In recent years, specialists in Nutrition and Dietetics have been waging a real battle against simple sugars, excessive consumption of which can lead patients to suffer from problems of overweight and obesity, as well as causing other pathologies related to increased body fat and increased insulin levels.
Where is the sugar?
Sugar is not only in teaspoons of coffee or birthday cakes. The problem with sugar and the substances that behave like sugar is that they are so prevalent. Most of these substances are unknown to a large part of society, and many others are hidden in products where they are not expected. It’s all about sugar on the sly.
In principle, these substances include glucose and fructose, sucrose (known as table sugar) and sugars present in honey, syrups and fruit juices and concentrates. These substances are added to a multitude of foods and preparations to enhance their sweet taste and make them appear more attractive. For example, in soft drinks, breakfast cereals, industrial breads and pastries or sauces.
More concrete examples of these products are:
- Skimmed yogurts. In some cases they contain more than 15 grams of sugar per package. This is the equivalent of two sachets of sugar.
- Whole-grain cereals. They usually contain between one and two sachets of sugar per serving.
- Low-sugar drinks. In the case of some soft drinks that are advertised as low in sugar, the reality is that they contain more than 15 grams of sugar per can.
In this list, moreover, no mention has been made of the refined white flours contained in many of these products, which behave very much like sugar.
How to avoid excess sugar
The best advice is to carefully read the nutritional labels of industrial products. Especially those in which the advertising message states that they are products with 0% sugars, skimmed, low sugar, sugar-free, light and a long etcetera of synonyms. If they really are, they have the obligation to prove it. Otherwise it is misleading advertising.