Howdy! Today’s issue is part two of my two-part series on sugar.
Hopefully you will use this information as an incentive to continue your research and, if necessary, tweak your diet so it includes less sugar.
It’s an important topic and the stakes are high.
In Part One, I talked about how people’s daily sugar consumption has been on the rise.
I ended last time citing statistics from a 1994 NHanes III study that showed American adults are consuming about 54.7 grams of fructose (approximately 109 grams of sugar) per day. Even more alarming, was the intake by adolescents, which is now 72.8 grams (about 155 grams of sugar) per day.
So what do these numbers mean?
The American Heart Association recommends that women should have no more than six teaspoons a day, and men no more than nine teaspoons a day.
With one teaspoon of sugar equaling 4.2 grams, that translates into 25.2 grams for women and 37.8 grams per men.
Or, if you’re talking strictly fructose, the above numbers would be cut in half. In other words, on daily bases, American adult fructose intake is over 54 grams, when the recommend daily amount is 12.6 grams for women and 18.9 grams for men.
So how did this happen?
Let’s take a look at two changes that have taken place over the years. The first being the size of soda drinks. In 1915, Coca Cola was sold in 6.5 oz glasses. If you drank one a day, it would translate into 8 lbs a year; in 1955 the 10 oz. bottle was introduced (one a day=13 lbs per year); in 1960 the 12 oz can came into being (one a day=16 lbs per year); in 1988 the 44 oz cup appeared (one a day=57 lbs per year); and in 1992 the 20 oz bottle was introduced (one a day=26 lbs per year).Lustig refers to it as “The Coke Conspiracy” pointing out that the “New Coke” introduced in 1985 contained more caffeine and more salt. “They know what they’re doing” says Lustig.
The next big change that has occurred in food over the past forty years or so is High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Developed in Japan in 1966, it was introduced into the American market in 1975.
The mix of HFCS is slightly different than regular sugar in that it’s made up of 55% fructose and 45% glucose. Studies and statistics show that each
American consumes 63 lbs of HFCS per year.
Lustig says bluntly that… “We’ve had our food supply adulterated …contaminated …poisoned …tainted …on purpose. And we’ve allowed it….through the addition of fructose…”
So what’s to be done?
Lustig recommends four things to his patient at his clinic:
1) Get rid of sugared liquids. He states flatly that there is no such thing as a good sugared beverage.
2) Eat your carbohydrates with fiber (It’s a discussion for another day, but most people aren’t getting enough fiber in their diet.)
4) Buy your screen time minute for minute with your physical activity. What Lustig means by this is for every half hour of television you watch, exercise for half an hour. He admits that this is the toughest one to follow.
And, of course, the one that goes without saying, make sure your daily intake of sugar is within the recommended levels.
The key take-home is this: when it’s something as important as your health, the key is to do your own research.
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