Some researchers have gone as far as calling sugar a poison or toxin
Who doesn’t love sugar? Humans are attracted to sweetness from birth. Look around — at the supermarket, food ads, in the ingredients of the products you consume — and it’s clear that sugar is EVERYWHERE. The obvious places come to mind immediately: candies and pastries, cookies and cakes, frostings and icing, soft drinks and soda, chocolate fudge and ice cream. Is your mouth watering yet? (Mine is.) Then there are the hidden sources… places you may have never thought you’d find added sugar. Like canned fruits and veggies, “healthy” crackers and cereals, flavored waters, tomato sauce, granola bars, yogurts, and bottled salad dressings, just to name a few. You wouldn’t associate many of those foods with high sugar content, but take a moment to study the ingredients and the amount of sugar these products actually contain. You may be surprised.
What’s so bad about sugar? Sugar is yum. It brightens our lives. It makes parties fun, studying sessions more enjoyable, and special events more special.
The problem is that too much sugar can have a devastating effect on our health. So much so that some researchers have gone as far as calling sugar a poison or toxin! Excessive sugar intake can lead to overweight and obesity, which in turn vastly increase the risk of heart attacks, cancers, type 2 diabetes, and many other diseases. Of course, sugar wreaks havoc on our innocent teeth. Certain studies have shown that sugar adversely affects the brain — particularly the developing brains of kids and teens! Consuming excess sugar is about more than just body weight — even at a healthy weight, too much sugar can cause health problems.
It’s hard to answer that question. Studies have not definitively proven what a safe amount of sugar might be. Current guidelines advise limiting teens’ intake of added sugars to six teaspoons a day. (Note that many teens consume over 23 teaspoons of added sugar every day!)
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