Sugar
This month we’re talking all about sugar. I find clients often want to eat less sugar, but aren’t always sure where the sugar comes from in their diet, or how to reduce it. In this article I’ll talk about what sugar is, why you might want to eat less, and how to reduce your sugar intake. And stay tuned to the end for a discount code for my new program, Sensible Sugar.
So first up, what do we mean by ‘sugar’?
Sugar is one of those terms that frustratingly doesn’t always get used correctly, and is often used interchangeably with ‘carbohydrates’. So let’s define sugars.
Carbohydrates are all made up of simple sugars - glucose, fructose, and galactose. The main purpose of carbohydrates in the body is to be used for energy creation.
Carbohydrates include simple sugars, complex carbohydrates which include starch, and fibre. These are all made up of varying arrangements of those three simple sugars - glucose, fructose and galactose.
Simple sugars are simply smaller molecules, while complex carbohydrates are larger molecules. Because they’re larger, complex carbs take longer to break down in our digestive system, giving us longer-lasting energy than simple sugars.
Complex carbohydrates can be low- or high-glycemic index (GI) which is a measure of how quickly the sugars enter your bloodstream and give you energy. Lower GI carbs are preferable because they give you energy over a longer period of time.
An excess of simple sugars can cause several short- and long-term health issues, from gut imbalances, fatigue, and inflammation, to type 2 diabetes.
Particularly of concern from a health perspective are free and added sugars, and the World Health Organisation recommends these sugars take up no more than 10% of your daily energy intake. For many adults, this will translate to around 45-60g of free sugar per day.
Added sugars are those sugars that are added to processed foods. That could be cane sugar, honey, fruit puree, or syrups like maple and rice syrup. Free sugars include added sugars and also include whole foods like honey and maple syrup, and the sugar in fruit juice.
This means it doesn’t include the sugar in whole fruit, because that’s naturally occurring in a whole food. But it does include the sugar in BBQ sauce and other processed foods, for example. And it includes things like maple syrup and other syrups, table sugar, and sugar in processed foods like biscuits and chocolate.
There are a few reasons why these free sugars are bad for health:
They are high in calories but often low in vitamins, minerals, fibre, and other beneficial substances. This is known as ‘calorie-dense’. This means they can often replace more healthy foods in our day.
Simple sugars enter the bloodstream quickly, giving us a burst of energy, but as insulin gets to work removing those sugars from our blood for storage, we can experience an energy crash. These highs and lows of blood sugar can wreak havoc on our gut health, mood, insulin sensitivity, and of course energy levels.
Consuming a lot of sugar can be a vicious cycle as high sugar consumption can lead us to crave sugar.
Reduced insulin sensitivity that results from high sugar consumption can, over time, develop into pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
Excess sugar can contribute to heart disease, by increasing inflammation, blood pressure, and blood triglycerides.
The places you’ll find an abundance of these sugars are sodas, fruit juices, many breakfast cereals and spreads, lollies and chocolate, and biscuits and cakes. Sugar is found in many processed foods, including savoury ones, like sauces, and soups.
Sugar can have many names on labels including corn syrup, maltodextrin, agave, fruit syrup, sucrose, molasses, and honey.
How to eat less sugar
One of the simplest ways to eat less sugar is to eat whole foods where possible. That way you know exactly what you’re eating and don’t have to mess around reading labels.
When eating processed foods, read ingredient labels and be aware of the different names for sugar.
Drink mostly water and reduce your intake of sugary drinks slowly. Iced tea, flavoured mineral water, and water with added mint and fruit are hydrating drinks, if you don’t like plain water.
Being hungry and low on energy can make us crave sugar, so keeping your blood sugar balanced is important for eating less sugar. This means having protein and fibre with each meal, especially breakfast, and having healthy snacks throughout the day.
Don’t stress about it! Food is meant to be enjoyed and restriction can make cravings worse. Once you understand sugar you can enjoy a sweet treat knowing that your day is still balanced.
