Bitter aftertaste of sugar rush
OUR favourite sweet treats bring us so much pleasure – but at what cost? Our sister publication No.1 magazine reveals the unpleasant truths about sugar and the damage it inflicts on our health.
A quick hit
SUGAR has no nutritional value. It’s a carbohydrate, it supplies energy. That’s why, when we are feeling lethargic, we crave a sweet snack. It provides us with a temporary energy boost, or sugar high, but when it wears off it often leaves us feeling more sleepy than we were before.
Sugar-loving Scots
A 2015 report by Food Standards Scotland said that “our nation’s high-fat, high-sugar, high-calorie diet is making us sick”. Half of the sugar we consume comes from “discretionary” foods high in calories such as cakes, biscuits, crisps and pastries. Staggeringly, almost a quarter (22.3%) comes from fizzy drinks.
The tooth hurts
TOO much sugar leads to tooth decay. Almost a third (32%) of Scotland’s primary one kids have been found to have obvious dental decay. It can also lead to us piling on the pounds (two-thirds of Scots are classed as overweight or obese) or suffering diabetes (almost nine out of 10 Scots with type-two diabetes are overweight).
Buck the fizz
INSTEAD of guzzling soft drinks, take water or a green tea. Fruit juice actually causes a high concentration of fructose to hit the liver, so steer clear of products labelled ‘juice drink’ as they are higher in sugar. Also remember that, as well as being high in salt, ready meals often contain a lot of sugar. And watch out for pasta sauces. Some 500g jars contain more than six cubes of the stuff! Make your sauce from scratch to control what you put in it.
Read the small print
REMEMBER: “no added sugar” doesn’t mean “sugar-free”, just that no sugar was added during the manufacturing process. “No added sugar” ice-cream still contains lactose. Be wary of food labels as sugar is not always listed as an ingredient. Watch out for honey, syrup and any ingredients ending in ‘-ose’ – for example, glucose, dextrose and sucrose.