Sugar adds sweetness to the foods and we take 19 teaspoons of added sugar daily. Women eat and drink about 15 tsp in their daily lives. Read on to learn how bad sugar does to your body and how much sugar is what we require every day.
What Do You Know About Sugar?
Biological cells present in our body consider glucose for utilizing energy. Our body makes it when breaking down fats. Your body uses the glucose that we get from meats or vegetables to provide energy that our brain needs.
You cannot consider sugar a bad ingredient for you. Your body needs glucose to survive. You There is no need to eat glucose because your body makes it from your food. Cravings for food and tooth decay may happen to your body when you eat too much added sugar.
We consume two types of sugar in our daily lives: natural and added. Natural sugars occur naturally in foods, especially sugar present in fruit is called fructose. Whereas lactose is present in milk. Added sugars are combined with ingredients such as brown sugar and high-fructose corn syrup.
Other sugars that we can include:
- Fructose
- Galactose
- Lactose
- Maltose
Your body breaks down sugar using amylase which is present in your mouth. Sugar then travels through your stomach. There it gets absorbed into your blood. This elevates your blood sugar level and helps your pancreas to release insulin.
Is Sugar Bad for You?
Sugar is not always a bad option, but too much added sugar has health hazards. Sugars absorb into your bloodstream at a rapid rate, which causes spikes in your insulin levels. Your body stores the extra glucose in your liver until you need it. Body converts sugar into fatty tissue.
What is the Difference Between Added Sugar and Natural Sugar
Whether you consider sugar as negative or positive, that depends upon where you get it from. Fruit, dairy products, and vegetables contain natural sugar. These foods have fiber, minerals, and vitamins which are essential for health.
But, we should believe that Added sugar has “empty calories.” Foods that are higher in added sugar do not have the same nutritional value. Added sugars include products that are sugar-sweetened beverages, baked goods and sweets. There are different names for added sugar, which include:
- Cane juice
- Concentrated fruit or vegetable juice
- Dextrose, fructose, glucose, or sucrose
- High fructose corn syrup
- Honey
The Impact of Sugar on Health and Wellness
Eating too much added sugar regularly may cause unpleasant side effects, such as changes in your thinking and stress levels. Following are the few things that happen to your body when eating sugar:
1. Increase Cravings for Sugar
Eating large amounts of sugar speeds up the brain’s appetite center, which interferes with feelings of fullness. You may feel less content with the same amount of sugar, which leads to addiction for sugar cravings. In this way, it leads to overeating.
2. Tooth Decay May Occur
The mouth has balanced levels of good and harmful bacteria. When eating sugar, it can bind to the harmful bacteria in the mouth and form plaque. This bacteria produces acids that remove the protective enamel that covers teeth, which results in tooth decay.
3. Affects Brain Function
Eating too much added sugar changes how your brain functions, which leads to degenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Eating diets high in saturated fat leads to a range of memory impairments. This may be due to the inflammatory effects of fat and sugar on the hippocampus present in your brain. This area of your brain controls our response to hunger cues.
4. Increases the Risk of Disease
Too much added sugar can increase the oxidation process in the cells. Sugar creates oxidative stress in the body that can damage organs. This can increase the risk of health conditions:
- Cognitive decline
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Fatty liver disease
5. Causes Age Skin Faster
Consuming a lot of added sugar can stop collagen repair. Although, collagen keeps skin looking plump. A lack of collagen leads to thinner skin, resulting in reduced elasticity and premature wrinkles. This is because of the way the body breaks down sugar. One way to protect your skin is to indulge your sweet tooth with fruit instead that contains antioxidants. These antioxidants protect the body from inflammation that leads to aging.
How Much Sugar Should You Eat?
It is prohibited that you must not use added sugars for children younger than 2 and less than 50 grams. But for adults, 10% of daily calories, eating 2,000 calories per day is a good option.
Natural foods serve added sugar to put 50 g into perspective:
- A 16-ounce cup of apple juice has 48 g
- Taking a glass of Bush’s sweet baked beans has 26 g
- Honey split cup yogurt has 25 g
- One piece of chocolate cake contains about 55 g
Moreover, you can include Greek yogurt with fresh berries or fresh vegetables and hummus.
The Bottom Line
Few things happen in your body when you eat sugar which you should know. Consuming it in moderation has little impact. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a sweet treat but in moderation. Consuming too much added sugar over a long period poses risks including blood sugar crashes, faster aging and cognitive decline. Talk to a healthcare provider if you need help creating a balanced diet that can really be helpful.
