Is ALL sugar bad?

sma83

Ok, so Ive been over on my sugar intake pretty much every day, BUT like 95% of it comes from fat free milk and fresh fruit. Very little of it comes from candy or other foods. What Im wondering is: Will this interfere with me losing weight? Should I cut back on my sugar even if its coming from fruits?

DeepBreaths

I had the exact same question!

mousepaws22

Most of my sugar comes from milk and fruits as well and I never used to worry about it, but now my trainer has changed my diet and I've cut dairy out and she's told me to cut right down on my fruit (only have apples and berries) so I guess it does make a difference.

jsapninz

No, as long as you stay under your calorie goal it won't interfere with you losing weight.

MFP is a little misleading because it counts all sugars towards your sugar goal, instead of ADDED sugars, which is what you are supposed to watch out for. Processed things that come in packaging = bad, fresh fruits = good


Sugar is just a carb, and unless you buy into the whole good carb/bad carb thing, it is nothing to be afraid of as long as you are eating healthy otherwise.

rml_16

Sugar is bad, mmmkay?

Acg67

Ok, so Ive been over on my sugar intake pretty much every day, BUT like 95% of it comes from fat free milk and fresh fruit. Very little of it comes from candy or other foods. What Im wondering is: Will this interfere with me losing weight? Should I cut back on my sugar even if its coming from fruits?

No, unless you have an insulin related metabolic disorder

Jacwhite22

yes. Sugar will make you fat.....don't eat any of it.















ok ......really.......no. Moderation is key.

yarwell

you can turn off sugar on your list of nutrients if it bugs you.

I don't actually know the rationale for the number that's set in MFP - maybe it's a USDA guideline or something.

The sugars from sources other than table sugar will all behave pretty well the same once you've eaten them.

ceejanerun

have wondered the same thing myself. I'd read that you should limit your fruit to 2 servings per day, but I've noticed that there's even sugar being counted from my favourites of baby carrots and snap peas. I can't help wondering though - if a person's diet consisted only of fruit, and they ate as much as they wanted all day long for months on end - would they get fat?!

Captain_Tightpants

You can go over on recommended sugar by eating fruit all day. That alone should tell you that tracking sugar is pretty much worthless. Imo track carbs instead - paying attention to where the sugar comes from. If it's packaged in fibrous fruits it's fine, if it's packaged in a processed candy bar, not so fine. I'm diabetic and even I don't bother tracking sugar.

UponThisRock

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/UponThisRock/view/sugar-219993

sma83

Ok, thanks y'all! I was really worried it was gonna effect weight loss, but I kept thinking...Its fresh fruit, it cant be bad for you! lol :flowerforyou:

thatguy010

Sugar offers no nutritional benefits so eliminate it

ChristineS_51

If you search the forum for sugar you will get lots of information / debate on this subject. I find that if I eat two pieces of fruit my sugar is over. Strawberries and kiwi fruit are about the lowest in sugars, so I try and have those if I have the choice.

I stopped having added sugars, and milk in my coffee, I now have black coffee no sugar, and like it. But sugar is in milk, bread, fruit, tomatoes etc so you can't really avoid it all together. A lot of people say only worry about added sugars, but to me sugar is sugar where ever it comes from - at leaat sugar in fruit comes with freshness, vitamins, fibre etc :-)

I keep tracking my sugar, I have manually adjusted it to a higher level, and reduced my carbs, and I try & avoid processed added sugars, but I do have things like maple syrup at times, which is very sweet and thin (ie runny, not sticky like honey), so it spreads better over pancakes etc :-)

It's all about balance, as you get used to this you will know what works for you.

"Everything in moderation, including moderation" someone said :laugh:

JenniLisette

Most of my sugar comes from milk and fruits as well and I never used to worry about it, but now my trainer has changed my diet and I've cut dairy out and she's told me to cut right down on my fruit (only have apples and berries) so I guess it does make a difference.

^^^^^ This...for sure! cut back on dairy and fruit.

AlyRoseNYC

It depends on your health issues and medical history. My grandpa has diabetes and can't tolerate much sugar =(

UpEarly

Sugar offers no nutritional benefits so eliminate it

But, a lot of food that contain fair amounts of sugar also contain lots of vitamins, minerals and fiber and are HEALTHY, wholesome, nutrient-dense foods.

Carrots, bell peppers, apples, sweet potatoes, beets, peas, corn, berries... these things all contain enough sugar to boost you pretty quickly over the (ridiculously low) MFP limit.

Personally, I don't watch my sugar at all. I watch my macros - carbs, fat, protein. That about does the trick for me. :-)

scottywor

Dont sweat it...

Stay away from refined sugar...

a couple fruits a day, n veggies isnt gonna bust your fat loss apart

karendsmith

I was told, if you are eating fruit, eat it early in the day so your body has time to work it off. Thats what I do and it seems to be ok.

korygilliam

Be careful about taking people's statements as truth. They mean well, but can be outdated information or just hearsay (they heard it from someone that didn't know what they were talking about). Even some of the data on the internet from 'valid sources' is over 5 years old.

There has been a lot of research on the different types of sugars, specifically for how they react in your body and cause releases of specific hormones.

