Toms Blog on Life

“We are now seeing the toxic downside [of eating excessive amounts of sugar]. There has to be some sort of societal intervention. We cannot do it on our own because sugar is addictive. Personal intervention is necessary, but not sufficient.” These are the words of Dr. Robert H. Lustig, a professor of clinical paediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco Centre for Obesity Assessment, Study, and Treatment, who led the latest research on the dangers of eating too much sugar.
As expected, sugar industry groups like the US Sugar Association were quick to respond when asked to comment on the latest research findings. Prof Charles Baker, chief scientific officer of the Sugar Association, said: “When the full body of science is evaluated during a major review, experts continue to conclude that sugar intake is not a causative factor in any disease, including obesity.”
This kind of reaction is to be expected, I guess, as sugar (especially given its addictive nature) is big business. There’s no escaping it, sugar is literally everywhere and trying to find food that contains little or no sugar on a supermarket shelf is not only near-impossible, but when you do get it, it costs an arm and a leg. So not only is sugar regulation necessary but people’s choices must actually be increased by making foods that aren’t loaded with sugar easier and cheaper to find.
Currently, the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for sugar is 120 grams for men and 90 grams for women. However, this allowance is very easy to exceed, even for those who believe they’re making so-called healthy choices. For example, a loaf of bread contains 3.5 grams of sugar, an Innocent smoothie 10.5 grams, Special K red berry breakfast cereal 23 grams and a Starbuck’s skinny muffin 43.6 grams, to mention but a few foods that many may consider to be healthier options.
Questioning quantity and quality
In his article, Dr Lustig writes that excess sugar in the diet does not just add calories, but has been linked to numerous health problems, which occur even in people who are a normal weight.
According to Lustig, too much sugar can cause:
* High blood pressure (fructose raises uric acid, which raises blood pressure)
* Diabetes
* Increase in the blood fats (triglycerides)
* Obesity
* Liver problems
He concludes that sugar has the potential to be abused and like tobacco and alcohol, can lead to addiction.
Lustig is talking about added sugars and not naturally occurring sugars in foods like fruit or milk. He defines added sugar as ”any sweetener containing the molecule fructose that is added to food in processing.”
Sugar consumption has tripled in the past 50 years and it’s probably no coincidence that obesity rates have shot up over this same period too. If Dr. Lustig’s commentary is not a wake-up call to policy makers and regulators, I don’t know what would be.
It’s safe to say it’s time to turn our attention to sugar in the battle against obesity, diabetes and heart disease despite the uphill battle we’re facing against sugar lobbyists.
A good first step for anyone trying to reduce their sugar intake is to cut back on, or better still, cut out sugary drinks… and on a much higher level of intervention, governments around the world should consider taxing foods high in sugar, in addition to providing subsidies for fruit and vegetables, in order to promote healthier diets.
Article from HSI newsletter. Sources:
Sugar ‘is toxic and must be regulated just like cigarettes’, claim scientists, published online 02.02.12, dailymail.co.uk
Americans Sweet on Sugar: Time to Regulate? Published online 02.02.12, webmd.com
Sugar tax needed, say US experts, published online 02.02.12, bbc.co.uk

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Your good health is a spectacular asset.
Don’t undervalue it.
Most people do – until they no longer have it.
Pause for a moment today and imagine your life without good health.
Then answer this question for me.
“What are you going to change this week to preserve and enhance your health?”

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Eggs, Berries, Vegetable Soup, Whole Fruits, Fish, Black Beans, Broccoli, Nuts, Oats and Quinoa. http://www.losethebackpain.com/blog/2012/01/12/most-filling-foods/