One of the most prevalent bad habits affecting our health is sugar addiction. When people hear the word addiction, they think of chemical addictions like prescription pain killers, or behavioral addictions like gambling. But sugar addiction is just as serious an issue. Because of the ubiquity of sugar in our food supply, it is by far the most common addiction, even more than nicotine, caffeine, alcohol, or other drugs.

Bingeing on candy or slamming high-sugar energy drinks all day seems harmless compared to something like an opioid overdose. But even if your life is not in immediate danger, a chronic high-sugar diet will take its toll on your health, and can lead to serious conditions down the road. Besides just being a major impediment to achieving your physique and fitness goals, there is strong evidence linking excessive sugar intake with type 2 diabetes, obesity, Alzheimer’s disease, and dementia, to name a few.

It’s not as immediately dangerous as illicit drugs, but over time, it’ll kill you just the same. [Photo credit: Pixabay]

Willpower Is a Finite Resource

Once you get a taste for sugar, the cravings can become overwhelming. Resisting them becomes especially difficult when we see candy and junk food sold and advertised everywhere we go, and when so many of our foods have added sugar.

Relying on willpower alone requires huge amounts of mental energy, which is inevitably in low supply at the end of a long day or during stressful times. Instead, set yourself up for success by assuming that you won’t be able to avoid sugar through sheer determination. Have a plan in place that will help you to stop, or at least diminish sugar cravings before they even start, so you don’t end up bingeing on Hershey bars and Sour Patch Kids when you get home from work (not that I would know anything about that!).

I divide these prevention strategies into three different categories:

1. Lifestyle factors
2. Meal choices
3. Nutritional supplements

When deciding which of these strategies to implement, remember we are not trying to just eliminate a bad habit. We must replace a bad habit with a good one. For most of us, making small, sustainable changes will be more successful in the long run than trying to implement all of these strategies at once and becoming overwhelmed.

Get Consistent, Quality Sleep

One of the most important things you can do to prevent sugar cravings is get enough sleep every night. Sleep is when your body restores the brain and your neurotransmitter levels. When you don’t get enough sleep, you will be low on serotonin, the primary neurotransmitter responsible for a positive mood and overall feeling of well-being. Since carbohydrate consumption promotes the release of serotonin in the brain, you will naturally want to eat more carbs in order to balance your mood. Additionally, sleep deprivation also results in decreased levels of the hormone leptin, which signals satiety, and increased levels of ghrelin, which is a hormone that increases appetite.

Good sleep hygiene will be key in your battle against sugar cravings. Here are the behaviors that are the most help for me:

• Turn off anything with a glowing screen an hour before I should be asleep.
• Use that hour to unwind by doing something not work related. I find reading fiction and listening to instrumental music (like jazz or classical) helps to prepare me for sleep.
• Have my schedule for the next day already planned out so that I’m not lying in bed thinking about what I need to do.

Allow Yourself a Cheat Meal

Cutting out sugar and excessive carbs is much easier if you know that you’ll be able to enjoy them from time to time. The use of a cheat meal (one meal, not an entire cheat day) is a great way to satisfy a sweet tooth but still stay on track with your diet. You will also increase your leptin levels which will decrease your feelings of hunger. The only two rules that I have for the cheat meal are to keep it to a one hour window of time, and make it the last meal of the day. As long as you stick to those, you can eat whatever you want.

If you want to get creative and keep things a bit healthier, I recommend making your cheat meal from scratch. That way you will know exactly what is in your food, and you can choose higher quality ingredients compared to what you will find in most stores or restaurants. This is especially useful if you want to enjoy your cheat meal but avoid allergens such as gluten or dairy. Pancakes, pizza, cornbread, brownies, and sweet potato fries are some of my favorite gluten free cheat meals.

Get Breakfast Right

Some people handle carbs and insulin differently than others. But in my experience, the best breakfast to give you energy and keep the carb cravings at bay throughout the day is one that is low in carbs, high in protein and fat, and includes a variety of nutrients.

The reason I don’t like a high carb/high protein/low fat breakfast (like egg whites and oatmeal) is because it can lead to a big spike in insulin and blood sugar. This can lead to reactive hypoglycemia, which results in low energy and hunger an hour or two later. Instead, I prefer a breakfast that is high in protein and fat, but low in carbs. This provides steady blood sugar levels and energy throughout the day because of the low glycemic load of those foods, which in turn keeps me from craving sugary junk foods.

High fat and high protein doesn’t mean that you are limited to bacon and eggs every morning. In fact, my ideal breakfast includes much more variety. I prefer to have a big salad with a variety of greens and veggies with olive oil and lemon juice dressing, along with a good source of protein, either mixed into the salad or eaten separately. The protein source could be eggs, but since eggs are such a common breakfast food, I like to mix it up. Foods like canned mackerel, herring, and ground beef patties require little to no prep time and are easily digestible in the morning.

Stick to Solid Meals Over Liquid Calories

Liquid meals like protein shakes and smoothies are convenient, but it is best to stick to solid meals if you are looking to stay more satisfied and keep your cravings at bay. Solid food takes longer to digest, is more satiating, and keeps your blood sugar stable for a longer period of time. Including a good balance of fats, protein, and fiber will keep you feeling satisfied and will keep your cravings down.

Hydration Is Key

Hydrate first thing in the morning. Drink a big glass of lemon or lime water as a habit to get the day started right. The lemon or lime juice will actually lower the glycemic index of your meal if you have it with food. It will also help prevent the temptation to drink a big glass of fruit juice. Add some good quality salt (e.g. Himalayan or Celtic salt) to improve hydration, especially if you are sweating a lot throughout the day.

Hydration is always a good idea. It’s even better when it replaces that tall glass of orange juice. [Photo Credit: Pixabay]

Use Supplements Strategically

Changing your lifestyle and overall eating habits will have a bigger impact in the long run on subduing your sugar cravings. That said, nutritional supplements are much easier to implement into your routine, so it can be a good first step when you are trying to limit your sugar intake. I have found the following supplements to be very effective and fast-acting to calm sugar cravings both in the short term and long term, depending on how they are used.

