KCFit.Net

Sugar! How much is too much?

by Chris Culbertson, posted Aug 28th 2009, 15:13

First of all, I would like to say that I am not a physician, dietitian, nutritionist, or certified in any related field. This article is simply my thoughts and opinions based on the information that I read on a daily basis and my general concern for obesity in America. Sugar is only one area of concern, and I am aware that their are many other contributing factors, but I am only addressing sugar and how I believe that it all starts with sugar.

Heart Disease is the leading cause of death for both women and men in the United States. The facts are alarming. See more for yourself if you don’t know them already.

Sugar sweetens our food and sweetens our mood. America’s sweet tooth is growing. What does this mean for our health? Americans have fallen in love with sugar and want more and more of it.

The problem is that the average American consumer is ingesting sugar at alarming rates. Sugar is being added to everything these days and the amounts are astronomical. I did not have any statistics, these were purely my perceptions and observations. Then…

A couple of weeks back I attended “Back to School Nutrition” put on by Tracey Shaffer, a dietitian at the Blue Springs Hy-Vee. One thing that has been on my mind lately has been the sugar issue and I was curious to know what the recommended amount of sugar is for the average person. Tracey was unsure and seemed to be intrigued with my question. I just wanted to know, so I could keep track of how much I, or my family take in and compare it to the recommended amounts. I am not a big sweets person and I am still afraid that I eat way too much sugar, just because it is in everything. I did not think much about it after the class, but then yesterday I received an email from Tracey:

Hi Chris,

I thought about you today as I was reading the new American Heart Association guidelines on sugar intake.  I remember you asking me a question about how much sugar you should have per day at the last meeting.  The new guidelines are:  Men should limit their sugar intake to 150 calories per day.  This equals 9 teaspoons or 38 grams/day.  Women should limit their sugar intake to 100 calories per day.  This equals 6 teaspoons or 25 grams/day.  There are no guidelines set for children yet.  Just thought I would fill you in on the newest guidelines.  Have a nice day.  Tracey

Tracey Shaffer, RD, LD

Hy-Vee Registered Dietitian

Trained Wellness Coach

601 W. 40 Highway

Blue Springs, MO 64014

(816) 224-4288

tshaffer@hy-vee.com

This got me thinking and I set out to do some research online. I feel like soft drinks are the worst, so I started there and found this article “How much sugar do they really put in soft drinks” on HowStuffWorks.com (great site, by the way). This is disturbing! Basically, they break it down for us as an average number of teaspoons (remember the recommended amount for men is 9 and women is 6 daily) per 16 ounces of soft drink.

12 TEASPOONS OF SUGAR PER 16 OUNCES OF SOFT DRINK!!!

Now how many of you get a 32 ounce drink at a fast food place or on your way to work everyday? If you do not eat or drink another single thing the rest of the day, you have still taken in nearly 4 times the recommended amount of sugar for the day! 4 TIMES! Think about our kids. These recommendations are for adults, so it is natural to assume that kids should have less, right!?! How many cans of soft drink do our kids drink a day? It makes me sick to my stomach to even think about.

But we can make this into a learning lesson! Show your kids. Get out a 16 ounce cup and put 12 teaspoons of sugar in the cup. Show them how awful that looks.

Getting hooked on water is my first suggestion to anyone that has any thoughts or concerns that they may have risks of heart disease!

It’s no surprise that childhood obesity is becoming an epidemic in our society. It makes my heart hurt (no pun intended) when I read articles like “Child Obesity Seen as Warning of Heart Disease” in the New York Times from back in November of 2008. The article states that “A (Kansas City) study found that the thickness of artery walls of children and teenagers who are obese or have high cholesterol resembled the thickness of artery walls of an average 45-year-old.” This makes me sad. It gives me that horribly empty feeling in my stomach. I am not usually the type of person, nor is KCFit the type of company that likes to highlight negative things, but I deem this necessary as I feel the importance is exponentially growing with time.

The next thing I wanted to look into was candy. It becomes the “If you will just be quiet for 5 minutes, I will give you a treat!” when kids are going wild. I do it myself. I need to reevaluate how I reward my kids for good behavior. By giving them “treats” we are making that item the most desired item in their eyes. If we start young and give them apples each time the behave and follow directions, apples will become what they desire because they will associate apples with reward. I chose Skittles (for no reason beyond that I know they are sugar based and a popular candy) to check the sugar contents. 47 g of sugar! 47! This is probably more than twice the amount of sugar (remember they didn’t have recommended amounts for children but we can assume it is less than 6 teaspoons or 25 g since that is what is recommended for the average adult female) a child should eat in a day. See more (un)nutritional information on the Skittles website.

I Challenge You!

So I challenge each of you to, for one day, keep track of the amount of sugar you take in. Log it in the comments below. That is all I ask, just one day. Feel free to do it with your family members, KIDS, or even do it for more than a day.

If nothing else, recognize that there is too much sugar in our foods and be cognisant when making choices. You do not have to make the perfect choice each time, but at least challenge yourself to start making more of the right choices.

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