MFP default nutrition SUGAR settings??

frankiesgirlie

I know I eat too much sugar and am working on reducing the grams. How accurate are MFP nutrition settings?
I'm 54, female and came on this site to lose 10 lbs, but more than that to make my fitness/health a priority. I'm 5'9" and started at 152. I'm down to 147 with a goal of 140.
I never had a sweet tooth until I gave up alcohol last year, now I can't seem to get enough of it.
Any help would be greatly appreciated. How many grams sugar per day...ways to fight sugar cravings...thank you!

IsaackGMOON

I don't fit sugar cravings... because I don't get sugar cravings - I eat whatever I'm craving pretty much.

You only really need to monitor your sugar intake if you have a medical condition which requires you to do so.

lemurcat12

frankiesgirlie wrote: »

How accurate are MFP nutrition settings?

It's hard for MFP to give a good number for sugar, as there's no real recommendation for total sugar or any credible evidence that sugar from fruits, veggies, or dairy are an issue so long as the diet as a whole is calorie appropriate and includes enough of the other things you need, like protein and fat and iron, etc.

Instead, the WHO and other organizations recommend keeping ADDED sugar to below 10% (and ideally below 5%) of total calories. What MFP does is estimate that the average user will not eat more than enough fruits, veg, and dairy to exceed 15% of total calories when keeping added sugar at the recommended level. That's often not true, especially if someone eats lots of those foods or reacts to a quite low calorie level by upping fruits and veg and cutting down on some other non-sugary carbs (like grains or other starches).

Also, the reason for the WHO recommendation is that eating more than 5-10% of calories from added sugars is likely to result in overeating or not having an overall nutrient dense diet. Someone tracking their diet can see how good it is and keep calories down, and thus many people think it makes no sense to worry about the specific sugar number. Instead, watch protein, fat, and carbs, to make sure the diet is balanced, and fiber to make sure you are getting enough of the more nutrient dense carbs (which also tend to have more fiber than, say, a piece of cake).

I personally watch sugar, but less the total number than the specific sources. If it's mostly coming from stuff like fruit, veg, and dairy, I don't worry about it. I do try to keep the amount from sweets at a smaller number of total calories and I would want to know if I was getting sugar from some unexpected source (although that is yet to happen).

(For the record, I'm the same re giving up alcohol and sugar. I never cared about sweets when younger at all, and found myself kind of subbing them in and having much more of a taste for them after I stopped drinking. Funny, since I always preferred dry wines.)

rosebarnalice

MFP uses very basic--but widely accepted-- nutrition settings for its recommendations for sodium, sugar, fats, protein, fiber, etcetera based on your height, weight, and total calorie goals. Individual experience may vary.

And I have to say that I have decided I really don't understand what a true physical "craving" is, so I don't know that I can help you there. Have I ever "wanted" sweets? SURE. But I'm pretty sure that my "wants" and "desires" for specific foods are largely in my head--my brain seeking instant gratification . . . NOT because my body is sending me signals about what it needs.

But I can say that I used to "want" something sweet every afternoon at about 4:00 p.m. until I started planning for a high-protein snack mid-afternoon (anything from a half a can of tuna to some nuts or some yogurt) . Now I get through the "four-o-clockies" with no problem.

lemurcat12

I agree about cravings generally being in one's head and about habit and expectation. I mostly dealt by reminding myself I wasn't really hungry outside of mealtime and would have satisfying food later. I'd let myself munch on low cal things which was a good way of realizing it wasn't real hunger.

If there's a food I really want I generally find a way to fit it in within my normal diet (for example, I allow myself something sweet after dinner if I have the calories).

What I found helped was to be really focused on why I was making the changes I was, why they were worth doing, etc. Then, if I wanted some cupcakes someone brought into the office in the afternoon when I don't normally eat, I could think hard about whether the pleasure of them would be worth the trade-off. Usually I decide I'd rather stick to my normal eating and have a little ice cream after dinner instead. It was much harder at first, but within a couple of weeks the new habits were largely established.

frankiesgirlie

I typically eat 3-4 different things that have added sugar: nature valley protein bars 10 grams protein 6 grams sugar (corn syrup, fructose)
Healthy choice fudge bars 5 grams sugar (aspartane). And my protein powder has 2 grams sucralose. Oh and vanilla Greek yogurt. Great value brand. Don't have it in the house to look up its sugar. I may have a serving of each of these in the same day.

frankiesgirlie

I don't know if food cravings are coming from the body looking for serotonin or if it's a habit or mental. I just know if you've ever bought a pint of
Ice cream that says 4 servings, and had every intention of eating one serving only to finish the whole thing then you know what I'm talking about.
I've never been overweight, just always trying to manage the vanity lbs, but it does some what concern me from a nutritional standpoint.