• Glycine: This amino acid has a sweet taste, which can help to satisfy you craving for sugar. More importantly, it has a strong effect on reducing your levels of cortisol, which will help you to fall asleep. And if you’re sleeping, you are not eating candy bars! You might notice that your dreams are more vivid as well, which I think of as a bonus. A 5-10g dose in your evening tea is good for most people, but take a smaller dose if you experience any nausea.
• Glutamine: This amino acid is an especially useful tool post workout. Even though glutamine is not a carbohydrate, it helps your body to efficiently replenish glycogen stores. The amount of glutamine you use post workout should be adjusted to the volume of training, meaning that the higher the volume of training on a given day, the more glutamine you should use. A good starting point would be to include 0.1g of glutamine per pound of body weight in your post workout protein shake, and increase from there if you feel like your recovery is lacking.
• Inositol: This supplement that can help you to manage carb cravings by balancing your neurotransmitter levels. It can reduce symptoms of depression, calm mood swings, reduce cravings associated with PMS, and improve sleep quality. Be conservative with your dosing when taking inositol. If you take too much in the evening, you might feel mentally foggy and sluggish the next day or have a bit of nausea. Start with ¼tsp of powder before bed, and work your way up as necessary. If you wake up feeling unwell or your sleep is disrupted, you know that your dosage is likely too high.

It Gets Easier

The encouraging thing is that the longer you stay off sugar, the less cravings you will have. Feeling good on a day-to-day basis will eventually displace the temporary pleasure you get from sugar. You’ll even get to the point where you can enjoy a sweet treat once in a while without going overboard. Until you get there, make use of these tips and strategies to help you stay on the right track.

If you cut all that sugar, where are your carbs coming from?

Your Complete Carbohydrate Prep Plan

The post Hack Your Life to Curb Sugar Cravings appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

The antagonist in our modern-day narrative is sugar. This devilish poison sits at the center of an eternal battle, as it tempts and tortures more than 66 percent of society with demonic allure.

The Modern Crusade

Every great story also requires a protagonist, and the modern mythology of nutrition is no exception. The heroes of the nutritional pantheon are “superfoods.” These caped crusaders act as guardian angels and protectors of our health. We are instructed to worship these foods and use them as medicine to enhance our vitality and extend our longevity.

It has become a battle of Biblical proportions.

Don’t let the pretty colors fool you. This cake is trying to kill you. Food Babe said so.

When a hero is faced with danger, his supporting cast rallies in support. In contemporary narratives, a community defends their hero in long, unresolved comment threads on social media.

Online activists like Food Babe and her followers (appropriately named the Food Babe Army) have declared war against food companies. They claim to be fighting for the health and wellbeing of the poor and unfortunate souls who are exposed to chemicals, antibiotics, and GMOs, oh my! Armed with arguments from ignorance, naturalistic fallacies, and misinterpreted facts, they use scare tactics to threaten and bully companies into changing well-established safe practices and cutting evil profit margins.

A New Front in the War

The latest war banner has been flown by CrossFit, Inc., which issued its own call-to-arms in the onslaught against sugar, specifically the sugary beverage industry. They are neither the first nor the last to do so, but they may be the most aggressive.

With investigative-style press releases and trolling skills that are the envy of presidential campaigns, they have rallied the fitness industry to take up their torches and pitchforks and bring Coca-Cola to the metaphorical noose. Their multifaceted strategy attacks donation trails, advertising campaigns targeting children, and provides scientific “proof” that sugar is dangerous.

As with any great mythological story, there is a kernel of truth at the center. Not all of CrossFit’s attacks on Coca-Cola are unfounded, and the public has a right to the facts they’ve brought to light. The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) has had a semi-unethical relationship with the beverage company.

But there is an underlying motive for CrossFit’s fervor, and it’s not just the noble love of those affected negatively by the diabolical agent of diabetic destruction that is sucrose. Coke and the ACSM are lobbying for regulation of fitness professionals that would affect CrossFit’s business model by requiring additional certification fees in order to own, operate, and work in one of the thousands of CrossFit affiliates. This is a battle about the bottom line, as much as it is about the waistline.

The horror!

Deconstructing the Myth

Arguing the relative health value of food is misleading. Most people would agree that a Snickers bar is “junk food,” based on its high sugar content and the chemicals used to keep it fresh. Using the same logic, kale is regarded as one of the healthiest, nutrient-dense superfoods we can consume, leading people to suck it down in liquid form like the hipster version of a wheatgrass shot.

But health can only be defined in context of the individual. For a starving child on the verge of death because of malnutrition, which of the two products described above would be “healthier?” The healthiest option is arguably the one that packs the most usable energy and keeps you alive. The “junk food,” in this context, becomes life-saving junk food. Maybe even health food, if health is defined as staying alive.

This scenario is not so farfetched. In fact, the use of candy bars as life-saving nutrition is well documented, from famine in West Africa, to the internment camps of World War II, to the battlefields of Vietnam, Korea. Some might argue that these are extreme examples, but they are no more so than the dramatic correlations being used by people who demonize sugar.

There is not a single cause that leads to poor health, but it is easy to demonize a whole group of things using fear. On its own, sugar is neither a “health food” nor the devil incarnate. It is the abuse of sugar by people who are already dysfunctional and sedentary that is linked to countless health problems. That abuse can be considered a predictor for future dysfunctions, such as Alzheimer’s disease and cancer.

What Is Toxicity?

Beneath the slander and social media shenanigans lies the core question: “Is sugar really toxic?” 

That depends. First, we have to define the type of toxicity: acute or chronic. This distinction takes us away from the realm of fear-mongering news headlines and into a world of more objective science. Water can be fatally “toxic,” but it, like everything else, is dose dependent. Unlike some over-the-counter pharmaceuticals like aspirin, sugar is not acutely toxic, meaning you cannot ingest enough in one sitting to cause death.

However, sufficient research suggests sugar is chronically toxic, meaning that consistent dosing in excess of recommended amounts is harmful. Along with specific lifestyle factors, chronic abuse of sugar reduces the function of the liver by bombarding hepatocytes (liver cells). This negatively affects the metabolism by forcing it to constantly produce insulin, which severely taxes the pancreas and creates a vicious cycle of overuse.

This is where lifestyle factors and genetic predisposition (i.e., individual context) come into play. Everyone processes “toxins” differently. Some lifetime smokers have no sign of lung cancer, and there are alcoholics with zero liver dysfunction. Conversely, many have overdosed on recommended amounts of drugs prescribed by physicians. The trick is to figure out your sensitivity to sugar and then delineate appropriately.

Context Is Everything

Rather than adopting a nonsensical zero-tolerance policy, it is useful to think of sugar like alcohol: a treat that can enhance an experience. It’s much the same as a glass of whiskey with an old friend, or a birthday cake with your daughter, or hell – even a Coca-Cola on a five-hour bike ride in the middle of nowhere. These things are what make life worth living, even for people concerned with physical fitness and health. Yes, they can be abused. No, they are not toxic, in those contexts.

This cyclist is not going to become a diabetic or get cancer from the sugary drink in his hand.

