Sweet Freedom: A Guide to Reducing Sugar for a Healthier Lifestyle
- Christina
- Dec 2, 2023
- 7 min read
Dive into the surprising world of sugar-packed beverages and uncover the hidden culprits in your diet that might be sabotaging your health. Find out how to make smarter choices for a sugar-savvy lifestyle.
In today's modern society, sugar has become a staple in our diets, with its sweet taste being irresistible to many. However, excessive sugar intake can have detrimental effects on our health (1). From increasing the risk of dental caries to contributing to cardiometabolic diseases, obesity, diabetes, and liver dysfunction, sugar has been linked to numerous adverse health outcomes. Besides the physical impact, there might be a potential link between negative moods and lower quality of life revealed in a study of women with diabetes who had fluctuating blood sugar levels (2).
Reducing excess sugar consumption is vital to maintaining a healthy body and preventing these health issues from arising. If you wish to reduce your sugar consumption to prevent getting any of these diseases or try to improve your eating habits, keep reading below how you can reduce sugar in your diet.
Create awareness
One of the first steps to reduce sugar consumption is creating awareness. Many people are not aware of where sugar is hidden. It's evident that Coke and other sodas have a lot of sugar, but what about orange juice? Sounds healthy since it's just fruit in a liquid state? Not quite!
Orange Juice
With 6 teaspoons (24g) of sugar per 8 oz. (240 ml) serving, orange juice is often perceived as a healthy choice due to the Vitamin C content in oranges. However, it's crucial to note that an orange itself yields only about 2 oz. (60 ml) of juice. Therefore, an 8 oz. (240 ml) glass of orange juice is equivalent to the sugar content of four oranges. Opting for the whole fruit provides the added benefit of fiber, making it a more nutritionally sound choice for breakfast than the concentrated sugar in a glass of orange juice. The same goes for all kinds of fruit smoothies. While they get to keep their fibers, be mindful about how much fruit they contain. Ask yourself whether you would eat the same amount in solid form.
Iced Tea
Delivering 6 teaspoons (24g) of sugar per 8 oz. (240 ml) serving, iced tea, although originally sugar-free, has evolved into a beverage often sweetened for taste. Marketed as a natural and healthy option, certain popular brands, such as Arizona Iced Tea and Snapple Lemon Iced Tea, contain notable sugar levels. Fortunately, unsweetened varieties are available for purchase, and making your own iced tea allows you to control and limit the sugar content to better align with your health preferences.
Sports Drinks
Providing 3.5 teaspoons (14g) of sugar per 8 oz. (240 ml) serving, sports drinks like Gatorade and Powerade are commonly promoted as essential for those engaging in vigorous physical activity. Despite appearing less sugary than sodas at first glance, consider that a standard 32 oz. (946 ml) bottle of these drinks contains a substantial 14! teaspoons (56g) of sugar if consumed in its entirety. It's worth questioning whether you typically consume only a quarter of a sports drink bottle, highlighting the potential for excess sugar intake.
Dried fruits
While dried fruits seem like a great snack idea, it's a valid statement as long as you can limit yourself to 2-3 small pieces. You might get the good stuff like the fibers and other nutrients, but also keep in mind that they are the concentrated form of fruit in terms of sugar. Eating 10 pieces of dried apricots is no issue? How about eating 10 apricots at once? You probably wouldn't do that.
Cook for yourself
Cutting back on sugar is easier when you're the chef of your own meals. When you cook for yourself, you know exactly what goes into your food and how much. Take those Pad Thai noodles from the Thai place nearby. Have you ever wondered how much sugar they sneak in there? And what about BBQ sauce? It pops up in so many dishes, adding sugar that doesn't do much for flavor (not if you know how to spice things up with herbs and spices). It's like extra sugar without any real benefits for your body. I get it. Not everyone loves to cook, but for the sake of your health, trying out some quick 20-minute dinner recipes could be worth it. And if cooking at home just isn't your thing, at least skip dishes that taste sweetish or come smothered in BBQ sauce. If you can't resist the BBQ sauce, just have it on the side, so you're in control of how much you're adding to your meal.
