Eating a lot of “free” sugar has 45 negative effects

Numerous studies have shown the negative health effects of excessive sugar consumption, which has led to recommendations to limit the consumption of “free”, or added, sugar to less than 10% of a person’s daily caloric intake.

However, researchers from China and the United States felt that before developing a detailed sugar restriction policy, “the quality of existing evidence needs to be comprehensively assessed,” according to a study published in The BMJ.

According to these data, high sugar intake was associated with significantly higher health risks, including diabetes, gout, obesity, high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke, cancer, asthma, tooth decay, depression, and early death.

Free sugar, the type of sugar the authors focused on, is the one added during food processing; packaged as table sugar and other sweeteners and found in syrups, honey, fruit juices, vegetable juices, purees, spreads, and similar products in which the cellular structure of foods has been disrupted. This category does not include sugars naturally found in dairy products or whole fruits and vegetables.

The study “provides a useful overview of the current state of the science of sugar consumption and our health … and confirms that eating too much sugar is likely to cause problems,” said Dr. Maya Adam, Director of Healthcare Innovation and Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Medical school at Stanford University.

“Studies like this help patients understand that seemingly small changes, such as cutting out excess sugar, such as sugar-sweetened beverages, can lead to noticeable and positive health improvements,” said CNN medical analyst Dr. Liana Wen, an emergency physician and professor of public health at George Washington University.

Study participants with the highest intake of sugar-sweetened beverages had higher body weight than those with the lowest intake.

“As a nutrition researcher, I can confirm that the world’s dietary sugar consumption is more than twice the recommended amount (less than 10% of total daily caloric intake),” said Linda Van Horn, Emeritus Professor of Preventive Medicine at Feinberg Medical School. Northwestern University.

However, the evidence for an association between free sugar exposure and cancer has been conflicting and needs more research.

The effect of sugar on weight has been proven: high sugar intake has been associated with obesity, which in turn is a major factor in the occurrence of various types of cancer. The same goes for cardiovascular disease.

“Additional sugar intake can contribute to inflammation in the body, and this can put stress on the heart and blood vessels, which can lead to high blood pressure,” behavioral scientist Brooke Aggarwal told CNN.

Highly processed foods, which can be high in free sugar, have been found to increase inflammation, which is a risk factor for depression.

“Carbohydrates from whole foods take longer to break down into simple sugars, and some of them—fiber—are not broken down at all,” Adam told CNN. “This means that whole, intact grains don’t cause the kind of spikes in blood sugar that we experience when we eat simple sugar. Surges in blood sugar cause spikes in insulin levels, which can destabilize blood glucose levels and…become a major cause of long-term health problems.”

The results—combined with existing recommendations from the World Health Organization, the World Cancer Research Foundation, and the American Institute for Cancer Research—suggest that people should limit free sugar intake to about 6 teaspoons per day (25 g). So much sugar is contained in 2.5 chocolate chip cookies and about one and a half tablespoons of honey. According to the Cleveland Clinic, one donut contains 15 to 30 grams of sugar.

The authors also recommend reducing sugar-sweetened beverages to less than one serving (about 200 to 355 milliliters) per week.

Doctors recommend keeping track of what you put into your body by reading food labels when you buy them – even those that you may not find sweet, such as bread, breakfast cereals, yogurt, or condiments. It is in these products that a lot of sugar is usually added, and this all accumulates in the body.

According to scientists, frequent cooking and baking at home is one of the best ways to reduce your sugar intake.

Getting enough quality sleep on a regular basis would also help, “since we tend to choose high-sugar foods when we’re tired,” Dr. Aggarwal said.

Christina Denisyuk.

Source: edition.cnn.com