Your sweet tooth would agree that sugar is one of the most addictive and comforting food options. How often do you reach out for a pack of chocolates for whenever you’re feeling a little blue or for when you feel like celebrating? We’ve associated that sweet taste to all aspects of our lives without being consciously aware just how much we’re consuming.
Did you know a typical American ingests an equivalent of 22 teaspoons of sugar every 24 hours? That would translate roughly to an average woman eating 70 lbs – almost half her body weight – of sugar every year.
Health experts such as the American Heart Association and the World Health Organization urge women to not go over 6 teaspoons of sugar consumption per day to avoid long term negative effects. Sugar, if consumed in large quantities can result to dental cavities, diabetes and obesity, and also Alzheimer’s disease, and breast, endometrial and colon cancer.
Why then do we eat so much sugar? Because it’s as addictive as a drug habit.
SUGAR RUSH
Research shows that your brain gets stimulated by sugar. Naturally you reach for more of it, and your body releases more of dopamine, the feel-good neurotransmitter. Regular repeated elevations of this body chemical can desensitize your body’s receptors, causing it to release less and less dopamine, thus needing more sugar to take you up that sugar high again. Very much alike to a drug addiction.
SECRET STASH
Did you know that you might be a sugar overeater without knowing it? Yes, because some foods labeled as “healthy” are actually loaded with hidden added sugar. Everyday items such as your barbecue sauce, pasta sauce, ketchup, fruit-flavored yogurt, and your favorite breakfast bar has had sugar added to it.
SWEET SYNONYMS
Sugar can be masqueraded as “healthy” by “sugarcoating” its name. It can appear in many ways such as cane crystals, corn syrup, or even honey.
Read the original article here by Women’s Health for more specific examples of how sugar is your body’s extremely deadly foe.
Let us know in the comments below what sugary food you find yourself reaching for regularly and how this article may have opened your eyes to the dangers of excessive sugar consumption.
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