How Much Sugar Is Hiding In The Food You Eating?

Sugars are naturally present in the tissues of most plants, but it is primarily extracted from sugarcane and sugar beet. These are rich with vitamins, minerals, fiber, phytochemicals and carbohydrates in the form of sucrose. During the refining process, they lose all their natural components except sucrose.

Many fruits and vegetables like ripe dates, mangoes or sweet peas are naturally high in sucrose sugar. When consumed in the form of whole foods it breaks down slowly and provides nutrients along with energy. But the sucrose that is isolated and concentrated into what we know as table sugar impacts our body differently. These are pure, refined carbohydrates that lack the natural minerals present in sugar cane or beet.  Refined sugar is stripped of all its nutritional value. It is what health experts call, a source of empty calories.

Don’t get me wrong. We need some sugar in our diet. It is a simple carbohydrate found naturally in many forms from lactose in milk to fructose in fruits and honey. All carbohydrates are converted into glucose in our body to give us energy and keep our brain active. But Dr. Rupali Datta, Chief Clinical Nutritionist at Fortis-Escorts Hospital also makes a point, “When we talk about carbohydrates, we mean complex carbs that are derived from starches or natural sugars present in fruits.

These give you nutrients along with energy. Refined sugar that you add to tea, coffee or in desserts is not a dietary requirement. It’s used for flavour and doesn’t provide your body with anything.” This is the case of natural sugar versus added sugar. Processed sugar is the sweetest poisons of them all. It is refined, boiled, evaporated, concentrated, goes through a series of chemical reactions and then transformed into many forms you may not even know about.

In scientific literature, sucrose or your table sugar is combination of glucose and fructose. Few of us get through the day without a dose of those pearl-white crystals. I don’t suggest you give up life’s little pleasures. The problem is that we’re consuming too much of it, consciously and unconsciously in packaged foods that supply energy in the form of calories.

Dr. Robert Lustig who is a paediatric endocrinologist and childhood obesity expert at the University of California is in agreement. In his book, “Fat Chance: The Bitter Truth About Sugar”, he throws the spotlight on fructose that makes up 50% of refined sugar and is found in most pre-made foods. A lot of scientific evidence shows that the increasing amount of sugar in our diet has led to the obesity epidemic especially amongst children. Read More...