SUGAR

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I had a conversation with a friend last night about how skim/nonfat milk has more sugar than regular or 2% milk. I shrugged and said I didn't really count that kind of sugar, but it has got me thinking.
I went and looked at my food log and saw that I am over my sugar allotment of 29 grams everyday. I don't eat refined sugar, but eat a lot of fruit and other whole foods. So my question is is this type of sugar bad. Do I need to cut it down? Switch to 2% milk to save a few grams here and there?
Where does the sugar from fruit and food fit into a healthy diet.

Replies

  • StarryEyedGirl
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    I am right there with you! sugar is hidden everywhere!!! i have already gone over my sugar, actually since breakfast I did!!!

    I do know this Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk has no sugar! and very low in calories!! try it its good!!! even the original Almond milk has only 7g of sugar and still lower in calories then cow's milk.
  • csingleton24
    csingleton24 Posts: 235 Member
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    I'm the same way! I hardly ever have refined sugar, but when 1 banana is bringing in 12 grams of sugar, I'm way over my count by the end of the day too! I eat fruit all the time. I'd be interested to see what others have to say. Good question!
  • yojibalinese
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    What most people will tell you is that MFP gives you a pretty small allotment of sugar. I usually will subtract half of the sugars that come from fruits...but I think most people completely disregard them because they are not packaged, processed sugars.
  • sophieshaped
    sophieshaped Posts: 228 Member
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    Yeah I pretty much ignore my sugar from fruit as my dietician friend said to ignore it as the goodness you get from fruit outweighs the bad.

    However she's not coming from a mfp point of view! So basically I only eat max 2 pieces a day so it keeps it down!
  • rnroadrunner
    rnroadrunner Posts: 402 Member
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    never be concerned about natural sugars in fruit unless your a diabetic. it is the refined sugars found as additives that is empty calories. About the sugars in skin milk vs lowfat they are added in to make the nonfat more palatable. imho it is better to have some fat grams and not added sugar in milk. mens health posted a story about the fat found in milk was actually "heart healthy' go figure. hope this helped.
  • sunshine79
    sunshine79 Posts: 758 Member
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    Refined sugar, is the one to watch out for. As a rule I've been advised to stay away from all white foods (& sugar substitutes). I think we're advised to watch our sugar in take beacuse even natural sugar in fruits can cause increased insulin levels which can lead to weight gain (in a nutshell) but this is only a concern if you consume masses of fruit.

    I personally am only majorly concerned if the majority of my sugar is coming from processed foods, I don't worry about the fruit sugars too much (within reason)

    For all the 'professionals' out there. I do not profess to be an expert, just sharing what I've learned along my journey
  • 1Steph1
    1Steph1 Posts: 145
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    I read that the benefits of fruit outweigh its high sugar content. There is a daily recommendation for fruit so I would stick to that. I would worry more about refined sugars, at least fruit is natural sugar :) Have you tried any milk substitutes maybe? Im lactose intolerant so I cant really help you there, i use soy milk, but Im not a milk drinker so I only use it for cereal and stuff like that :)
  • bluehorsesjp
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    ok, so I had to do a bit of research because this was going to make me crazy.

    this is what I found.

    "If you eat 300 grams of carbohydrate each day, then up to 30 grams could come from sugars. However, the new food label lumps all sugars together including milk (lactose) and fruit sugar (fructose) along with table sugar (sucrose). For instance one serving of fruit canned in fruit juice has 14 grams of sugar and 1 cup of skim milk has 12 grams of sugar. Yet neither of these foods has sugar "added" to them. Unfortunately, the new food label lumps all sugars (disaccharides) together and doesn't make it easier for consumers to identify sources of "added" sugar.
    Carbohydrates, including sugars, are your body's main source of energy. There are two forms of sugar in the food we eat. There are naturally occurring sugars in fruits and dairy products and there are added sugars (white, brown or powdered sugar
    as well as corn syrup solids) in many processed foods."

    SO I am assuming that MFP doesn't differentiate between fructose and sucrose either which is why my numbers are always over.
    I also checked the milk at the grocery store nonfat-whole milk all have 12grams of sugar that is not added, but as is stated above is lactose. So that would be a lower glycamic index maybe, I know fructose is.
    I don't drink milk, but do on occasion use it in my coffee so this is good to know.
    The silk Almond milk I use does have evaporated cane juice re SUGAR and 15 grams of it, so that is probably worse than mixing my shakeology with milk.

    Thought it was interesting so I thought I would share
  • Laceylala
    Laceylala Posts: 3,094 Member
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    I am right there with you! sugar is hidden everywhere!!! i have already gone over my sugar, actually since breakfast I did!!!

    I do know this Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk has no sugar! and very low in calories!! try it its good!!! even the original Almond milk has only 7g of sugar and still lower in calories then cow's milk.

    LOVE LOVE Almond milk for the flavor. What I don't love is the fact that it has little to no protein. How is that?? It is made from a freaking NUT after all!
  • browneyesbb89
    browneyesbb89 Posts: 141 Member
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    Check out this article. I was always going over on my sugars just from eating fruit. I thought fruit was good for you? Well it is. I have now turned to keeping my carbs in check instead of stressing over my sugars. I try not to eat to many processes treats. Try is the key word. It has been difficult for me though. Anyway check out this article.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/74098-tracking-sugar
  • StarryEyedGirl
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    I am right there with you! sugar is hidden everywhere!!! i have already gone over my sugar, actually since breakfast I did!!!

    I do know this Almond Breeze unsweetened almond milk has no sugar! and very low in calories!! try it its good!!! even the original Almond milk has only 7g of sugar and still lower in calories then cow's milk.

    LOVE LOVE Almond milk for the flavor. What I don't love is the fact that it has little to no protein. How is that?? It is made from a freaking NUT after all!

    that is a great point I never thought of that... why doesn't it have protein???
  • leanlindajean
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    The Unsweetened Chocolate Almond Milk has 2 grams of Protein (not much but better than "NUTTIN'") haha! And.... SOOO DELISH... NO SUGAR and only 45 calories for a cup! YUUUUMMMMM!!!