Dr. Peter Attia is the founder of Attia Medical, PC, a medical practice focusing on the applied science of longevity and optimal performance. His perspective of the war on sugar is profound:

“What I find frustrating about this debate is that most people yelling and screaming don’t fully define the terms… The wrong question is being asked. “Is sugar toxic?” is a silly question. Why? Because it lacks context. Is water toxic? Is oxygen toxic? These are equally silly questions… Both oxygen and water are essential for life (sugar, by the way, is not). But both oxygen and water are toxic – yes, lethal – at high enough doses.”

At some point, anything you ingest can be toxic, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be useful, or even life-saving. Sugar is no stranger to sports performance. Coca-Cola has helped sustain energy among many world champion athletes and, as hard as it is to believe, is still used intra-effort because of its palatability at high intensity. This quality may also be what adds to its danger and over-consumption, especially in children.

The Real Battle Is for Your Wallet

Regardless of your stance on sugar, one thing is true: it is worthy of a metaphorically divine battle. And that battle is always about money, not health. If you care about health and the effect nutrition has on the human species, remove the most useless human invention that we so readily attach to food: our own narrative.

More on the Great Sugar Debate:

• Breaking Down the CrossFit, #SugarKills, and Coke Debate
• Chemically Defining Sugars: Is All Sugar Simply “Sugar?”
• Why Natural Sugars Aren’t Any Better Than Artificial Sugars
• New on Breaking Muscle Today

Photos courtesy of Michael Blevins.

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There is something to the benefits of limiting sugar consumption for weight loss. The health benefits of removing processed sugars from the diet go even further. However, is there a time when consuming sugar may actually be good for us?

The sugar debate rages on, but recent research puts a positive spin on this common dietary additive.

Studying Sugar

Research published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism in May of 2015 suggested that sugar may have an ability to minimize our stress response. Researchers took nineteen women aged eighteen to forty with BMIs ranging from twenty to 34. They were subdivided into groups – one group was given a sugar substitute (aspartame) and the other was given sugar in the form of sucrose. Both were given these doses three times per day for two weeks.

Naltrexone was administered by the participants at home to block any opioid response to the sugar so as to further see the stress response after sugar consumption. MRIs were given to the participants to view the areas of the brain responsible for the stress response and saliva samples were taken to calculate circulating cortisol.

At baseline, both groups were similar in age and chronic stress scores. Post dietary intervention, the group consuming the sucrose showed decreased activity in the areas of the brain responsible for our stress response as well as a significantly different salivary cortisol numbers. The sucrose group also reported less nausea from the naltrexone than the aspartame group.

“The other major part of dealing with stress is to be prepared. This is most people’s downfall.” 

My first thought was that these results make sense. We do need a certain amount of glucose to function. Also, the participants who were at the higher end of the BMI range might not have been able to function on free fatty acids as efficiently, so depriving them of glucose could induce a stress response. This is similar to other weight-loss studies of low-carb diets that noted low-carb groups had a greater cortisol response.

Two weeks is by no means a lot of time and this one study is not going to make me go out and tell all of my clients to start consuming sugary beverages three times per day. But it does make you think for a moment. Could we use sugar in certain instances to help reduce our stress response?

Sugar Can Help When We Are Stressed

Reducing stress may be a positive aspect we never thought of when adding carbs to our post-workout nutrition. Not only does that glucose refuel our muscles, but it also may help reduce cortisol and get the muscle-building process started.

Sugar may also help us during times of acute stress. Let’s say you have to pull an all-nighter preparing a major presentation for your job. There are no food options because you have been working so hard you forgot to go grocery shopping. All you have in your house is leftover cake from grandma’s birthday.

In this situation, you know you will not be sleeping or eating (unless you choose the cake), and stress levels will be high while attempting to get your work done. This study suggests that eating the piece of cake may help to reduce cortisol levels enough to get you through this tough situation.

A little sugar now and then can help get us through our day-to-day stresses.

The Real Problem With Sugar

The problem with sugar does not come from reaching for these foods during times of acute stress, but during times of chronic stress. Most of us tend to be overstressed on a day-to-day basis. We are sleep deprived, sedentary, nutrient deficient, and have to deal with financial and family issues. This can lead us to grab that piece of cake more than the one time it would actually be helpful.

And even with all of that said, there are still better options to handle acute stress then leaning on junk food. This is why active stress management should be an important part of anyone’s weight-loss plan. Try some meditation, deep breathing, visualization, or anything you can think of that helps put you in a state of relaxation. Be creative and find what works for you.

“[I]t does make you think for a moment. Could we use sugar in certain instances to help reduce our stress response?

The other major part of dealing with stress is to be prepared. This is most people’s downfall. Having healthy food options readily available is key to the success of your nutrition plan. I have some clients who prepare all of their food for the week on Sundays. Other clients cook extra every night they make dinner so they will have leftovers.

Research Implications

This study is intriguing, but had some holes in it because it looked at sugar consumption alone. I wonder how a higher fat or protein snack would have done compared to the sucrose group?

Nevertheless this research is interesting. In a really tough bind, when you are under a high level of acute stress, you may be able to hit up that vending machine and not have to stress yourself out over it (pun intended).

Check out these related articles:

• Hack Your Stress Before it Hacks You
• How Stress Makes You Crave Food and Store Fat
• Is All Sugar Simply “Sugar”?
• What’s New On Breaking Muscle Today

References:

1. Tryon, Matthew, et.al., Excessive Sugar Consumption May Be a Difficult Habit to Break: A View From the Brain and Body. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (2015). Retrieved on May 24, 2015. 

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post The Power of Ice Cream: Sugar Can Heal Stress appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

It’s a common scenario. We go to the dentist for a cleaning and hope we have no cavities. If we do, we schedule another appointment to get numb with Novocain, drilled, filled, and billed. (The best part is dribbling water all over you trying to drink an hour later.)

But I refused to accept that cavities just happen. It bothered me even more than the dentist trying to talk to me as my mouth was wide open getting scraped. There had to be an answer that went beyond the typical pep talk of more flossing, brushing, and rinsing with the samples we get in that little goodie-bag on the way out.

As it turns out, the answer is quite complicated. Here’s a brief overview of how cavities happen and what we can do about it from a nutrition standpoint. It is a twofold answer, as there are things we can do for the outside of the tooth and also things we can do internally.

The Importance of Oral Bacteria

Often, when scientists study an environment’s health, they look for frogs and toads. Since these animals absorb toxins through their skin, they are a pretty good first-line indicator of how toxic an environment is as a whole. If the frogs are dead, things are heading in a bad direction.

