It’s not just about dental health or the prospect of gaining weight by eating sweets. This is just the tip of the iceberg.
It is very difficult to imagine our life without sugar. Even if you don’t put it in tea and coffee, don’t drink soda, it still seeps into your diet: with bread, sauces, cereals for breakfast, even with frozen berries. We get so used to it that food without sugar seems unpalatable to us. But, in fact, sweetness only clogs the natural taste of products. Healthy eating habits read labels carefully to get rid of sugar in their diets. And rightly so – they have many reasonable reasons for this. The thing is that sugar …
1. … addictive
This is why it has been compared to drugs. Sugar stimulates the production of dopamine in the brain – this substance is also called the pleasure molecule. The body gets hooked on a free high, and soon our brain makes us crave sweets over and over again. In addition, overuse of sugar forces the body to produce the hormone ghrelin, which is responsible for feeling hungry. The more sweet, the more we want to eat.
2. … damages the immune system
The process when the protective cells of the body – leukocytes – destroy harmful viruses and bacteria that penetrate from the outside is called phagocytosis. An excess of sugar in the diet inhibits this process, as a result, we become more susceptible to various diseases. By the way, the property of reducing the function of leukocytes is possessed not only by refined sugar, but also by all simple sugars: fructose, glucose, even honey.
3. … washes out minerals
Not only is sugar essentially empty calories that do no good to the body, but it also deprives our body of vital minerals. Sugar accelerates the leaching of sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium. This can cause bone and cardiovascular problems. By the way, sugar abuse is one of the most common causes of hypertension.
4. … can lead to cancer
Yes, it’s not for nothing that sugar is called the white death. Sugar provokes inflammation in the body, develops insulin resistance and provokes obesity – these are all the risks of developing cancer. A study involving 430 people showed that people who ate too much sweets were more likely to suffer from cancer of the esophagus, colon, and lungs. Women were more likely to develop endometrial cancer. In addition, scientists have found that excess sugar provokes the development of asthma and obstructive pulmonary disease.
5. … causes fatty liver
Refined sugar is half glucose and half fructose. The only organ in our body that processes fructose is the liver. If she is unable to handle the doses of sweets you supply her, the sugar turns into fat. As a result, the diagnosis was non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
6. … provokes the development of diabetes
Blood sugar levels are regulated by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Consuming too much sugar on a regular basis causes insulin resistance. It is the most significant risk factor for developing diabetes. Research shows that for every 150 “sugar” calories (that’s about a can of cola), you are 1,1 percent more likely to get sick.
7. … causes premature aging
Yes, he is even capable of that! The skin becomes dull and wrinkled because sugar, absorbed by the body, disrupts the production of collagen and elastin. In addition, scientists have found that this sweet carbohydrate also causes accelerated cellular aging. Moral: Eat more protein and fewer simple carbohydrates to avoid aging longer.
8. … leads to depression
It just seems like sugar improves mood. Improves, but not for long. And then it falls again – and even deeper than it was. It’s all about serotonin: sugar causes it to surge, and then the same sharp decline. Scientists have observed a group of 20 thousand people for more than 8 years and found that those who consume more than 67 grams of sugar per day suffered from depression 23 percent more often than those whose daily intake of sugar was no more than 40 grams.
9. … causes hyperactivity in children
Refined sugar is instantly absorbed into the bloodstream, causing sharp fluctuations in blood glucose. This, in turn, triggers an accelerated production of adrenaline, forcing children to literally walk on the ceiling. But sugar, on the contrary, weakens adults. Constant sharp fluctuations in blood sugar levels cause fluctuations in energy – a surge followed by a decline.
10. … increases cholesterol
Studies have shown that the more sugar in a person’s diet, the higher the level of “bad” cholesterol in the blood. In addition, the level of triglycerides – fats rises. When combined, these two elements clog up blood vessels, causing cardiovascular disease.
11. … causes acne
The more foods with a high glycemic index in the diet, the more often acne occurs. A study among teenagers showed that sweets were 30 percent more likely to suffer from skin rashes. And those who preferred unprocessed foods hardly encountered this problem. It’s all about the ability of sugar to provoke inflammation and affect hormones.
Specialist commentary
Irina Breht, fitness trainer:
“Today we eat a lot of added sugar and it gets a lot of problems, but that doesn’t mean that any amount of sugar is evil in itself. There is no single figure, but no one completely prohibits sugar. If your weight maintenance rate is about 2000 kcal, then about 200 kcal can be given for sweets without harm to the body. For example, this is 40 grams of chocolate, one eclair, 10 sugar cubes or half a liter of juice. “