Sugar, Science and Regulation

[Chuckanut]

Is there any sugar problem if the following are met?
---glucose levels are normal in blood tests
---no real excess of body fat
---most sugars coming from fruits

Dr. Lustig is a big fan of fiber which he labels as nature's antidote to the sugar in things like fruit. Apparently, fiber allows the body to digest the sugar more slowly, and it also allows the sugar (glucose actually) to get farther down our digestive track where the good bacteria digest it instead of us. At least that's the theory. Again, we need more science to confirm this.

 

[GrayHare]

Obesity and diabetes took a sharp turn up just a few years after we all were told to avoid fats, saturated fats, eggs, read meat, etc.

There is similar correlation with incresed use of antibiotics. The right mix of bacteria in the gut assists with avoiding obesity.

 

[Chuckanut]

I

Or is all the hullabaloo in regards to very overweight individuals?

While I don't have an extreme weight issue, I know a number of people who do. A few simply eat to much of the wrong stuff, but most try very hard to lose and keep it off, but struggle against many powerful forces. FWIW, good dietary advice can help eliminate one of those powerful forces for them.

 

[harley]

Dr. Lustig is a big fan of fiber which he labels as nature's antidote to the sugar in things like fruit. Apparently, fiber allows the body to digest the sugar more slowly, and it also allows the sugar (glucose actually) to get farther down our digestive track where the good bacteria digest it instead of us. At least that's the theory. Again, we need more science to confirm this.

This is just anecdotal, but interesting to me at least. While reading "Eat Fat, Get Thin" Dr. Hyman was talking about fiber. He particularly recommended konjac root. I bought some PGX Daily pills, which contain konjac. One of my biggest issues with eating has always been my late night eating, which also coincides with my lowest willpower time. I've started taking 2 of the elephant pills (they're huge, but at least softgels) around 9 or 10 at night, and I'm still not in the least bit hungry when I got to bed around 2 or so. I think that, combined with the high veggie meals I'm eating, is largely responsible for both the weight loss and blood sugar control. Its working for me.

 

[sengsational]

Protein causes as much or more insulin secretion as sugar. If you want to avoid elevated insulin levels you'll have to stick to pure fat. Ick.

In my brevity, I wasn't clear. Eating refined carbs causes only insulin to spike, making a big job for your pancreas. Eating protein results in glucagon and, yes, insulin. But because of the glucagon, your pancreas doesn't need to do all the overtime.

 

[bjorn2bwild]

Is there any sugar problem if the following are met?
---glucose levels are normal in blood tests
---no real excess of body fat
---most sugars coming from fruits

Also I confess to adding some sugar to black coffee, eat a cookie or two, and like hot chocolate on winter evenings.

Or is all the hullabaloo in regards to very overweight individuals?

From my dispassionate point of view, the case against sugar is individual, lifestyle, and dose dependent - i.e., multifactorial.
I can eat a high carbohydrate diet including lots of added sucrose with no detectable harm and did so for 5 1/2 decades. I feel fine while maintaining a stable, lean, body weight and vital signs well within healthy normal bounds - like blood pressure, heart rate, fasting glucose, blood lipids etc.

 

[unclemick]

Sadly, one cannot legislate common sense. Moderation in all things.

But one can tax it. Booze, Tobacco, marijuana, etc.

And now guess who may be getting set up for the 'sin tax' category?

heh heh heh - I feel my inner curmudgeon strong today.

 

[Lakewood90712]

I need to get some new reading glasses. At first glance looked like the title was "Sugar, Science and Religion".

 

[athena53]

You have that right! As a former teacher I remember monitoring the eating area when 'breakfast' was served. Pancakes made from 100% white refined flour, then drenched in syrup by the kids.

And... don't tell me... the syrup was of the high-fructose corn variety and had never been near maple trees?

In general, Big Food has turned everything into candy: breakfast cereal, granola bars, yogurt, coffee (ever looked at the calories in a Starbucks caramel Macchiato?), etc. I suppose it's what people want but I wish we could wean them off of it. And, as someone noted earlier, you have to be careful that "less sugar" or "sugar-free" doesn't mean they've used something else to sweeten it.

 

[gcgang]

?..Sugar from cane, in my opinion is much more flavorful that beet sugar. I can remember as a kid and young adult traveling to the Hawaiian Islands, vast sugar cane and pineapple fields. My last trip to the islands, except for Maui, sugarcane and pineapple have all but disappeared.
...

