You may have seen that we recently posted an article to our Facebook Page titled “9 Shocking Facts You Need to Know About Sugar.” If you took the time to poke through this article, then you already know that Americans’ sugar consumption is through the roof! To give you a little taste of what the article contains, here is the first shocking fact they posted:
- Americans consume, on average, 765 grams of sugar every five days. To put that in perspective, in 1822 we consumed on average 45 grams every five days. That is equal to one can of soda. Now we consume 17 times that, or the equivalent of 17 cans of soda.
With our sugar intake skyrocketing compared to that of our ancestors, I decided to do some research into what the effects of this “sugar rush” could be…
Here are a few effects of sugar consumption which you may not have already known:
1. Sugar makes your organs fat.
Table sugars and high-fructose corn syrup can cause your liver to store fat more efficiently.
2. Sugar is bad for your teeth.
Sugars provide easily digestible energy for the bad bacteria found in your mouth.
3. Sugar primes the body for Diabetes.
Sugar can cause insulin resistance, resulting in too much glucose in the blood, which is highly toxic.
4. Sugar can put you at a higher risk for Cancer.
Multiple studies have shown that increased sugar intake results in a higher risk of getting cancer. (1, 2, 3)
5. Sugar raises cholesterol and leads to heart disease.
Recent studies have provided evidence that sugar, not fat, may be the leading factor in heart disease.
6. Sugar is a natural inflammatory.
Sugar, as well as insulin imbalances, can cause increased inflammation. Chronic inflammation is known to be the root of many deadly diseases.
7. Sugar is highly addictive.
Because it causes massive dopamine releases in the brain, similar to abusive drugs, sugar can create addictive habits. See the image below.
Dr. Robert Lustig, a specialist on pediatric hormone disorders and the leading expert in childhood obesity at the University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, makes the case that sugar is a “toxin” or “poison.” Lustig attributes the primary reason for the rise in obesity and diabetes rates to our excessive sugar consumption. “If Lustig is right, it would mean that sugar is also the likely dietary cause of several other chronic ailments widely considered to be diseases of Western lifestyles — heart disease, hypertension and many common cancers among them. (NYTimes – Is Sugar Toxic?)”
If you are looking for anymore reason to avoid sugar, take a look at Dr. Lustig’s lecture “Sugar: The Bitter Truth” embedded below. This presentation currently has over 5.3million views.
I hope this deeper understanding of sugar will help to influence your nutritional decisions. If you ever have any questions for us or would like to suggest a topic for an upcoming newsletter please reach us on our Facebook page. To receive email updates of our blog and signup for our weekly newsletter please click here.