There is an extensive article about sugar in the August 2013 National Geographic magazine titled “Sugar Love (A not so sweet story).” It refers to “…a colossal American health crisis. High rates of obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease: the legacy, some experts say, of sugar…” The article describes how the domestication of sugarcane 10,000 years ago in New Guinea began a deadly series of events. Columbus planted the New World’s first sugar cane in Hispaniola and millions of Africans were enslaved and shipped to the New World to work on sugar plantations. The slave trade has ended, but the addiction to sugar continues. The article describes how a time of famine led to evolution of humans who can get by on very little sugar but are addicted to the rush it gives while sapping their energy and “…beaching them on the couch.”
The article also observes, “Manufacturers use sugar to replace taste in food bled of fat so they seem more healthful, such as fat-free baked goods, which often contain large quantities of added sugar.” I have family members who diligently shop for fat-free foods. I expect they do not realize that the 8 ounce container of low-fat yogurt contains more than 6 teaspoons of sugar. Doctor Robert C. Atkins warned about the risks of eating fat-free foods, but he was under constant attack from those who believed fat was the risk and not the carbohydrates used to replace it.
Dr. Atkins authored numerous books before his death, and one is titled “Atkins for Life.” I have followed some of his advice and chose to ignore some of it. I try to follow the advice about everything in moderation and to not worry about the natural carbohydrates in fruits. I believe his warning to avoid sugar and white flour. He also advocated that “anti-fat” has done harm to the health of many. There are many “good fats” that are essential to good health. Fat digests more slowly than carbohydrates, which means that we can fill up on satiating proteins and good fats while a low-fat diet leads us to be hungry and searching for a snack. That is especially true if we have used low-fat salad dressing on our salad and eaten a low-fat yogurt, both of which are loaded with sugar.
There are many weight loss plans, and each person struggling with wanting to shed pounds has to feel comfortable with the one they chose. There are comments in the Atkins’ book titled “The Low-Fat Lie,” that I will quote for your consideration. “Fat phobia is so widespread in our society that food manufacturers can sell just about anything as long as it claims to be low in fat…These low-fat foods aren’t any healthier—in fact they are just the opposite. To make up for the missing flavor fat provides, manufacturers simply add more sugar…Our advice: Give them a wide berth.”
The American Diabetes Association discusses risks from sugar in a bit different way. One of their articles discusses how the glycemic index measures how a carbohydrate-containing food raises blood glucose. Regardless of the diet or source you prefer, it seems no one other than corn syrup manufactures are advocating that all the sugar available in foods is good for us.