“If you’ve had cavities as a kid and continue to struggle with them even with a solid diet, you may need to do more.“

Our bodies work the same way, except our “frogs” are bacteria in the body. A lot has been said about gut bacteria, but we also have a diverse array of bugs in our mouth. Cavities start (or stop) depending on the health of the bacteria in our mouth.

We have what is called a biofilm in our mouth and on our teeth. The biofilm is created by the bacteria to help itself thrive. Think of it as building its own house. It attaches to our teeth and begins producing extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) that help it maintain a protective environment to grow within. The biofilm is always changing, and it can reflect what you have eaten both in the long and short run.

The types of bacteria found in our biofilm are a big part of how healthy our teeth and gums are (or aren’t). S. mutans and lactobacilli are two of the main culprits when it comes to dental cavities. When we eat carbohydrates, some of the food is metabolized by our bugs in the mouth and acid is produced. S. mutans and lactobacilli can thrive in acid environments, but our good bacteria cannot. Channels are created within the biofilm that go through our enamel, and can go all the way to the root of the tooth. This creates a vicious cycle.

So, as we feed the bad bugs, they become more and more populated in the biofilm. This shift in bacteria population sets us up for dental caries (fancy word for cavities). If our food habits are promoting this shift in bacteria, cavities can progress to the point where we need a dentist to physically remove a decayed part of the tooth and fill it with synthetic chemicals. That sounds worse than saying that you are getting a filling, doesn’t it?

Nutritional Management of Biofilm

The biofilm cannot go away. In fact, it begins reforming within an hour after a professional cleaning. Babies even have their mouth bacteria influenced by people within close contact, usually their mother. Bad bugs from the mother can mean bad things for the baby, and not just by genetics, but by actual transfer of bacteria. It appears the biofilm is a natural thing we should have, but how we take care of it is the key.

“If our food habits are promoting this shift in bacteria, cavities can progress to the point where we need a dentist to physically remove a decayed part of the tooth and fill it with synthetic chemicals.”

Research has shown that sugar is a main culprit in dental caries. Of course, we all know this. However, there are some things about how we consume sugar that have big effects on how our biofilm reacts:

• Frequency of sugar consumption seems to be more important than total amount. So, having one sweet food a day is better than having three or four small sweets over the day.
• Have sweets before a meal (if you must have them). Sounds weird, but a regular balanced meal will help offset the decrease in pH (more acidic) caused by the sugar.
• It appears sugar and starch together is the worst-case scenario. Cake desserts and sugary cereals come to mind here. The starch can cause the food to stick to the teeth more.
• If you consume a sugary drink, consume it quickly and be done. Sipping is worse. We see this problem when babies fall asleep with fruit juice in their bottles.

From an internal standpoint, there are also a few takeaways. Since cavities involve a loss of enamel, or demineralization, having more nutrients on hand for repair is a good idea. A diet high in sugary foods usually means one that is also low in vitamins and minerals. Even if you have a solid diet, you may be one of those people who have to do extra to keep cavities away:

• Increase foods high in phosphorous and calcium such as seeds, nuts, cheese, and fish (specifically salmon and sardines).
• Increase your cheese intake for another reason: it forces more saliva, which acts as buffering agent, in addition to delivering nutrients to the teeth.
• Fruits, although they have sugar, are full of protective nutrients such as vitamin C. Avoid the chewable vitamin C supplements, as they are very acidic.
• Polyphenols, such as in tea, coffee, and cocoa, seem to inhibit certain enzymes the bad bacteria need to thrive. If you need a treat, here is an excuse for dark chocolate.
• Get magnesium from fish, avocados, dark greens, and yes, even dark chocolate (go for over 72% cocoa).

Another Plus for Good Nutrition

It is easy to say a good diet with less sugar is a no brainer. I agree. However, most of us aren’t perfect and we enjoy the occasional treat. Athletes often eat sweets just for extra fuel. If you’ve had cavities as a kid and continue to struggle with them even with a solid diet, you may need to do more. The above suggestions would be a start, at least from a nutritional standpoint.

Check out these related articles:

• What You Need to Know About Sugar Alcohols
• Chemically Defining Sugars – Is All Sugar Simply “Sugar”?
• What You Need to Know Before Eating Artificial Sweeteners
• What’s New On Breaking Muscle Today

References:

1. Gupta, Prahlad et al. “Role of Sugar and Sugar Substitutes in Dental Caries: A review.” ISRN Dentistry 2013 (2013). Accessed February 20, 2015. doi: 10.1155/2013/519421.

2. Mobley, Connie et al. “The Contribution of Dietary Factors to Dental Caries and Disparities in Caries.” Acad Pediatr. 9(6): 410–414 (2009) doi:10.1016/j.acap.2009.09.008

3. Struzycka, Izabela. “The oral microbiome in dental caries.” Polish Journal of Microbiology 16 (2014): 127-135. Accessed February 21, 2015.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Is It Really All About Sugar? Nutrition for Cavity Prevention appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Why is this worrisome? Because, it seems we’re losing sight of what paleo is all about and looking for sneaky ways to have our cake and eat it too. Pun totally intended. Don’t get me wrong; I like a good cookie or brownie just as much as anyone. However, I’ve been around long enough to have seen the low-fat trend come and go and to know better than to buy into the “I can eat anything I want as long as it’s _____.” Fill that in with low fat, gluten-free, paleo, or whatever is the latest food and diet trend. Remember Snackwells? Yeah, how many of us got ripped eating that crap?

Well, the same thing is happening – again. Paleo desserts are everywhere. So you ask, “But, why can’t I eat paleo cookies? Aren’t they good for me?” Yes, in small amounts, nuts and small amounts of sugar are fine. But, when we’re eating more than our fair share of sugar (natural or not), our health suffers.

Sugar is sugar. No matter what the source it can be detrimental when we get too much. Below, I talk about the pros and cons of different “healthy” sweeteners and how they affect your body so you can make more educated decisions about what types of sweeteners you use. And hopefully you also make the decision to limit the amounts of sugars you consume, paleo or not.

Fructose

Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit. It is perfectly fine to consume fructose when you get it from whole foods like apples, which are about 7% fructose. Delivered this way, fructose comes with a host of vitamins, antioxidants, and fiber. But when it’s commercially extracted from fruit, then concentrated and made into a sweetener, it exacts a considerable metabolic price.

Research shows it’s the fructose part of sweeteners that’s the most dangerous. Fructose causes insulin resistance and significantly raises triglycerides (a risk factor for heart disease). It also increases fat around the middle, which in turn puts you at greater risk for diabetes, heart disease, and metabolic syndrome. Fructose has also been linked to non-alcoholic fatty-liver disease. Rats given high fructose diets develop a number of undesirable metabolic abnormalities including elevated triglycerides, weight gain, and extra abdominal fat.