As of December, 2016, sugar cane production is gone from Maui, as well.

 

[Amethyst]

Some people do get into quasi-religious wars over nutrition topics, so no wonder.

I need to get some new reading glasses. At first glance looked like the title was "Sugar, Science and Religion".

 

[MRG]

Some people do get into quasi-religious wars over nutrition topics, so no wonder.

+1
If you have ever been on the MFP board that's true.

Actually it is much more peaceful recently.

 

[bclover]

Lol, well I'm a baker so I guess that ranks me right up there with the anti christ.

Yep, i use sugar, also use butter, and "gasp" this Sunday at my superbowl party, I'll have pizza with Soda and beer.

I often wonder how we manage to make it pass age 30 with so many things "bad" for us.

 

[Amethyst]

Another baker here. And pizza + beer is one of God's chosen pairings.

Although I suspect the issue isn't so much "how did we survive this long" as "as our bodies wear out and become less efficient, what can we add, give up, or change to stay healthy?"

Lol, well I'm a baker so I guess that ranks me right up there with the anti christ.

Yep, i use sugar, also use butter, and "gasp" this Sunday at my superbowl party, I'll have pizza with Soda and beer.

I often wonder how we manage to make it pass age 30 with so many things "bad" for us.

 

[Retirement Nerd]

I am not an anti-sugar person, but we definitely have way too much sugar in our day to day food items. Once I started monitoring my sugar intake, I lost almost 30 pounds in less than a year, and I did not reduce my over-all food consumption or change anything else about my lifestyle. I only reduced the amount of food I was eating that had high sugar carbs, and replaced those foods with lower carb options.

 

[audreyh1]

You can avoid a huge amount of sugar by eating non-processed an minimally processed foods. As soon as you start buying prepared foods, and the includes juices/sodas, bread, canned soups and many veggies, sauces, spreads - even things like peanut butter, breads, etc., there is a lot of added sugar. Even things like ketchup.

We read labels very carefully, and we do buy some canned/jarred foods, but look for things will minimal additives. You can buy peanut butter that is just peanuts and salt, you can find canned veggies that is just the veggie and salt. But you have to pay attention.

But you do have to pretty much give up on prepared foods if you want to avoid all this added sugar. It's more work, or just eat more simply!

 

[harley]

From my dispassionate point of view, the case against sugar is individual, lifestyle, and dose dependent - i.e., multifactorial.
I can eat a high carbohydrate diet including lots of added sucrose with no detectable harm and did so for 5 1/2 decades. I feel fine while maintaining a stable, lean, body weight and vital signs well within healthy normal bounds - like blood pressure, heart rate, fasting glucose, blood lipids etc.

Lol, well I'm a baker so I guess that ranks me right up there with the anti christ.

Yep, i use sugar, also use butter, and "gasp" this Sunday at my superbowl party, I'll have pizza with Soda and beer.

I often wonder how we manage to make it pass age 30 with so many things "bad" for us.

Well, if I was like Bjorn, and I'm assuming you too, I'd still be eating pizza and pasta and bread, although I was never really into the sweet stuff. So if you're built so that you can handle these things, drive on. But I and many others can't. Something we've been doing (besides eating too much in general) has caused us to gain weight, become diabetic, etc. For decades we've been told it was fats, too many calories, and not enough exercise. But science is now saying it's more likely carbs, especially sugars and breads. So yes, we're pushing back against the expert advice, which they can't easily change because it's easier to prescribe pills and meds than it is to say "we were wrong". But I would never recommend gov't regulation, since they could screw up a wet dream.

By the way, nothing at all wrong with butter, unless you're eating it with a carb like bread. Diet sodas are fine IMO, and since I'm going to die someday anyway, I'll continue drinking beer. But pizza is a thing of the past for me. Sad.

 

[Amethyst]

and not enough exercise. .

Well, that part still holds. No need to wait for "The Government" to tell one that exercise is necessary to health. I bet doctors have been saying this since Galen's time (ancient world).

 

[Chuckanut]

We all have different metabolisms. If we were all the same I am sure that the practice of medicine would be a lot easier and a lot cheaper.

Find what works for you and stick with it. All of the above is good information if you can use it to find what works for you.

 

[audreyh1]

By the way, nothing at all wrong with butter, unless you're eating it with a carb like bread. Diet sodas are fine IMO, and since I'm going to die someday anyway, I'll continue drinking beer. But pizza is a thing of the past for me. Sad.

