Added sugar vs. natural sugars in daily total?

smacznaherbata
smacznaherbata Posts: 8 Member
edited December 1 in Food and Nutrition
Are the sugar totals based on added sugars and natural sugars like those in fruits etc., or just added sugars?
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Replies

  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    All sugar.
    A lot of people, including myself, just track something else.
    No need to track unless you have a medical condition limiting sugar.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    MFP is designed to track total sugars.
  • fr33sia12
    fr33sia12 Posts: 1,258 Member
    Yep both, I track my sugar as I don't want to eat too much sugar, from whatever source.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Total sugars because your body doesn't differentiate. You obviously get other nutrients along with the sugar when you're eating fruit and veg vs drinking a soda...but your body doesn't differentiate between that sugar and added sugar.
  • fr33sia12
    fr33sia12 Posts: 1,258 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Serah87 wrote: »
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.

    No offense, but this isn't very good advice. Most people consume way too much sugar. If the sugar comes from 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples it is still excessive. You may not have a medical reason to worry about it now but if you continue to eat it in excess you will develop one.

    Totally agree. A lot of people still think they can eat as much sugar as they want because it's from fruit rather than processed.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    edited May 2016
    mostein wrote: »
    Serah87 wrote: »
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.

    No offense, but this isn't very good advice. Most people consume way too much sugar. If the sugar comes from 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples it is still excessive. You may not have a medical reason to worry about it now but if you continue to eat it in excess you will develop one.

    I don't eat 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples, nor do I eat sugar in excessive. Moderation is what I do within my calories. I usually have less then 70 grams a day.

    When I say don't worry about it I mean I don't track it.

    ETA: If I ate 20 apples I would be in the emergency room with a terrible stomach ache.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited May 2016
    mostein wrote: »
    Serah87 wrote: »
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.

    No offense, but this isn't very good advice. Most people consume way too much sugar. If the sugar comes from 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples it is still excessive. You may not have a medical reason to worry about it now but if you continue to eat it in excess you will develop one.

    Most people don't eat so much fruit that it's an issue. Too much would mean that you weren't getting in adequate protein, healthy fats, vegetables or exceeding your calories. Could you do that and eat 20 apples? Probably not, but I personally wouldn't ever be at risk of eating 20 apples in a day (or 10 chocolate bars, for that matter) -- the apples would be far too filling and I'd get bored and want something else.

    The sugar limit is all sugars, since nutrition labels don't differentiate, but it is really MFP's compromise with the lower "added sugar" limits and the absence of any evidenced-based "total sugar" limit. The entities who recommend the lower "added sugar" limits make it clear that the reasons for them is not that sugar beyond that amount is harmful, but that people consume too much added sugar, on average, and that correlates too overly high calories and inadequate nutrition (many items with added sugar being easy to overeat, high in cals (often from fat), and low in micronutrients).

    For these reasons, the "sugar" limit is an estimate of how much sugar the average person should eat, assuming an average amount of intrinsic sugar. If someone eats more due to lots of fruit and veg, but is within their carb limit and getting plenty of protein and other nutrients, there's no credible evidence that says it is something to worry about, absent doctor's advice (and typically the relevant health issues, like T2D, focus more on overall carbs and balance).
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Serah87 wrote: »
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.

    No offense, but this isn't very good advice. Most people consume way too much sugar. If the sugar comes from 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples it is still excessive. You may not have a medical reason to worry about it now but if you continue to eat it in excess you will develop one.

    There is no reason for healthy individuals to track sugar intake.
    Sure, too much of anything can be harmful (even water) but the paranoia surrounding sugar is unfounded.
  • mostein
    mostein Posts: 200 Member
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.
  • ForecasterJason
    ForecasterJason Posts: 2,577 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.

    And the guys told you that it's pretty much impossible to get excess sugar if you're restricting caloriesand even have the slightest idea of what a healthy diet looks like.
    The problem though is that a lot of people aren't eating a healthy diet to begin with, and in a lot of those cases their sugar consumption is excessive. I believe that's what she's referring to.

