Sugar

ruggierokj
ruggierokj Posts: 5 Member
edited September 20 in Health and Weight Loss
To date, I have been monitoring calories, carbs, fat, protein, fiber, and sodium. My levels in each of those categories have been very good. For kicks, today I changed the settings in my food diary to see what my sugar levels have been. I was very surprised to see that, despite having made good progress over these past 3 weeks, I have obliterated all of my pre-assigned sugar targets. I do so daily, and it is not uncommon for me to double the sugar targets in a given day. Much of this is due to sugar in cereals (even relatively healthy Kashi cereals) and fruits.

My question is, how does sugar rank in importance against these other categories--carbs, fat, protein, fiber, and sodium. My (very basic) understanding is that healthy sugars are fine, even if you're consistently going over in target, especially if you are exercising so that those sugars are more readily converted into energy than stored as fat. Is my thinking right here, or is it much more complicated than that? It's hard for me to imagine that having 2-3 servings of fruit per day is in any way problematic in a weight-loss plan.

Many thanks.

Replies

  • sharibrat
    sharibrat Posts: 39 Member
    Good question. I have noticed the same thing. I am practically at my daily sugar just with my cereal (even healthy ones) and my coffee creamer (which I am SLOWLY cutting back on).
  • MirandaJayne
    MirandaJayne Posts: 600 Member
    Holy Poop! I just did the same thing. I too am way over my daily allowance for sugars, but staying within range in my other categories. Hmm... Be interesting to see what the answer is to the importance of being over/under/on par with your sugar levels.
  • jeevans
    jeevans Posts: 4
    Wow, I just did the same thing and my sugar numbers are over, too. I can't believe, nor think that eating fruit is going to be bad in the long run. I know that fruit has natural sugars, but in my opinion, it's better to eat fruit than to eat other foods that have lots of (high) fructose corn syrup. I've been keeping a close eye on labels and have been trying to make sure that I'm not eating fruits that are in a bag, as those tend to have lots of hfcs.
  • MirandaJayne
    MirandaJayne Posts: 600 Member
    Yeah funny with fruit. It is my afternoon gala apple that is putting me over my sugars tipping the sugar scale with a rating of 16. Oh well, I'm going to monitor it, no doubt its prob the fruit I eat that is putting me over, and really if that is all I'm not going to make any changes.
  • lt_mrcook
    lt_mrcook Posts: 389 Member
    Ignore sugar if it is coming from fruits, veggies, etc. If it is as an ingredient on a package or in a recipe, then it's more of an issue. Refined sugar isn't good, but natural sugars are ok. You should be aiming to get more of your carbs from complex sources, but sugar includes so many things. Fructose, sucrose, glucose, lactose, etc are all sugars. Your body eventually converts every carb you eat to glucose so you can use it. How easily it is converted is the main issue. If you are using the sugar/carb for instant energy (during a race or workout) then the easier it is converted to glucose the better. If you are trying to stave off hunger and keep a more even blood sugar level, then you want things that take longer to break down. Call or e-mail if you want to know more.
  • ruggierokj
    ruggierokj Posts: 5 Member
    very helpful Matt, you are full of information!
  • lt_mrcook
    lt_mrcook Posts: 389 Member
    Knowledge ain't the problem...it's the practical application portion of the test I always fail...:P
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