Is Sugar Really Bad For You?
If you ‘google’ “is sugar really bad for you” the search results pull up this as the first results:
“The AHA links added sugar to obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. In a nutshell, eating too much sugar can cause fat buildup in the liver, which can lead to these problems. It’s not all bad. … As sweet as some of these things may taste, they contain relatively small amounts of sugar.”
Now I’m not completely saying you should avoid sugar at all costs and drop it cold turkey. I am saying let’s be informed and find out more about sugar.
There are hundreds of types of sugars and labeling them each is, well, time-consuming so let’s put them into some very simple categories and start there.
What Do We Mean By Sugar?
By “sugar” we mean the syrup form, as well as, the granular form.
This includes the raw, unrefined, as well as, the refined forms. This includes high fructose corn syrup, agave nectar, coconut sugars, molasses and even honey. “Sugar” means any combinations or blends of sugars ending in “ose” as they’re ALL equally harmful to the body.
“Sugar” includes ANYTHING in “ose”:
SUCROSE (Table sugar) a simple sugar made from cane sugar or beets.
FRUCTOSE, a simple sugar in fruits, plants and honey.
MALTOSE, a complex sugar in barley and malt syrups.
LACTOSE, a complex sugar in milk.
DEXTROSE, a refined simple sugar from corn, sugar cane or beets.
GLUCOSE, a simple sugar in fruits, vegetables and grains.
These are all sugars that have been altered from their original form. When you eat an apple you are getting sugar from the fruit but it has not been altered. There are a lot of ways to process or alter whole foods so that you break down complex macronutrients into simple and concentrated forms with high amounts of sugar. Versus The above are examples of what can be extracted from whole foods when all other nutrients and minerals are removed. However, you can still have gray areas of processed foods that have been altered less aggressively. Making food choices closer to whole foods is ideal but not always easy or practical so it’s helpful to understand that there is a difference.
For example, fresh unpasteurized fruit and vegetable juice is a mildly processed whole food that can remove a lot of the bulk of the fruit or vegetable. Fresh juice can be a very healthy way to get higher amounts of vitamins and minerals in your diet that have not been broken down through with pasteurization, cooking or other preservatives. However, despite getting more vitamins and minerals you will be consuming more of the fruit and vegetable sugars, which can have a negative effect on your health if you juice only high sugar fruits. This is typically not as much of an issue for fresh juices however with more moderately processed juices that have been pasteurized and concentrated with added chemicals and preservatives, the potential health benefits of the juice are almost completely voided and you are still left with the high sugar content.
Is Sugar A Foundation For Disease?
We’ve known sugar is a factor in every major disease since 1900. Dr. Otto Warburg was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1930 for discovering the connection between sugar and cancer. Yet this connection is not widely discussed.
Sugar compromises immune function. Dr. Kenneth Bock, an M.D., and expert in nutritional health says that 2 cans of soda (24 teaspoons sugar) reduce the efficiency of white blood cells by 92 %, and this effect lasts up to five hours.
In the 1950’s Dr. Coda Martin showed a clear link between sugar and disease. He says:
“Refined sugar is lethal when ingested by humans because it provides only that which nutritionists describe as “empty” or “naked” calories.”
It lacks the natural minerals which are present in the sugar beet or cane.
In addition, sugar is worse than nothing because it drains and leaches the body of precious vitamins and minerals through the demand its digestion, detoxification and elimination make upon one’s entire system.” Dr. Coda Martin
Sugar Leeches Nutrients from the Body
Sugar depletes the bones of calcium, causing osteoporosis. Dr. Rick Allen says: “Sugar depletes the body of phosphorus, and without adequate phosphorus for transport, bone marrow doesn’t get the calcium it needs, so the body pulls calcium from bones.”
In order to digest glycemic sugars, the body needs B-complex vitamins. The body must rob its own resources to find it. Vitamin B-complex is taken from the central nervous system. Over time, eating sugar can cause Vitamin-B deficiency. This leads to:
Nervousness
Poor memory
Fatigue
Anxiety
Neurological disorders
Sore muscles
Headaches
Insomnia and dizziness
Depression
Indigestion
Poor appetite
Craving sweets
Our blood ph is a matter of life and death.