Here is just the first article that I found. I recommend doing searches on the website for the journal of metabolism and endocrinology.
http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/89/6/2963.abstract?sid=d0e11a2f-0f30-42e9-a8a9-cb2d15c1f050

the Leptin/Ghrelin reaction is really interesting to read on, if you can keep it straight in your head

rml_16

Sugar offers no nutritional benefits so eliminate it

Yeah! Who wants to enjoy life???

Captain_Tightpants

Sugar offers no nutritional benefits so eliminate it

How exactly would you propose to do that?

Acg67

Be careful about taking people's statements as truth. They mean well, but can be outdated information or just hearsay (they heard it from someone that didn't know what they were talking about). Even some of the data on the internet from 'valid sources' is over 5 years old.

There has been a lot of research on the different types of sugars, specifically for how they react in your body and cause releases of specific hormones.

Here is just the first article that I found. I recommend doing searches on the website for the journal of metabolism and endocrinology.
http://jcem.endojournals.org/content/89/6/2963.abstract?sid=d0e11a2f-0f30-42e9-a8a9-cb2d15c1f050

the Leptin/Ghrelin reaction is really interesting to read on, if you can keep it straight in your head

with 30% of kilocalories as either a fructose-sweetened [high fructose (HFr)] or glucose-sweetened [high glucose (HGl)] beverage.

81Katz

The sugar in a banana - along with the many nutrients is far better than a sugary candy bar which offers little to none nutritional benefits. That's my take. As long as it's within your caloric goals, then eat fruits and veggies. I eat lots of fruits and veggies each day, most days far beyond the typical recommended serving(s) and I haven't gained weight from doing this. I haven't gained any weight since being on this site.

For example my breakfast this morning had 2 fruits, strawberries and blueberries.

My lunch will be a stir-fry consisting of peppers, red onions, carrots, asparagus and celery. Am I concerned about sugar(s)? Nope! I also plan to have MORE asparagus and peppers with my dinner tonight too.

chris1816

Ok, so Ive been over on my sugar intake pretty much every day, BUT like 95% of it comes from fat free milk and fresh fruit. Very little of it comes from candy or other foods. What Im wondering is: Will this interfere with me losing weight? Should I cut back on my sugar even if its coming from fruits?

No.

It astounds me how much fogginess there is out there on a lot of this stuff.

Sugars, starches, carbs etc are all chemically the same. Your body takes honey, or fruit, and breaks it down into base components the same way it takes a potato and breaks it down into the same base component. Your body needs sugars, most carbohydrates in some form break down into sugars.

Your body uses carbs for energy, it needs them for energy, this is called an anabolic process. If you deprive your body of carbs in an effort to go into ketosis, your body goes catabolic and starts metabolising fat or your own lean mass. Ketosis is popular for fat loss but it is skirting the line of causing serious kidney complications.

So things like fruit, while high in sugars, are not really bad at all. The difference is complex carbs versus simple carbs.

Complex carbs: sweet potatoes, quinoa, cracked wheat, fruit, raw honey

Simple carbs: enriched flours, processed candy, etc

The key guideline is not overdoing your calories...if you need to eat 2000 calories to lose weight, the composition of macro nutrients really does not matter too much. You will still lose. The benefit of complex carb foods is they are typically more filling and nutrient dense (strawberry versus a candy bar etc). Now if you eat 2000 calories of twinkies or chicken versus 2000 calories of balanced complex carbs, healthy fats and proteins, you will experience a whole other world of issues, but that is neither here nor there.

yarwell

is fruit sugar really a complex carb ? surely it's fructose and perhaps glucose too. Like HFCS soaked into a pulpy sponge.

chris1816

Yes, it is fructose, but what you consume with say...a strawberry, or a goji berry, is a slew of proteins, fiber, and other nutrients which change how you digest and process them.

For example, eat a *kitten* ton of strawberries, and the numerical equivalent of table sugar or HFCS in grams of sugar and your body reacts a whole lot differently. Strawberries for example have a whole slew of polyphenals which will prevent a spike in blood sugar levels that you would experience plowing through a sack of Imperial sugar.

chris1816

is fruit sugar really a complex carb ? surely it's fructose and perhaps glucose too. Like HFCS soaked into a pulpy sponge.

Also no, naturally occuring fructose =/= chemically engineered fructose from corn.

christenwypy

have wondered the same thing myself. I'd read that you should limit your fruit to 2 servings per day, but I've noticed that there's even sugar being counted from my favourites of baby carrots and snap peas. I can't help wondering though - if a person's diet consisted only of fruit, and they ate as much as they wanted all day long for months on end - would they get fat?!

I have wondered this as well!

christenwypy

Yes, it is fructose, but what you consume with say...a strawberry, or a goji berry, is a slew of proteins, fiber, and other nutrients which change how you digest and process them.

For example, eat a *kitten* ton of strawberries, and the numerical equivalent of table sugar or HFCS in grams of sugar and your body reacts a whole lot differently. Strawberries for example have a whole slew of polyphenals which will prevent a spike in blood sugar levels that you would experience plowing through a sack of Imperial sugar.

^^This! Thank you.

viser_haut

I've hidden my sugar intake value for this very reason - makes me feel guilty to see it in the red, I go 60g + over on sugar most days because of fruit and milk etc, and it's actually nothing to feel guilty about.