  • MissusMoon
    MissusMoon Posts: 1,900 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Serah87 wrote: »
    I don't worry about my sugar intake. Unless you have medical reason don't worry about it.

    No offense, but this isn't very good advice. Most people consume way too much sugar. If the sugar comes from 10 chocolate bars or 20 apples it is still excessive. You may not have a medical reason to worry about it now but if you continue to eat it in excess you will develop one.

    Is there no common sense in the world anymore.
    20 apples would bring many of us close to, if not over our calorie limit for the day.
    Use the recommend servings per day and you will be just fine for people with no issues with sugar re: their health.
    Sheesh

    Thank you.
  • mostein
    mostein Posts: 200 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.

    And the guys told you that it's pretty much impossible to get excess sugar if you're restricting calories and even have the slightest idea of what a healthy diet looks like.

    A "healthy individual" as one person mentioned doesn't necessarily mean someone that is following a healthy diet.
  • mostein
    mostein Posts: 200 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.

    And the guys told you that it's pretty much impossible to get excess sugar if you're restricting caloriesand even have the slightest idea of what a healthy diet looks like.
    The problem though is that a lot of people aren't eating a healthy diet to begin with, and in a lot of those cases their sugar consumption is excessive. I believe that's what she's referring to.

    Thank you :)
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.

    And the guys told you that it's pretty much impossible to get excess sugar if you're restricting caloriesand even have the slightest idea of what a healthy diet looks like.
    The problem though is that a lot of people aren't eating a healthy diet to begin with, and in a lot of those cases their sugar consumption is excessive. I believe that's what she's referring to.

    Are you implying the OP has an unhealthy diet? Because there's absolutely NOTHING to imply she does or is eating excessive amounts of sugar.
  • mostein
    mostein Posts: 200 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.

    And the guys told you that it's pretty much impossible to get excess sugar if you're restricting caloriesand even have the slightest idea of what a healthy diet looks like.
    The problem though is that a lot of people aren't eating a healthy diet to begin with, and in a lot of those cases their sugar consumption is excessive. I believe that's what she's referring to.

    Are you implying the OP has an unhealthy diet? Because there's absolutely NOTHING to imply she does or is eating excessive amounts of sugar.

    No I'm not. My original comment wasn't really about the OP post it was about whether or not you should track sugar. Lots of people aren't aware of the amount of sugar that is in thing's like fruit. My point was just that sugar is sugar no matter the source.
  • flotsette
    flotsette Posts: 10 Member
    Sugar is a health issue for everyone. It's just not well known.

    Sugar from unrefined sources like fruit is processed very differently in real life than added sugar. That's because nobody eats 20 apples. But it's easy to eat the equivalent in baked goods or candy.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,008 Member
    I personally do not track sugar, I track fiber...
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    What would be classed as excessive sugar consumption? I'm thinking anything over 80g a day..
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    mostein wrote: »
    Come on you guys, 10 chocolate bars and 20 apples were obviously extreme examples just meant to show that too much sugar both in "natural" and "unnatural" forms can be harmful.


    Too much of anything is extreme. Fact is, your body needs sugar and it occurs naturally in a lot of food. All things in moderation, portion control and balance will work for most people.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 6,008 Member
    What would be classed as excessive sugar consumption? I'm thinking anything over 80g a day..

    So far for today I am at 103grams of sugar and my fiber is at 42grams. I am not concerned...
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
    J72FIT wrote: »
    What would be classed as excessive sugar consumption? I'm thinking anything over 80g a day..

    So far for today I am at 103grams of sugar and my fiber is at 42grams. I am not concerned...

    That was just a top of my head number. I just went back and had a look at my numbers, and i average between 25-60 a day. I don't consciously limit sugar, but I'm sure i could double those numbers if I ate a ton of fruit.
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