You can buy fructose on its own and we’ve all heard of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and know of the health problems associated with it. It’s in your best interest to avoid fructose and HFCS altogether unless you are eating it in whole fruit form.

Agave

Agave is a plant from which tequila and agave syrup are made. It’s thought of as a healthy alternative to traditional table sugar because it has a lower glycemic index. However, agave syrup is nothing more than agave liquid that’s been heated and reduced (much like taking a fruit juice and heating it until it becomes more concentrated). So, it’s a super concentrated form of fructose. Not good. In addition, because agave syrup is basically a processed food product, the mineral and antioxidant content is very low.

In the agave plant, most of the sweetness comes from a particular kind of fructose called inulin that actually has some health benefits and is considered a fiber. But by the time it’s processed into syrup there’s not much inulin left. In the manufacturing process, enzymes are added to the inulin to break it down into digestible sugar (fructose), resulting in a syrup that has a fructose content that is at best 57% and, much more commonly, as high as 90%. To put this into perspective, table sugar is 50/50 glucose and fructose. HFCS is 55/45. Agave nectar is a whopping 90% fructose – almost twice as high as HFCS!

Honey

Honey is another natural sweetener that has a few more benefits than agave. Raw honey contains the phytonutrients caffeic acid, methyl caffeate, phenylethyl caffeate, and phenylethyl dimethylcaffeate. All of these have antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal properties to keep your immune system healthy and ward off colds and flus.

Because honey isn’t processed, the natural antioxidant and nutrients are preserved. It also has the added benefits of reducing seasonal allergy symptoms if local, raw honey is used daily (about 2 tsp/day). However, the fructose to glucose (and other sugars) ratio is about 50/44. Of course, that’s not ideal, so use restraint for the same reasons we avoid straight fructose or HFCS – and now agave, too, right?

Maple Syrup

Real maple syrup, not “maple flavored,” is another natural sweetener, like honey, that has some redeeming qualities. It isn’t processed so it still contains small amounts of several minerals and quite a bit of manganese and zinc. It also contains phenols that may function as antioxidants and may help prevent type 2 diabetes. Maple syrup is almost entirely sucrose, which in the end breaks down to fructose and glucose in the body. So, like any other sugar, it’s not the best thing to be feeding your body and should be used sparingly.

Artificial Sweeteners

This includes things like saccharin, sucralose (Splenda), aspartame (Equal), and other artificial sweeteners. The huge con is that this stuff is just a bunch of chemicals! Yes, these products have low calorie content, but they may cause intense sugar cravings, cancers, weight gain, neurological problems, and numerous other issues. If you use them occasionally, it’s probably not a big deal. However, if you use them every day eventually it’s going to catch up with you in subtle if not very significant ways.

But if you are trying to justify using a shit ton of agave or honey in order to avoid chemical sweeteners your solution is flawed. Sugar causes cancer, heart disease, diabetes, fatty liver, and many other illnesses. The same problems we see with artificial sweeteners. So what’s the real solution? Losing the sweet tooth.

But wait, I’m not going to leave you completely hanging. Read on!

Stevia

For those of you who are looking to seriously lower sugar intake and avoid calories and want a natural alternative, stevia may be your answer. Stevia is an herb that has been used for many years to sweeten naturally. It has virtually no calories, no effect on blood sugar levels, and has little no known side effects. However, it may trigger or feed sugar cravings. So it should be used sparingly or avoided if you are trying to kick a sugar addiction.

The powdered varieties of stevia have fillers and are often combined with sugar alcohols (ethryitol), which can add to the calorie content or cause some GI distress. (Ew.) So, the liquid varieties are usually your best bet. My personal favorite is the Sweet Leaf brand, which comes in a quite a few flavors and it’s easy to carry with you for coffee and tea breaks. Okay, it’s easy for girls to throw in our purses. Guys, invest in a murse.

I hope this help you to make wiser decisions when choosing recipes and the sweeteners to use. Honestly, I hope it makes you evaluate your sugar intake as a whole. Men should only be getting around 36 grams and women about 24 grams of sugar total per day. Track your food one day and then wonder just how in the heck you managed to eat that much sugar! Enjoy your treats but make sure they are treats and not everyday indulgences. Your body will thank you.

References:

1. Basaranoglu, Metin, Basaranoglu, Gokcen, Sabuncu, Tevfik, and Senturk, Hakan, “Fructose as a key player in the development of fatty liver disease”, World Journal of Gastroenterology, 19(8) (2013): 1166–1172. Accessed September 11, 2013, doi: 10.3748/wjg.v19.i8.1166

2. Basciana, Healther, Federico, Lisa and Adeli, Khosrow, “Fructose, insulin resistance, and dyslipidemia,” Nutrition & Metabolism, 2 (2005) :5. Accessed September 

11, 2013, doi:10.1186/1743-7075-2-5

3. Stanhope KL, Schwarz JM, Keim NL, Griffen SC, Bremer AA, Graham JL, Hatcher B, Cox CL, Dyachenko A, Zhang W. et al., “Consuming fructose-sweetened, not glucose-sweetened, beverages increases visceral adiposity and lipids and decreases insulin sensitivity in overweight/obese humans,” Journal of Clinical Investigation, 10(5)(2009):1322–1334. Accessed September 11, 2013, doi: 10.1172/JCI37385.

4. Takahashi, Yoshihisa, Soeiima, Yurie, and Fukusato, Toshio, “Animal models of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease/nonalcoholic steatohepatitis”, World Journal of Gastroenterology; 18(2012)(19): 2300–2308. Accessed September 11, 2013, doi: 10.3748/wjg.v18.i19.2300

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Why Natural Sugars Aren’t Any Better Than Artificial Sugars (and Neither Is Paleo!) appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

One theoretically major part of the decline of public health has to do with fructose, specifically, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). A recent report in the Nutrition Journal did a thorough examination of what fructose might do to a person or a whole population of people. Researchers sought to define the impact of fructose by looking at both what the calipers might tell us and what an IQ test might tell us.

Fructose is one of those things that could be said to be natural. Indeed it is a commonly occurring natural sugar, sounding not unlike the word fruit, where this sugar can frequently be found. Fruit is good for you, and fructose is natural, so it seems on the surface like it may be a healthy option. The reality is this is false. In the quantities found only in a modest amount of dietary fruit, fructose might be plenty healthy, but that’s not the end of most people’s intake.

