Sugar: Sweet to the Lips, Killer on the Hips
Ok now that I have your attention, there’s a lot more to eating excess sugar than the extra pounds it packs on.
You may not want to hear it, but if it seems like you are constantly fighting off illness, the amount of sugar you are eating probably has a lot to do with it. Studies show that eating 75-100 grams of sugar (the amount in two 12 ounces sodas) can suppress the bodies immune system, and simple sugars like table sugar and honey can cause a 50% drop in the ability of white blood cells to engulf and destroy bacteria. This effect starts about 30 minutes after ingestion, and can last up to 5 hours. If you are constantly feeding your body sugar-laden foods, you are probably going to get sick a lot more often.
Other factors that weaken your immune system include stress, lack of sleep, lack of exercise, and being socially isolated. The choices we make in these areas directly affects how healthy we are.
When you train with Get Fit NH Bootcamp, you are directly affecting three of those factors:
You are exercising in a fun, team-oriented atmosphere, which in turn helps relieve stress – well done! As far as the sleep goes you are a bit more on your own, but turning the TV off before midnight would probably help!
But I digress, so let’s get back to taking care of that sweet tooth.
Here’s just a few of the names of sugar you will find on the back of a food label, and they all have the same affect on your waistline and your overall health:
Barley malt
Cane juice crystals
Demarara
Dextran
Dextrose
Diastatic malt
Diatase
Ethyl Maltol
Fructose
Fruit juice
Galactose
Glucose
Golden syrup
Lactose
Maltodextrin
Maltose
Malt Syrup
Maple Syrup
Molasses
Muscovado
Panocha
Refiners syrup
Rice syrup
Sorbitol
Sorghum
Sucrose
Treacle
Turbinado
Go to your cupboard right now, pull out that box of cookies (that are there for the kids of course 🙂 and see how many of these you can find!
Here’s another way to look at sugar. I found this eye-opening website called SugarStacks.com
What they have done is stacked up sugar cubes to illustrate how much sugar is in many of the common foods we eat. It is incredible how much sugar we can consume without even realizing it, even in so called “healthy foods”. Here are some links to specific pages on the site:
and while eating fruit can be a very good thing to do, you still have to watch your overall sugar and calories
You probably aren’t going to get fat eating carrots
Another cool thing SugarStacks.com has done is offer some perspective on a “high sugar” vegetable – carrots. Take a look at how many carrots you would have to eat in order to get as much sugar as in some favorite beverages and snacks
That’s a lotta carrots, and the bottom line is that it’s a lot easier to down a mocha latte and a cinnamon bun, with all the extra sugar, fat and calories than it is to eat whole, natural, vitamin rich and health supporting foods.
How much sugar are you eating? If you don’t know, it’s time to find out, and then do something about it!
For more info on the health affects of sugar and how to beat the sugar craving, read Dr. Al Sears article on sugar here
Make It Happen!
Coach Dean
Dean Carlson is a Certified Professional Fitness Trainer with the National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association, a Level 2 Youth Conditioning Specialist with the International Youth Conditioning Association and is a Level 1 Certified Precision Nutrition coach.
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