Sweet enough

WATCH OUT FOR HIDDEN SUGARS, WARNS JAMES MOORE

THE country is on a sugar high – with the average adult eating 12 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day, double what we should. But the dangers are clear – too much is linked to obesity, heart disease and Type-2 diabetes.

Anyone aged over 11 should stick to a maximum of 30g (seven teaspoons) of free sugars – any sugar added to food or found in honey, syrup and fruit juice.

Children aged four to 10 should stick to between 19-24g (about five and six teaspoons). But while we know chocolate bars and pop are packed with sugar, it can also be found lurking in unexpected places. Cereal offender

One bowl of cereal can contain as much sugar as five biscuits according to an Action on Sugar study Kellogg’s Frosties are one of the top offenders, with 11g of sugar per 30g portion with similar levels in Crunchy Nut Cornflakes. Beware of sugar lurking in muesli, granola and cereal bars too.

■ Sweet tip: Weetabix has 1.6g sugar per two biscuit serving, Shredded Wheat even less. Try sweetening cereal with fresh strawberries, blueberries or sliced bananas or opting for plain homemade porridge. Saucy truth

While some shop-bought pasta sauces can contribute to your five-a-day, they can also contain as much sugar per serving as a slice of cake.

■ Sweet tip: Swap your usual sauce such as Dolmio Bolognese Sauce, at 7.1g sugar per 125g portion, for a less sweet variety such as Dolmio No Added Sugar Bolognese Sauce at 4.6g sugar per serving. Tesco Everyday Value Pasta sauce has just 2.5g sugar per 110g portion. Or try making your own from scratch with tinned tomatoes and herbs. Canny condiments

Did you know there’s up to a teaspoon of sugar in a tablespoon of ketchup or brown sauce? Mayonnaise and sweet chilli sauces can also pack surprising amounts. Tiptree ketchup has 4.6g per 15g serving while Heinz ketchup has 3.4g sugar in a 15g serving and HP Sauce has 3.5g per 15g.

■ Sweet tip: Go for a no added sugar variety, like Heinz’s ketchup version, which comes in at just 0.7g, or opt for Daddies brown sauce at 2.5g. Real Good Ketchup, with all naturally occurring sugars, has 0.9g per 15g. Juice the job?

Surprisingly, even 100 per cent unsweetened fruit juice also contains sugars we should be trying to cut down on, but it does contain useful vitamins and minerals.

A 150ml glass of Tropicana orange juice has 13g of sugar, while the same amount of Coke contains 16g sugar and so-called healthy smoothies can also be full of the sweet stuff.

■ Sweet tip: Stick to 150ml a day of juice, about a glassful. While it counts as one of your five-a-day, you should only have one portion. You can also dilute fruit juices with water. Innocent recently launched smoothies 30 per cent lower in natural sugar. Dairy’s dear

You probably knew ice cream contained sugar, but you could pay a price for eating too many yogurts too. Some Muller Corners have almost as much as a Milky Bar while Total Greek 0 per cent Fat Free Yogurt With Honey, contains 18g of sugar per 100g.

■ Sweet tip: Check the labels. Yeo Valley Natural Yogurt has 4.9g sugar per 100g for instance. For kids, the Petits Filous no added sugar variety is a good bet.