According to Nancy Appleton, Phd., author of “Healthy Bones”, when we eat sugar, the body robs calcium from teeth and bones to neutralize the acid and protect the blood ph.
What’s a sugar rush? It’s the organs on overdrive to balance blood sugar.
As sugar is quickly absorbed into the blood, it stimulates the pancreas to overwork to produce insulin and normalize blood sugar levels. The rapid release of insulin causes a sudden drop in blood sugar. In response, the adrenals must overwork to try to maintain blood sugar levels. This begins a see-saw effect of high and lows that ultimately leads to organ burn-out and disease.
Dr. Scott Olson, author of “Sugarettes” says: “Sugar is responsible for more deaths than cigarettes.”
I Don’t Eat Sugar At Every Meal
Our Sugar Consumption is on the Rise, We eat sugar at every meal! Hidden in drinks, condiments, ‘natural’ and prepared foods. 300 years ago, average sugar consumption per person was about 1 pound per year. Now the average is 165 pounds per year.
Americans eat more sugar than other countries.
Americans are only 5% of the world’s population, yet we eat 33% of the world’s sugar, over 10 million tons annually.
Symptoms of Sugar Addiction:
If you have two or more of these symptoms, you may be addicted to sugar:
Restlessness: When you don’t get your sweet fix, you start feeling restless.
Moods, Anxiety, Depression: You go for sweets when you’re feeling down.
Diet: You manage your energy with sweets, soft drinks, coffee and carbs. When you miss a treat you feel anxious, depressed, headachy or foggy-brained.
Cure Sugar Addiction by Breaking the Cycle:
Notice the sugar content in the food you buy.
Just Say “No Thank You”
Read the Labels
Eat Homemade Food without Sugar
Reduce or eliminate Alcohol as it is made from sugar.
Stay away from pure carbs such as white flour, white bread, prepared cereals and white potatoes.
Eat fresh whole foods like vegetables and fruits. These are the building blocks of health.
Reduce Sweet Fruits: Bananas, mangoes, papayas, grapes, apricots, dried fruits, raisins, dates.
Drink clean water. Your body is 70 – 90% water. Drink quality filtered water and avoid chlorinated tap water.
Eliminate soft drinks and store bought fruit juices. They are loaded with sugar and fructose.
Observe Your Cravings: When you feel like eating something sweet, grab a tart apple, a celery stick, or a cup of herb tea. Engage yourself in other activities that help you to re-focus and increase your body awareness.
Corrective Chiropractic offers a 10 Day Blood Sugar Program to help ‘jump start’ your system into reducing the sugars you eat.
Why the 10-Day Blood Sugar Program?
Great way to help bring blood sugar levels to normal ranges, unbalanced blood sugar causes poor kidney function, poor digestive function, decreased immunity, dysbiosis in the colon, possible skin disorders. Research has also shown that long-term blood sugar handling issues could develop into diabetes.
Are you gaining fat around your waistline? Are you hungry between meals? Is your eyesight getting blurry? Do you suffer from poor circulation or numbness in your hands or feet? Are you waking up multiple times per night and not waking refreshed?
These could be early signs of instability in your blood sugar or the beginning of Type II diabetes. By doing this program and supporting healthy blood sugar levels, you will lay the foundation for normal processes that will keep these unwanted symptoms controlled.
This program is easily incorporated into your everyday routine.
Why we choose Standard Process & MediHerb:
Whole food supplements and vitamins are concentrated nutrients from the likes of organically grown vegetables such as kale, Brussels sprouts, beets, and carrots, etc…
They contain the highest level of vitamins, amino acids, phytonutrients and a myriad of other nutrients found naturally ingrown from the ground foods.
Even with your best efforts to eat quality foods, you may still have key nutrient deficiencies despite “normal” blood work or even a normal weight.
Replenishing your body with the proper supplementation, derived from whole organic foods and herbs, gives your body the ability to rebuild and regenerate in an amazing way.
Contact Corrective Chiropractic in Greenville NC to start the 10 Day Blood Sugar Program. www.purificationsupport.com/10day