My husband thinks I'm nuts because I have no medical conditions. His thinking is its the only vice I have at this time, why not enjoy my sweets?

Me too with the dry wines, not sure how sweets came into play only since I stopped drinking.

ModaVita

I don't know about other people, but sugar cravings are VERY real to me. And yes, when I'm not drinking alcohol, I crave sugar much more - to replace the sugar in alcohol, probably. (My mother, a recovering alcoholic, says this is commonly reported in AA meetings.)

My only cure for my sugar cravings is to not eat sugar, or at least very little. It seems the more I eat of it, the more I want it. If I don't eat sugar, sweets don't even tempt me. And BTW, I know a lot of people who report the same thing.

Don't let people tell you something's only in your head. Your experience is your experience. If we all knew the answers, we wouldn't be here.

frankiesgirlie

ModaVita wrote: »

I don't know about other people, but sugar cravings are VERY real to me. And yes, when I'm not drinking alcohol, I crave sugar much more - to replace the sugar in alcohol, probably. (My mother, a recovering alcoholic, says this is commonly reported in AA meetings.)

My only cure for my sugar cravings is to not eat sugar, or at least very little. It seems the more I eat of it, the more I want it. If I don't eat sugar, sweets don't even tempt me. And BTW, I know a lot of people who report the same thing.

Don't let people tell you something's only in your head. Your experience is your experience. If we all knew the answers, we wouldn't be here.

Thank you so much for that! You made me remember two things--one was my Dad, God rest his soul was an alcoholic for many years and then decided to just quit and never drank another day of his life...but don't let there be no vanilla bean ice cream or lemon poppy cake in the house,cause s---st gonna fly!
Also, there was a time that more than a bite of dessert made me feel queasy. I think my tastes buds are dulled to the taste of sweet now, so one is never enough!
I think I need to seriously decide that I'm not gonna eats refined sugar. Do you eat fruit?

frankiesgirlie

I'm wondering if cold turkey no refined sugar might be my only option. I've never felt like I was much of a fruit eater, but I'm thinking I need a trip to the supermarket to give fruit a try and see if that helps.

lemurcat12

frankiesgirlie wrote: »

I just know if you've ever bought a pint of
Ice cream that says 4 servings, and had every intention of eating one serving only to finish the whole thing then you know what I'm talking about.

I find if I eat it immediately after dinner and measure out one serving into a bowl (ideally a small bowl) I am totally fine with one serving, although I weaned myself off sweets for a while before starting to buy and eat ice cream regularly again.

If I eat out of the pint I'll eat half the pint as a normal serving.

(I used to finish them, so I do know.)

lemurcat12

frankiesgirlie wrote: »

I'm wondering if cold turkey no refined sugar might be my only option. I've never felt like I was much of a fruit eater, but I'm thinking I need a trip to the supermarket to give fruit a try and see if that helps.

I found it helpful to do this for a few weeks to get out of the idea that I needed it or misusing it for emotional purposes and then I was able to add it back in, although I restrict the times I eat it (after meals only, when I have the calories only -- so generally this means a regular after dinner dessert).

My dad drank for years and years, and now basically is obsessed with sugar free (artificially sweetened) pudding as his main snack. On holidays he will have whatever, but otherwise just the pudding. (Not my thing, but it works for him.)

Gianfranco_R

lemurcat12 wrote: »

frankiesgirlie wrote: »

How accurate are MFP nutrition settings?

It's hard for MFP to give a good number for sugar, as there's no real recommendation for total sugar or any credible evidence that sugar from fruits, veggies, or dairy are an issue so long as the diet as a whole is calorie appropriate and includes enough of the other things you need, like protein and fat and iron, etc.

