Sunday, March 8, 2015
The Latest On Sugar Consumption Why This Should Make You Mad!
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| What the average American consumes in sugar each day! Follow Foods For Long Life on FACEBOOK ! |
Choosing Twinkies Over Health
One reason I prefer to spend my time blogging and writing my book rather than have individual nutrition clients is that many people frustrate me. Ive met so many individuals who are really sick, overweight, constantly fatigued and leading restricted lives and yet they show little interest in turning that around. The overwhelming majority of illnesses, like heart disease, diabetes, and yes, even the big C, can be prevented and treated just by changing your lifestyle. I am perplexed by people who would prefer to suffer with diabetes or face bypass surgery rather than eat a healthy diet and exercise. Is it really easier to take 15 expensive medications each day, give yourself insulin injections or have your chest sawed open than to prepare the delicious recipes in this blog and go out and walk for 30 minutes a day? Like I said, Im perplexed.
New Data
Im writing today because I discovered some startling data last week about sugar consumption. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released, for the first time ever, information on the consumption of sugary beverages. By the way, health officials say you should limit consumption of sugary beverages to less than 1/2 can per day. I ask, why dont they recommend NEVER consuming this garbage? Sugary beverages are linked to the obesity epidemic and numerous related medical problems!
Here are some statistics they presented:
* Half of all Americans drink a sugary beverage each day.
* 5 % drink 4 cans per day.
* Males drink more than females.
* Teenage boys drink the most. The average 12-19 year old drinks around 2 cans per day.
* Blacks consume more than any other ethnic group.
* Low income people drink more than the more affluent.
Sweetened teas and flavored milks, etc. were not even counted as sugary beverages in this data so the picture is even worse than this.
The Sugar doesnt End There!
An article in the October, 2011 Prevention magazine states that the average American consumes 35 teaspoons of sugar a day. Thats almost 12 tablespoons or 3/4 of a cup or 1/3 pound of sugar! This added sugar from processed food is in addition to sugar that is found naturally in fruits, milk, vegetables and grains.
Where Its Hiding
Sugar has many names so when you read a label, you may not realize its in there. Some common forms of sugar found in food are barley malt, beet sugar, brown sugar, cane sugar, corn sugar, date sugar, dextran, dextrose, fructose, fruit juice concentrate, honey, maltose, molasses, turbinado, etc. Check out the list of 50 Names for Sugar You May Not Know.
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| Does your office celebrate Junk Food Friday? |
Why Dont People Care?
The other day my cousin (whom I know takes very good care of herself) facebooked a picture from her office titled, "Junk Food Friday". Rather than the responses saying something like, "Gosh, what crap!" or "Are you being held hostage in a Twinkie factory", people responded to her post with comments like, "Are you hiring?", "Looks like my kind of place!", and "Wow, what a fun place to work!".
This could be anyones office as so many are filled with candy bowls, the Friday donuts, the toxic vending machines and all the other things that sabotage our efforts to eat better, to be as healthy as we can be and to prevent illness and premature death. People not only eat poorly but they feel compelled to flaunt their attitudes on unhealthy eating and encourage all to join in! Local fairs even award prizes for the most unhealthy vendor cuisine. Fried Coke anyone?
Why this should make you Mad!
Why should we care what other people do? If we can resist all this temptation (we usually dont), how does it affect us?
Remember back when people smoked in offices and restaurants. Besides being annoying, we now know that second hand smoke was killing us too. Well, obviously theres no "second hand" sugar danger, but what is happening is that the growth in sugar consumption and the resulting spike in illness is bankrupting our health care system and driving insurance rates off the charts. The Associated Press reported that Medicare will be bankrupt by 2024, 5 years earlier than last years estimate. So even though many may take a "live and let live" attitude about what others do, our ability to get quality health care is being greatly diminished by those who are not taking good care of themselves.
Change the Tone
So instead of bonding with your colleagues over twinkies, join together for lunchtime walks or share healthy recipes. Warning, there are lots of people out there who will think a day without a donut is like a day without sunshine. Like I said, Im perplexed.
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