Check for added sugar on food labels
Sugars come in various forms and names. Many food producers add one or several types of sugar to their products to enhance the flavor, to use it as a preservative, to modify texture, to use it as a flavoring and coloring agent, or a bulking agent. These so-called added sugars aren't necessarily evident when checking the ingredients list. You'll be surprised where you'll find sugar! A lot of condiments, such as dressings, pasta sauces, marinades, and the like, will contain plenty of sugar. It's often also found in breads and places where you wouldn't expect it, like pre-made soups. If you are checking the manufacturer's label, look out for names of these popular sugars: Sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, caramel, fruit juice, glucose, lactose, maltodextrin, malt syrup, barley malt, rice syrup, to name a few, but there are plenty more. Fortunately, the FDA made it mandatory in 2016 for food manufacturers to declare all added sugars in the nutritional facts label as a means against the obesity epidemic and obscurity in the food industry. Next time you go shopping, check all food labels and replace products with high added sugars for different brands that ideally don't add sugar or the least of all others.
Gradually reduce sugar for a healthier lifestyle
As a sweet tooth myself, I love homemade desserts. However, many recipes tend to be too sweet for my taste, resulting in me reducing the sugar required by 1/3 or sometimes even half, if not more, and yet they are still delicious. So far, it has worked well for me in cake and cookie recipes. You might not get the exact same visual results as with the full sugar amount. However, it has no impairment in taste except for less sweetness. I believe it works well where a slight volume change is not noticeable. So perhaps the next time you make your favorite dessert recipe, try to reduce the total sugar amount. It doesn't have to stop there. If you are known to put spoon after spoon into your coffee or tea, try to reduce it gradually by omitting one spoon every few weeks until your tastebuds are acquainted with the new taste. This goes for everything; you could only pour in half a glass of juice or smoothie and fill the rest up with water. It's all about gradually weaning off the sugar and making the dull tastebuds more receptive to sweets again.
It should be about making a clear choice of occasional indulgence instead of passively and unknowingly consuming it.
Replace with alternative sweeteners
With all those new types of sugar found in supermarkets, it can be hard to track how they are produced and if they are a valuable replacement for sugar. In the section of natural non and low-caloric sweeteners derived from plants, we have Stevia, Monk Fruit sugar, Xylitol, and Erythrol.
Stevia
It's a natural, zero-calorie sweetener extracted from the leaves of the Stevia rebaudiana plant. It is significantly sweeter than sugar and will not increase blood sugar levels (3), but its taste can vary among brands.
Erythritol
A low-calorie sugar alcohol that is naturally found in certain fruits but is often industrially produced. While it tastes similar to sugar and has minimal impact on blood sugar (3), high doses may cause digestive issues.
Xylitol
A sugar alcohol that shares sweetness with sugar and may benefit dental health (4). It doesn't raise blood sugar levels but can cause digestive side effects at high doses (5). Caution is advised for dog owners, as Xylitol is toxic to dogs.
Monk Fruit Sweetener
Extracted from a Southeast Asian fruit, it is calorie and carb-free. As a relatively new type of sweetener, research has been limited on the benefits and effects on the human body. While generally considered safe, it's essential to check labels for additives that might compromise its health benefits.
Natural Sweeteners
While caloric-wise, it might not make a difference at all, natural sweeteners such as honey, molasses, coconut sugar, or maple syrup often have at least the benefit of including nutrients such as vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals which have been stripped away from its table sugar counterpart. Hence, it can be added to a well-balanced diet in small amounts.
Artificial Sweeteners
Another form of alternative sweeteners is the artificially produced zero-calorie sugar substitutes such as Aspartame, Cyclamate, and Saccharin. Animal studies have linked artificial sweeteners to weight gain, brain tumors, bladder cancer, and other health problems. However, the results of human studies have been mixed. Some studies have found no link between artificial sweeteners and health problems, while others have found links to increased cancer risk and other health problems. More research is needed to determine the long-term effects of artificial sweeteners on human health. Personally, this has been the reason why I try to stay clear of artificial sweeteners. In my opinion, there are still too many unknowns, and while having the great benefit of being low calorie, the question remains whether it outweighs the risks.
If you plan to experiment with any of those sweeteners, quickly research what type of sweetener fits your purpose best. Some have a distinct flavor that might alter the original recipe's taste or are not suited for your recipe.
Whether you aim to try out all five approaches or just one, reducing sugar for a healthier lifestyle doesn't mean you need to cut it out altogether. But create awareness of what contains sugar and where it's often hidden, and become conscious of the amount contained in foods. It should be about making a clear choice of occasional indulgence instead of passively and unknowingly consuming it.
Let us know if you have tried any of those ways to reduce your sugar consumption or have tips for others on how you manage to reduce your intake.
External Sources:
1) Mok, A., Ahmad, R., Rangan, A., & Louie, J C Y. (2018, January 1). Intake of free sugars and micronutrient dilution in Australian adults. https://scite.ai/reports/10.1093/ajcn/nqx008
5) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5093271/
Comments