Video Discription |
In this video, we discuss what is added sugar and how the body uses sugar. We cover why added sugar is bad, and some of the health risks of too much sugar.
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Topics covered.
The American heart association recommends the maximum amount of added sugars you should eat in a day 37.5g/150cal for men, and 25g/100cal for women. The average American consumes 385cal/96g of added sugar per day.
Transcript (partial)
Sugar, or sucrose as it is called is derived from sugar cane and sugar beets, and it is added to almost everything nowadays, such as soft drinks, sports drinks, cakes, and even some pizza dough .
The FDA specifically defines the term sugar whenever it is listed in an ingredient statement. FDA restricts use of the term sugar to sucrose which is obtained from sugar cane or sugar beets.
So, in this video, the sugar I am discussing is sucrose. Sucrose is made up of glucose molecule and a fructose molecule, and you may also know it as table sugar. So, the question is, Is added sugar healthy?
As we ingest sucrose, it doesn’t actually get digested till it gets to the small intestine. An enzyme called sucrase splits the bond between the glucose and fructose molecules.
The molecules then get transported to the liver for further processing. Fructose is almost completely metabolized in the liver. There it is converted in 4 different ways. It is converted to glucose or lactate, where it is used normally as energy to fuel cells, or it is converted to glycogen or plasma triglyceride.
Now back to glucose. After leaving the liver, glucose travels into the bloodstream, going to nearly every cell in the body. As the glucose enters the bloodstream, the pancreas is triggered to release the hormone insulin.
Insulin travels through the bloodstream to the cells, and tells the cells to open up and let the glucose in. Once inside, the cells convert the glucose to energy for immediate use, or store it for later use. The glucose also gets stored as glycogen in the muscles and liver.
As glucose moves into the cells, the pancreas slows down the amount of insulin its releasing. This process happens many times during the our day, depending on when we eat, and how much we eat.
So, based on this information, sugar is not bad for us. It provides energy and normal healthy function. True, however, there is always a however, added sugar is another story. we as a society consume way to much added sugar.
So, what are the effects of all of this sugar intake? There are so many studies showing different negative effects of sugar on health, way to many to discuss here.
The most common effect that I came across as I researched the subject was a link to obesity. And, the health risks of obesity include, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and it goes on and on and on.
The bottom line is moderation. Check out the amount of sugar that has been added to whatever you are eating and try to keep that under the recommendations from the AMA.
Remember, sugar, sucrose is just those 2 molecules, no other nutrients at all. Its just empty calories, and if you don’t burn it off, its gonna get stored as fat.
Timestamps
0:00 Some foods that add sugar
0:15 Structure of sugar
0:45 How is sugar digested?
1:45 Negative effects of too much sugar
2:02 Health risks of obesity
2:27 Consume sugar in moderation
Some other sources...
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyEating/Added-Sugars_UCM_305858_Article.jsp
http://www.sugar.org/sugar-basics-2/food-labeling/labeling-terms/
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/obe/risks
http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/digestion-absorption-sucrose-3680.html
http://www.ghc.org/healthAndWellness/?item=/common/healthAndWellness/conditions/diabetes/foodProcess.html |