Indeed, according to the report, some 40% of all added sweetener is high fructose corn syrup, which also makes up about 80% of all soft drinks, baking products and ice cream sweeteners. And HFCS is getting sweeter. Since its introduction as a commercially produced sweetener, high fructose corn syrup has gone from 15% to 55% fructose content.

This chart show the relative sweetness, even just with HFCS that is 42% fructose:

One of the things that makes HFCS so bad was originally what made people think it was good. As a kid I remember the diabetic adults in my life being recommended by doctors to eat fructose sweetened foods as a healthier option. This was because despite being sweeter than many sugars, fructose doesn’t cause the same insulin response, and so was deemed better for preventing metabolic diseases like diabetes. Unfortunately, this feature doesn’t eliminate fructose from the adiposity, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance promoting effects of sugars in general, but it makes it less satiating than other sugars. So it’s just as bad for you and will leave you hungry for more – a double whammy.

But that’s not all. Metabolic syndromes have demonstrated associations with cognitive impairment, so the researchers in this study also looked for this link in the available literature. The original research on this involved rat subjects that clearly showed a link. Recently more research using humans examined multiple sugars, and sure enough, many of them (fructose included) were associated with cognitive impairment even in otherwise healthy individuals. So perhaps the beginning of cognitive decline into diseases like Alzheimer’s may start with sugar. Interestingly, there was no link found with naturally-derived fructose from fruits.

Of course, it goes without saying but I’ll say it anyway – avoid processed foods with added sugars, and eat healthy natural foods including fresh fruits. For those with friends or family who need the extra push, point them toward eliminating HFCS especially. Let’s get this stuff off our tables.

References:

1. Lakhan and Kirchgessner, “The emerging role of dietary fructose in obesity and cognitive decline,” Nutrition Journal, 12:114, 2013.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

Sugar chart by Ewen (Own work. Data from Image:Relativesweetness.jpg) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

The post Fructose Is Bad for Your Body and Your Mind appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Sugar alcohols are the sugars in alcohol, right? Wrong actually, the term “sugar alcohol” can be quite misleading as they are neither a sugar nor an alcohol. Confused yet? Allow me to explain then. Sugar alcohols are in most “sugar free” and “diet” products and once you know what to look for you will be amazed at just how many products contain some form of them. They are sweet to the tongue and are poorly digested by the body, making them what manufacturers believe to be the perfect type of sweetener. Unfortunately for some unlucky people these sugar alcohols can cause all sorts of bodily upsets.

What Are Sugar Alcohols

A sugar alcohol is also know as a polyol and can be classified as a carbohydrate. Sugar alcohols naturally occur in many fruits and vegetables, but are most widely consumed in sugar-free and reduced-sugar foods. The sweetness of sugar alcohols varies from 25% to 100% as sweet as table sugar (sucrose). The chemical structure of sugar alcohols is a hybrid between a sugar molecule and an alcohol molecule, hence the name, but they are neither one nor the other. Although included in most sugar free products, sugar alcohols do have a caloric value. This value is generally half that of sugar and is very low on the glycemic index, which is great for controlling blood sugar levels. Sugar alcohols also don’t ferment in the mouth when coming into contact with oral bacteria, which is another plus for dealing with oral health.

There are several types of sugar alcohols. When you look at a food label the below are all sugar alcohols you may see:

• Sorbitol
• Xylitol
• Erythritol
• Isomalt
• Lactitol
• Hydrogenated starch hydrolysates
• Maltitol
• Mannitol

I bet you now realize you have seen some of these in your food products. Sugar alcohols are found in a vast array of items like candy, gum, ice cream, baked good, and fruit spreads. They can also be found in oral hygiene products like toothpaste, mouthwashes and breath mints; medicines like cough syrups and lozenges; and most importantly they can be found in lots of sports nutrition products like protein powders, pre-workout supplements, and low-carb products.

Why Use Sugar Alcohols

The reason sugar alcohols are used is that they are slowly and incompletely absorbed in the body. Once they are absorbed they use very little to no insulin to convert to energy. Not all of the sugar alcohol passes into the bloodstream. The rest passes through the small intestine and into the large intestine.

One major use of sugar alcohols is in the management of diabetes, primarily to maintain close to normal blood sugar levels. The reason for this is because the sugar alcohols are incompletely absorbed, meaning they don’t initiate the same insulin response as they would if someone had consumed regular sugar. This allows for quite a few products to be marketed to diabetics, but as with anything your doctor should always be consulted if you are to add sugar alcohols into your daily diet.

Tooth decay is a major problem in regards to excessive sugar consumption, but with sugar alcohols this is not a problem, as the bacteria in the mouth don’t act upon them. Xylitol has even been found to inhibit oral bacteria. Due to this, manufacturers of chewing gums and sugarless mints include xylitol in their products as a sweetener.

Sugar alcohols are also used in reduced calorie or low carbohydrate diet foods. This is because they are used to replace the more energy dense carbohydrate sugars in the diet, thus lowering the total energy/calories of a food product. This is useful in the management of weight control and can help people trying to lose weight. Sugar alcohols can also be used to control the glycemic index of a food by lowering the carbohydrate rate. It should be noted that overconsumption of anything, even a product containing a sugar alcohol can possibly lead to weight gain.

CALORIES PER GRAM SUGAR ALCOHOL

3.0 calories per gram Hydrogenated starch hydrolysates

2.6 calories per gram Sorbitol

2.4 calories per gram Xylitol

2.1 calories per gram Maltitol

2.0 calories per gram Isomalt

2.0 calories per gram Lactitol

1.6 calories per gram Mannitol

0.2 calories per gram Erythritol

Side Effects of Sugar Alcohols

In some people sugar alcohols can cause bloating, flatulence, and diarrhea. This is because the sugar alcohol is not completely absorbed in the digestive system and this causes fermentation to occur in the intestines. Due to this fermentation, gas is produced and can cause gastrointestinal distress. This is the reason why products that could be over consumed, like gum and mints, must have a health statement on the label that says, “Excess consumption may have a laxative effect.” It must be noted that even if you are not sensitive, over consumption can cause abdominal discomfort ranging from cramps to diarrhea and dehydration.

Fluctuating blood sugar can also be of concern. Even though these sugar alcohols have very low glycemic impact and low carbohydrate energy density, consumed in large enough quantities they can cause fluctuations in blood sugar levels. This needs to be monitored if these products are to be consumed.

As with anything side effects will vary from person to person, some will have an instant reaction while others may never notice anything at all. The status of someone’s overall health will ideally relate to that persons degree of sensitivity. This is especially true to any one that has any type of gastrointestinal condition like irritable bowel syndrome, in these instances sugar alcohols should be consumed sparingly if at all to reduce the chances of causing gastrointestinal discomfort.

