. All of the suggestions above are for sugars that have been added. What’s the difference between sugar that’s been added and sugar that’s been naturally produced? Processed sugar, white granules, or honey are examples of added sugar. To make your oatmeal and other foods sweeter, sprinkle them on top. Added sugars can be found in a variety of packaged goods, including healthy diet bars, candies, and cookies.
Doctors are usually concerned about the added sugars rather than the sugar that occurs naturally. healthy sugar is the sugar found in fruits, vegetables, dairy, and entire grains. These foods have lower sugar content and provide additional health benefits. Though both types of sugars have a comparable effect on your body, added sugar is easily broken down by your body, causing blood sugar levels to rise very quickly. What happens if you consume too much sugar?
Too much sugar can cause a variety of issues, ranging from minor to severe. It can cause concentration issues, mood swings, a sharp drop and rise in blood sugar levels, inflammation in the body, weight gain, and chronic ailments such as heart disease and diabetes.
Free sugars – sugars added to food or drinks, as well as sugars found naturally in honey, syrups, and unsweetened fruit and vegetable juices, smoothies, and purées – should not account for more than 5% of the energy (calories) you consume from food and drink each day, according to the government.
- Adults should consume no more than 30g of free sugars per day; (roughly equivalent to 7 sugar cubes).
- Children between the ages of 7 and 10 should consume no more than 24 gram of free sugar per day (6 sugar cubes).
- Children between the ages of 4 and 6 should consume no more than 19 gram of free sugar per day (5 sugar cubes).
Sweets, cakes, cookies, chocolate, and some fizzy beverages and juice drinks all contain free sugars. These are the sweet foods that we should avoid. A can of cola, for example, can contain up to 9 cubes of sugar, which is more than the recommended daily amount for people. Sugars can also be found naturally in meals like fruit, vegetables, and milk; however, we do not need to limit our intake of these sugars. Be aware that these are included in the “total sugars” statistic on food labels, along with free sugars.