Instead, the WHO and other organizations recommend keeping ADDED sugar to below 10% (and ideally below 5%) of total calories. What MFP does is estimate that the average user will not eat more than enough fruits, veg, and dairy to exceed 15% of total calories when keeping added sugar at the recommended level. That's often not true, especially if someone eats lots of those foods or reacts to a quite low calorie level by upping fruits and veg and cutting down on some other non-sugary carbs (like grains or other starches).

Also, the reason for the WHO recommendation is that eating more than 5-10% of calories from added sugars is likely to result in overeating or not having an overall nutrient dense diet. Someone tracking their diet can see how good it is and keep calories down, and thus many people think it makes no sense to worry about the specific sugar number. Instead, watch protein, fat, and carbs, to make sure the diet is balanced, and fiber to make sure you are getting enough of the more nutrient dense carbs (which also tend to have more fiber than, say, a piece of cake).

I personally watch sugar, but less the total number than the specific sources. If it's mostly coming from stuff like fruit, veg, and dairy, I don't worry about it. I do try to keep the amount from sweets at a smaller number of total calories and I would want to know if I was getting sugar from some unexpected source (although that is yet to happen).

(For the record, I'm the same re giving up alcohol and sugar. I never cared about sweets when younger at all, and found myself kind of subbing them in and having much more of a taste for them after I stopped drinking. Funny, since I always preferred dry wines.)

Actually, I recently found out that the MFP limit of total sugar (15%) happens to correspond with the Italian recommendations:
http://www.sinu.it/html/pag/05-CARBOIDRATI-E-FIBRA-ALIMENTARE.asp

yarwell

Interesting, the Italian notes translate as "Limit your sugar intake to < 15 % En . A total intake > 25 % En ( 95th percentile of introduction in the Italian diet ) should be considered potentially related to adverse health effects. Limit the use of fructose as a sweetener . Limit the use of foods and drinks formulated with fructose and corn syrups high in fructose"

lemurcat12

Gianfranco_R wrote: »

lemurcat12 wrote: »

frankiesgirlie wrote: »

How accurate are MFP nutrition settings?

It's hard for MFP to give a good number for sugar, as there's no real recommendation for total sugar or any credible evidence that sugar from fruits, veggies, or dairy are an issue so long as the diet as a whole is calorie appropriate and includes enough of the other things you need, like protein and fat and iron, etc.

Instead, the WHO and other organizations recommend keeping ADDED sugar to below 10% (and ideally below 5%) of total calories. What MFP does is estimate that the average user will not eat more than enough fruits, veg, and dairy to exceed 15% of total calories when keeping added sugar at the recommended level. That's often not true, especially if someone eats lots of those foods or reacts to a quite low calorie level by upping fruits and veg and cutting down on some other non-sugary carbs (like grains or other starches).

Also, the reason for the WHO recommendation is that eating more than 5-10% of calories from added sugars is likely to result in overeating or not having an overall nutrient dense diet. Someone tracking their diet can see how good it is and keep calories down, and thus many people think it makes no sense to worry about the specific sugar number. Instead, watch protein, fat, and carbs, to make sure the diet is balanced, and fiber to make sure you are getting enough of the more nutrient dense carbs (which also tend to have more fiber than, say, a piece of cake).

I personally watch sugar, but less the total number than the specific sources. If it's mostly coming from stuff like fruit, veg, and dairy, I don't worry about it. I do try to keep the amount from sweets at a smaller number of total calories and I would want to know if I was getting sugar from some unexpected source (although that is yet to happen).

(For the record, I'm the same re giving up alcohol and sugar. I never cared about sweets when younger at all, and found myself kind of subbing them in and having much more of a taste for them after I stopped drinking. Funny, since I always preferred dry wines.)

Actually, I recently found out that the MFP limit of total sugar (15%) happens to correspond with the Italian recommendations:
http://www.sinu.it/html/pag/05-CARBOIDRATI-E-FIBRA-ALIMENTARE.asp

What's the basis for the total sugar? The ones (Australian?) that Yarwell posted before based it on 5% for added sugar plus the estimate of what people would get in total if they ate a diet that met roughly the average if one got the recommended fruits and veg (based on the assumption that most do not).

Importantly, it did not base it on any research suggesting that eating more sugar from fruits and veg to go over the limit would have adverse health effects or anything suggesting adverse health effects from sugar alone, apart from the source of the sugar. (No question there's a correlation between negative health outcomes and a diet that happens to be high in added sugar, although the same is true re sat fat.)