I think with the ever-increasing amount of products available on the market today that these food items do have a place on the shelves. But if we look at our diets realistically, consuming sugar free or low carbohydrate items shouldn’t be necessary or at the very least should only make up a very small portion of the foods we consume. Ideally we should be looking to consume natural, whole foods to fuel our bodies. That way, regardless of the pros or cons of sugar alcohols, the majority of us wouldn’t have to concern ourselves with that ever foreboding laxative effect.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

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One particularly shocking quote from the principal author reads, “HFCS consumption may result in negative health consequences distinct and more deleterious than natural sugar.” Did you read that? It could be worse than sugar. If this wasn’t tragic, it would be hilarious. We created HFCS to be a healthier alternative to natural sugar, and then it became self-aware and started murdering the human race. HFCS could be the beginning of Skynet.

The United States continued its quest for world domination in obesity by consuming more HFCS than any other country. Countries that still consumed much HFCS but fell behind the U.S. included Hungary, Canada, Korea, Japan, and Mexico. Countries with the least HFCS consumption included Australia, China, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

The study specifically calls out the high levels of HFCS in beverages as a possible culprit in the worldwide diabetes and obesity epidemic. A 2004 study also examined this idea, showing that increased consumption of HFCS in the United States beverage industry mirrored the rapid increase in obesity.

I don’t think anyone is particularly surprised by this finding. I predict that soda consumption will one day experience the same social transition that cigarettes recently experienced. Cigarette smoking started out cool, then transitioned to merely accepted, and now has a slightly negative social stigma. I think soda and HFCS are in for the same ride. What do you think? Post your thoughts to the comments below.

References:

1. Goran, Michael I., et. al. “High fructose corn syrup and diabetes prevalence: A global perspective.” Global Public Health 2012 Nov 27

2. Bray, George A., Nielsen, Samara J., and Popkin, Barry M. “Consumption of high-fructose corn syrup in beverages may play a role in the epidemic of obesity.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition vol. 79 no. 4: 537-543, 2004.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) Linked to Obesity appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

Considering an average child’s day normally begins by guzzling down sugar-laced cereals peddled by brightly colored mascots or fat-soaked donuts with bright pink frosting, it’s no surprise that in Australia the number of children on ADHD medication has doubled between 2002 and 2010 – from 245,791 to 507,168.¹

Being a fitness professional, I would love to sit here and tell you that the inactive, sugar-fuelled diet of so many tweens is the sole reason for the rise in ADHD cases, but the jury is still out on that claim. However, that isn’t to say that your little tyke’s obsession with reaching Tenth Prestige rank in Call of Duty 4 whilst shovelling sour gummy worms, Cheetos, and super-sized slushies down their gullets isn’t doing them a significant amount of long term damage.

Whenever we do something we enjoy, whether it is running a marathon, hitting a new 1RM deadlift, or spending an afternoon on the couch watching Fresh Prince of Bel Air reruns and eating a tub of chocolate ice cream, our brain releases dopamine. Dopamine is the neurotransmitter that regulates what we find pleasurable and sets us off on a quest to seek out these pleasurable activities, regardless of what they may be.

When your child grabs that donut off of the bench for breakfast, fills up their cereal bowl with a crackling cereal, or sneaks a jelly snake from the canteen before school starts, their brains are flooded with dopamine. Just like with any other drug, they love the feeling of their insulin levels rising, that rush of energy, the sweet, smooth texture of the gummy goodness hitting their tongues, and they associate that taste sensation with pleasure.

That would be all well and good – everyone deserves some pleasure after all – if it wasn’t shown that sugar is as addictive as cocaine. Åsa Mackenzie, associate professor of neuroscience at Uppsala University, conducted a study to test what sugar addicted mice would do when presented with cocaine or sugar. Surprisingly enough, the researchers found that the sugar-addicted mice, even when presented with cocaine, still preferred the sugar due to becoming hypersensitive to the substance, resulting in more sugar required via ingestion for dopamine levels to spike. Åsa Mackenzie concluded that, “Lower doses than normal are enough to increase the propensity to ingest the substance, and this is true of both sugar and cocaine.”²

It’s a harrowing comparison, sugar and cocaine. One is found in nearly everything a typical child or adult in Western society will consume on a daily basis. The other will have you locked up tighter than a bodybuilder’s glutes after leg day. And both wreak absolute havoc on a person’s dopamine’s levels. Dopamine levels that, when reduced through drugs or sugar intake, may cause substance abuse and disrupt dopamine signalling, resulting in motor hyperactivity and mimicking the symptoms of ADHD in teenagers.^3,4

Considering, for a moment, that ADHD is over-diagnosed. It is a scary thought that maybe some of those children popping Ritalin don’t actually need the little white pills, but rather a breakfast filled with more proteins and fats (that’s right, I said fats) than sugars and carbohydrates. Such a breakfast would provide a sustained energy release throughout the day, increase concentration, and prevent their bodies from becoming dulled to the release of dopamine neuro-transmitters.

Unfortunately, excessive sugar intake in a child’s diet causes more problems than just ADHD symptoms (as if that wasn’t enough). Within our brains resides a chemical known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). BDNF is responsible for creating new long-term memories, learning, and higher order thinking. Exercise has been shown to positively influence the growth of BDNFwhilst diets high in sugars reduce the growth of BDNF, making it hard for kids to learn new things.^5,6 So when your son comes home from school and says he didn’t do anything, maybe he really didn’t or maybe he did, but just can’t remember because of all that sugar he’s been eating.

Separating children from sugar would be nearly as impossible as separating me from my protein shakes and deadlifts. Even though we know why sugars are bad, children see sprinkles and their eyes light up. Sure, you could say no, but that doesn’t mean they won’t just buy it when you’re not looking, or take some off of a friend. Instead, try limiting your child’s sugar consumption when you are with him or her. Encourage your child to seek out natural sources of sugar, via fruit, and keep even that to an afternoon or after dinner treat.

It won’t be easy. They’ll kick, scream, bite, moan and groan but remember, dousing their brains with sugar can lead to drug abuse, ADHD symptoms, Alzheimer’s, and dementia (through impaired BDNF production). And that’s just not worth it.

