Hidden Sugar Bombs and How to Avoid Them
Hidden Sugar Bombs and How to Avoid Them – Sugar has many ways of sneaking into your diet. Learn how to avoid hidden sugar bombs in this video.
Expert: Karen Ansel, MS, RDN, CDN Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Transcript
Is sugar really the enemy? Do you know how much you’re eating? What foods it’s hiding in? And how much it’s healthy to eat every day?
The American Heart Association recommends that women limit their sugar intake to 100 calories per day- that’s 6 teaspoons. And men should have no more than 150 calories per day- OR 9 teaspoons. That’s because sugary foods often deliver empty calories and contribute to weight gain.
Emerging research also hints that drinking just one sugary drink a day can boost your risk of type 2 diabetes by 22%. So keep your eye out for the words sugar, glucose, malt, fructose, dextrose, and syrup on food labels – and watch out for hidden sugar bombs, that could be hiding in the “healthy” aisle. That single serve fruity, nonfat Greek yogurt you have for breakfast has 20 grams of sugar, packing 80 calories. An oat-y snack bar has 10 grams of sugar, a low fat frozen dinner packs 9 grams. Even a margarita has 4 grams in a 4 ounce drink. And they’re NEVER that small. Those 4 foods alone deliver 162 calories from sugar, way over the suggested limit! It adds up fast, doesn’t it?
In order to dodge sugary calories PLUS weight gain, make a ‘sugar budget’ and gradually eliminate items from your diet that tip the sugar scale. For example, if you’re a soda junkie, start out by limiting yourself to one can a day as you start drinking no-sugar-added beverages, like naturally flavored club sodas. And enjoy naturally sweet fruits for dessert. It’s foods and drinks with ADDED sugars and sugar syrups that may cause weight gain and may predispose you to diabetes.Very soon you’ll feel and look better!
Last Modified: 2014-04-09
Category: Health and Nutrition, Videos
