The Surprising Places Sugar Hides in The Body

 

                                        Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

Have you ever wondered how much sugar is in your tasty bowl of food and snacks? Knowing the amount of sugar in a product will help you determine the quantity to take per time so that you can maintain a healthy lifestyle. 

Usually, packaged food always come with labels indicating the amount of each constituent of the product. This is a straightforward method of letting you choose to buy a product or not. However, certain diets contain sugar even though you may not be aware of that fact.

Thus some food is taken in portions that end up increasing the overall sugar level in the body.

Here are some diets that contain sugar.

Breakfast Cereal – If you Walk along the cereal section of the major supermarkets, you will notice so many brands of supposedly healthy cereals, some of which come with mixed fruits.  

However, so many of these cereals have hidden amounts of sugar. It is estimated that some of these cereals contain up to 23 grams of sugar per serving.

Asian Food – Sushi happens to be a well known Asian cuisine that contains some amounts of sugar. Even though the amount of sugar is dependent on the chef making the dish. The good thing is, making your own at home will help you control the amount of sugar in the dish.

Canned and Packaged Soups and Sauces – The good thing about canned food is the clear description of what is used for the product and the amount of each. So, when picking out that sauce, can of beans, soup, or gravy all you need to do is check out the label to determine the level of sugar. If you are careful about the amount of sugar in your diet, simply find one with lesser or no sugar in them.

Yogurt (Frozen and fresh)– This is a recommended dessert, still it doesn't mean it should be taken too much especially the sweetened variant. Plain unsweetened yogurt contains is better. Still it should not be used to replace a normal healthy diet and should be used as a dessert.

 It can be used to replace ice cream but bear in mind that both ice cream and sweetened yogurt contain sugar. You may opt for plain yogurt when shopping and add fruits of your choice like blueberries and stevia to create a low-sugar snack that is healthy and rich in probiotics to help cleanse your colon.

Smoothies – This is the rage now in a time when people are more conscious about looks and healthy lifestyles. This rise in the number of smoothie shops and outlets is a pointer in this direction but caution needs to be taken as some smoothie outlets add sugar to their smoothie and this cancels the benefits that these smoothies we're supposed to provide. This, if you are a smoothie lover, make your own with fresh fruits.

Bread – This is one staple in most homes and is made with refined flour and sugar. Both of these add to the overall blood sugar level. Even bread made with wheat contains some amount of sugar. Making your own determines how much sugar you want in it.

Soy milk and tiger nut drink -These are two healthy drinks made from soybeans and tiger nut respectively. However, to be able to make more profit r

some people add sugar while some saccharin to sweeten the drinks for sale. To avoid these sugar spiked drinks from causing you more harm than good, make them yourself in the comfort of your home.

Muffins – This is one great that kids love and if you are also a muffin lover then you already know that they are very high in sugar. Although many brands now package and present theirs as healthy variants, they all contain high amounts of sugar. This does not rule out the fact that you can have low sugar muffins. To get this, you may need to research recipes and make them at home while adjusting the amount of sugar added. 

The basic lessons drawn from this is that most processed and packaged foods are very likely to contain high amounts of sugar that may prove harmful to the body. It is proper to check out the labels and make your choices based on your preferences. It is important to note that you should not consume too much sugar as you age to guide against sugar-related illnesses.

At What Point Is Sugar Too Much?

Here in Africa, our staple food is mostly carbohydrates like cassava, yam, rice, sorghum, millet, and the likes. These are eaten in different forms and can be balanced with other vegetables and protein. These carbohydrates break down to form glucose in the body. Knowing this, it is expected that if you want to live a healthy lifestyle you should not overload your body with excess sugar. 

But how much is too much?

 Photo by Dmitriy Be on Unsplash

Sugar limits for the body can be described in terms of the total accepted level an adult is expected to consume per day. An adult diet should consume nothing more than 90 grams per day.

Bearing in mind that carbohydrates contribute to the level of sugar in the body, you will need to check the amount of extra or additional sugar as you take in that snack. 

Let's say your meal consist of 1500 calories every day, and you plan to stay within the lines of good, healthy sugar levels, you can eat your 90 grams of sugar safely by choosing what to eat or remove from our diet. This means any quantity above 90g is too much.

You can choose how much natural and processed sugar you want to consume. If you have consumed high volumes of natural sugar you would need to lower the amount of added sugar you take in. 

So the bottom line is not overshooting the medically accepted figure of 90g. This means when faced with the choice of picking between a cup of grapes and a can of coke. First, check the amount of sugar each contains. The cup of grapes would amount to 15g while the can of coke would contain 39g. 

When you choose food try to stick to items that will fill you up and hold you for longer while providing the necessary enjoyment you desire.

To feel healthier, you would need to consume natural sugars as they do not have high sugar content. 

Below is a list of fruits and vegetables that contain natural sugars that you can add to your diet daily to help you stay within the 90g limit.,

Fruit

Apples – 1 small = 15g

Apricots – 1 cup = 15g 

Banana – 1 medium = 14g

Blackberries – 1 cup whole = 7g

Blueberries – 1 cup whole = 15g

Cantaloupe – 1 cup diced = 12g

Cranberries – 1 cup whole = 4g

Grapefruit – 1 cup = 16g

Guavas – 1 cup = 15g

Honeydew – 1 cup diced = 14g

Lemons – 1 wedge = 0.2g

Limes - 1 wedge = 0.15g

Papaya (PawPaw)– 1 cup 1” cubed = 11g

Peaches – 1 cup sliced = 13g

Raspberries – 1 cup whole = 5g

Rhubarb – 1 cup diced = 1.3g

Strawberries – 1 cup whole = 7g

Tomatoes – 1 large whole = 4.8g

Watermelon – 1 cup diced = 9g

Vegetables

Artichokes – 1 large = 1.6g

Asparagus – 1 cup = 2.5g

Broccoli – 1 cup chopped = 1.5g

Carrots – 1 medium = 2.9g

Celery – 1 cup chopped = 1.8g

Corn – 1 cup = 1.1g

Cucumber – 1 8-in = 5g

Green Beans – 1 cup = 3.3g

Kale – 1 cup chopped = 1.6g

Lettuce – 1 head = 2.8g

Soybean sprouts – 1 cup = 0.1g

Spinach – 1 cup = 0.1g

Summer squash – 1 cup sliced = 2.5g

Swiss chard – 1 cup = 0.4g

As clearly shown by the list above, natural food contains relatively small amounts of sugar and when you combine them with other foods you can eat what you love without hitting the 90g daily limit. 

You'll be surprised at the number of tasty treats you can make from the list above and without added sugars.

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