References:

1. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/contention-surrounds-the-use-of-ritalin-for-children-with-adhd/story-e6frg6n6-1226486880346

2. Johan Alsiö, Karin Nordenankar, Emma Arvidsson, Carolina Birgner, Souha Mahmoudi, Briac Halbout, Casey Smith, Guillaume M. Fortin, Lars Olson, Laurent Descarries, Louis Éric Trudeau, Klas Kullander, Daniel Lévesque, Åsa Wallén-Mackenzie. Enhanced sucrose and cocaine self-administration and cue-induced drug seeking after loss of VGLUT2 in midbrain dopamine neurons in mice. Journal of Neuroscience, 2011

3. JAMA and Archives Journals (2007, August 8). ADHD Appears To Be Associated With Depressed Dopamine Activity In The Brain.ScienceDaily. Retrieved November 6, 2012, from http://www.sciencedaily.com­/releases/2007/08/070806164505.htm

4. Jucaite A, Fernell E, Halldin C, Forssberg H, Farde L. Reduced midbrain dopamine transporter binding in male adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: association between striatal dopamine markers and motor hyperactivity. Department of Woman and Child Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

5. Gomez- Pinilla F, Zhuang Y, Feng J, Ying Z, Fan G. Exercise impacts brain-derived neurotrophic factor plasticity by engaging mechanisms of epigenetic regulation. Eur J Neurosci 2011 Feb;33(3):383-90.

6. Molteni R, Barnard RJ, Ying Z, Roberts CK, Gomez-Pinilla F. A high-fat, refined sugar diet reduces hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor, neuronal plasticity, and learning. Neuroscience2002; 112(4):803-14.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post The Deadly Ways Excess Sugar is Stunting Your Child appeared first on Breaking Muscle.

While created in the late 1800s, artificial sweeteners seem to have overtaken food products in recent years. Food producers substitute sugar in everything from coffee to ketchup, significantly assisting people in a sugar-free lifestyle. However, as with any product, concerns of artificial sweeteners’ long-term side effects are being examined. If you’re one of the billions who consume these products there are some serious items to consider before chugging another soda. While some data is yet incomplete, the research that has been conducted may serve as projections for what to expect in years to come.

Currently, there are four main sweeteners dominating the market. Each sweetener contains a different ingredient, different color packaging, and has different affects. Therefore, examining them individually only seems fair.

Saccharin aka Sweet’N Low (pink packet)

As the most popular artificial sweetener worldwide, much debate has arisen from this infamous product. In the 1970s, the FDA originally banned saccharin because of animal studies conducted showing bladder cancer in male rats.¹ However, when the ingredient was studied on mice, monkeys, and hamsters, there was no consistent evidence that it would increase bladder cancer in humans, even at the highest levels of consumption.²

Aspartame aka Equal (blue packet)

Second to saccharin, aspartame is the most used artificial sweetener in the world (Soffritti et al. 2005). Since it’s approval by the FDA in 1974, it can now be found in over 6,000 products and represents 62% of the value in the global sweetener market.

When consumed, aspartame is absorbed into the gastrointestinal tract in three forms: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol.³ I know, what does that mean for my innards? Aspartic acid and phenylalanine are amino acids, two of the twenty amino acids that make up proteins. Methanol is also no stranger to humans in that it can be found in fruits and veggies. When broken down in digestion, it is metabolized first to formaldehyde, then formic acid, and finally to water and carbon dioxide.⁴ While methanol has been rumored to cause health concerns like headaches or blindness, the levels in our sweeteners are too low for this to occur.

The only serious, long-term affect that has been discovered is the consumption of aspartame in people with phenylketonuria (PKU). PKU is a rare disorder where the individual is unable to metabolize phenylalanine. The discovery of PKU is detected at birth through a mandatory screening program so those who have it are likely aware of it.⁵

Sucralose aka Splenda(yellow packet)

Approved by the FDA in 1998, sucralose became known as a “second-generation sweetener.”⁶ Sucralose is made with dextrose and maltodextrin, which adds the bulk required to measure it like sugar. While sucralose is stable at high temperatures, there have been concerns that the breakdown of its ingredients may be toxic to humans. However, in an article by Caroline Sham from 2005, the author stated “In an acidic environment, sucralose will hydrolyze into two chlorinated monosaccharides…but there is no evidence that sucralose or any of its breakdown products dechlorinate in any species and therefore are stable in the human body.”

Stevia aka Stevia in the Raw (green packet)

According to their website Stevia in the Raw is a low-calorie, gluten-free sweetener made from the “sweet leaves of the stevia plant.” Stevia has over 180 species but only stevia rebaudiana yields the sweetest taste that equates to over three hundred times sweeter than sucrose.⁷ Because so little is known about this product, researchers studied its effects on the body of diabetic and hypersensitive patients. While changes were found in “blood sugar levels, insulin level, blood pressure, urine sodium excretion, lipid profile and weight of the subject,” nothing was significant enough to draw statistics on.⁸

These sweeteners were created to substitute sugar, which used to be a household staple. But like anything else, we abused our consumption and now sugar is scary and has helped lead to the obesity epidemic. Now the only time sugar gets any real hype is during the holidays and at Paula Deen’s house.

So if we want to avoid sugar, many of us are left with the dilemma of figuring out how bad artificial sweeteners really are for us, while simultaneously using them. In the research conducted on laboratory animals, the levels of sweeteners they were fed were extremely large amounts. While we may not be consuming what is equivalent to mass quantities on a daily basis, it is unsure what prolonged consumption might equate to in the future. The safest method would be to consume artificial sweeteners in moderation. I know it’s hard for us not to order seven Splendas at the drive-thru but making the effort could make the difference.

Another consideration is to use natural alternatives to sweeteners. Ingredients like honey, spices, vanilla bean, and agave nectar will add the taste you’re missing. As with anything else though, even these products need full examination on their production before consumption, and may have their own drawbacks, as well. Just because it’s ‘natural’ sugar doesn’t mean it’s not sugar.

Be safe by being informed about what you’re eating. The FDA is there to protect us but even they don’t know the long-term affects we may face.

Photos courtesy of Shutterstock.

References:

1. Mann, Denise. Are Artificial Sweeteners Safe?

2. Soffritti, M., Belpoggi, F., Esposti, D.D., Lambertini, L., Tibaldi, E., & Rigano, A. First Experimental Demonstration of the Multipotential Carcinogenic Effects of Aspartame Administered in the Feed to Sprague-Dawley Rats. Environmental Health Perspectives. 114 (2005): 379-385. DOI: 10.1289/ehp.8711

3. Health Canada. Aspartame last modified October 14, 2005

4. Sham, Caroline. A Safe and Sweet Alternative to Sugar. Nutrition Bytes. 10 (2005)

5. In the Raw. Stevia in the Raw. accessed October 2012.

6. Savita, S.M., Sheela, K., Sunanda, S., Shankar, A.G., Ramakrishna, P., & Sakey, S. Health Implications of Stevia rebaudiana 15 (2004): 191-194.

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