Beer is pretty high in carbs, no? To me it seems like bread (liquid bread). But clearly you've figured out a balance that works for you.

 

[bjorn2bwild]

Well, if I was like Bjorn, and I'm assuming you too, I'd still be eating pizza and pasta and bread, although I was never really into the sweet stuff. So if you're built so that you can handle these things, drive on. But I and many others can't.

I would like to clarify the selection bias in my comment - the high carbohydrate diet that I described is dominant among my athletic peer group. I agree this would not be ideal for the more sedentary segment of the population. Also, I do adjust the carbohydrate load to match my level of fitness. Currently - moderate carbs, no added sugar.
I have tinkered with the low-carb ketogenic diet as an experiment, so far this has not worked well for me - perhaps two months was not enough time for adequate adaptation.

 

[Chuckanut]

I would like to clarify the selection bias in my comment - the high carbohydrate diet that I described is dominant among my athletic peer group.

An excellent point. People whose work requires a lot of physical labor, elite athletes and others such as them have different needs from most people in modern society

 

[Bestwifeever]

The link in the OP points out that there is not much research about sugar's effect on health. I read conflicting reports on carbs, too. I am even reading reports that drinking eight glasses of water a day is a made-up thing and that gasp! breakfast maybe isn't the most important meal of the day (a concept first introduced by the cereal companies, apparently). And you can even get the health benefits of red wine by drinking plain old grape juice.

We can and should decide how something affects us individually and make changes accordingly if we want to (my plan is to become an elite athlete), but there probably isn't enough data for the government to tell everyone to make those changes.

 

[razztazz]

An excellent point. People whose work requires a lot of physical labor, elite athletes and others such as them have different needs from most people in modern society

Funny you should bring this one up. Just had a discussion with some medical people about the carbs/glycogen fetish among athletes most visibly "marathoners. The "Stack of pancakes before the big race will give you energy" Commandment that's been written in stone for so long has apparently been debunked along with so many other truths that just ain't so. It truly was just a fetish. If you believed it helped you last longer in the race then you'd last longer.

Personally, and I am not an extreme jock and think distance running is a form of OCD, I have noticed that, on those occasions when I go off the Low-Carb diet and treat myself to a couple nights of pasta, for a day or two afterwards my workouts seem a bit easier. And I mean noticeably so.

My conclusion is: The fetish for carb loading among some athletes is and has been bogus. But if you are low carbing on an ongoing basis, a shot of glycogen from a carb-bomb might produce a performance spike.

But as is said mucho here: Everybody's body is different

 

[Markola]

I just received my lipid panel results after 4 months of largely cutting out sugar and simple carbs (junk and processed food, soft drinks, rice, pasta, bread, desserts, etc.) and focusing on vegetables, fruits, meats, cheeses, eggs. One reason I made the changes was to lose a bit of weight I didn't like and the other was to see if my triglycerides would get back to normal range from being borderline high for at least 30 years since college.

Results and experiences after 4 months:

- Triglycerides are indeed in the normal range, as many others eating lower carb find. Yay!

- Healthy cholesterol/HDL is in normal range.

- Other Cholesterols are borderline high, which is new and not what I was aiming for. I suspect this is due to eating more eggs, dairy and red meats. Doc is not worried but my search and adjustments for the right diet for me continues, probably by eating more fish and chicken and maybe trimming eggs and cheese.

- I lost 14 pounds pretty effortlessly and without increasing exercise, hitting my target weight. I also eat as much as I want and have never been hungry. In fact, I don't have the urge to snack as much, because of my substantial, filling meals. I am a light, social drinker and haven't really made any adjustments there. I love Guinness and it is recommended for lower carb eaters, as is dry white wines.

- I feel better, probably because of less junk food and blood sugars spiking all over. I had one gourmet donut last month and felt ill afterward for the rest of the day. My body is already less-tolerant of that kind of "food" now. In fact, it instantly pivoted to craving the healthy stuff, so it has not been a hard transition at all.

- I like some of the substitute foods I've learned about even better than the originals, as does my wife. For example, cauliflower rice is delicious. I also bought a food spiralizer at Target for $10, which makes various tasty vegetable approximations of noodles.

So that is one 51 year old male's experiences to date and I will continue eating this way. If interested, the place I learned the most is https://www.verywell.com/low-carb-diets-4014695