Get the LOW DOWN on SUGAR

Hey Sugar, it’s time for some straight talk today!

For about the past 25 years we have been lead to believe that fat is something we should not be consuming. Well, the research is in and that is not quite right. The ingredient that we DO need to cut down on (in a major way) is, well, SUGAR! Are you honestly surprised? We Americans  are consuming sugar like nobody’s business (that is my husbands favorite phrase)! Sugar and high fructose corn syrup in processed foods and beverages has unfortunately become one of our primary sources of calories.

Did you know that...

In the 1700’s the average American consumed 4 pounds of sugar each year.

In the 1800’s the average American consumed 18 pounds of sugar each year.

In the 1900’s the average American consumed 90 pounds of sugar each year.

In 2009, more than 50% of all Americans consumed one half pound of sugar per DAY-which translates to a whopping 180 pounds of sugar each year! 

What the heck is going on? 

Sugar is added to most ALL processed foods in some way shape or form. It takes such a toll on your health! Excessive sugar consumption may be the largest factor underlying obesity and chronic disease in America. Your body metabolizes fructose (sugar) much differently than glucose. The ENTIRE burden of metabolizing fructose falls on your liver, where excess fructose is quickly converted to fat, which explains the weight gain and abdominal obesity by so many Westerners. Fructose is also the main cause of non-alcoholic fatty liver and elevates uric acid, which raises your blood pressure, stresses the kidneys and leads to the chronic, low-level inflammation that is at the core of most chronic diseases....this certainly does not sound like a winning situation!!

So...what to do? Eat whole foods! According to the American Medical Association, women really only need 25 grams of sugar a day, and men only 37 grams. These numbers are for adults so can you imagine what a can of coca-a-cola does to our children?  Do you know how many sugar grams you are getting each day? At trumi, we encourage eating whole foods and keeping a food journal as part of our program to help clients reach their health goals. Even if it’s just sugar you decide to track for 1-2 days-DO IT! Sugar is found in so many foods, even foods you think are healthy like yogurt, salad dressings, marinades, fruit (yes, fruit) that it is important to get a baseline of what you are consuming so you can make changes. Check and see by lunchtime how many grams of sugar you have taken in. It’s AMAZING how we can easily consume 100 grams of sugar each day. Your goal is to keep your sugar grams between 35-50 grams each day...who’s in???

Great changes to consider would be: Get back to cooking at home and adding your own ingredients. Teach your kids how to cook some basic meals so they don‘t get used to the processed, convenient food out there that can lead them to disease. Maybe ’fruit’ becomes your dessert every once in a while? Maybe you decide to put less jelly on your toast in the morning or just butter? Maybe you give up that 3pm Swedish fish craving for a healthier option? Maybe you switch from peach yogurt to plain yogurt and use a few raspberries to sweeten it?  There are wonderful changes you can make and great alternatives if you seek them out. The whole food alternatives are usually tastier, mores satisfying and will do you waist and your health wonders!

Let’s get back to the basics and cut the sweets. We don’t need them, our kids certainly don’t need them and our Country’s health is dependent upon it!

Written by Laura Peters, trumi training Stillwater  www.trumi.com