Sugar intake limits are impossible!!

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  • janimei
    janimei Posts: 105 Member
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    Millions of Americans are diabetic or prediabetic and don't know it because they haven't had a fasting glucose test.
    Undiagnosed Americans make their conditions worse by overdoing carbs/sugars. An acquaintance recently checked his blood sugar at a diabetic friend's home, as a lark, and found out he is diabetic--later confirmed by his doctor. So for some of the people commenting here, you may think that sugars/carbs don't matter but later find out that monitoring them would have been a good idea.
    Everyone who is dieting should undergo the basic lab tests, including blood glucose.
  • totalsham
    totalsham Posts: 217 Member
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    Millions of Americans are diabetic or prediabetic and don't know it because they haven't had a fasting glucose test.
    Undiagnosed Americans make their conditions worse by overdoing carbs/sugars. An acquaintance recently checked his blood sugar at a diabetic friend's home, as a lark, and found out he is diabetic--later confirmed by his doctor. So for some of the people commenting here, you may think that sugars/carbs don't matter but later find out that monitoring them would have been a good idea.
    Everyone who is dieting should undergo the basic lab tests, including blood glucose.

    lol @ fasting glucose test. Thats a joke right? so if i have 4 donuts and take a glucose test, does that make me diabetic? what if i dont eat for 18 hours and take exam... does that mean i dont have diabetes?

    2nd best exam is H1C. that tests for your what blood sugar is in the last 120 days. This at least shows a better snap shot of your real diet. But... even that test is dumb cause it comes way too late in id'ing your status.

    The best exam is testing for diabetes and pre-diabetes that gives you a shot at stopping it before it occurs is an insulin resistance exam.
  • genofreek
    genofreek Posts: 75
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    I took sugar off my list just because the limit MFP puts on me is discouraging as hell. Seeing numbers in the red day after day kills my motivation, and since I'm losing weight and inches at a steady pace and making pretty much all of my calorie/macro goals, I figure I'm doing okay. I'm capable of putting the candy away after a small handful and limiting myself when dessert comes to the table, so I figure that plus cutting sugar sodas out of my diet should make things a little more sane.
  • astronomicals
    astronomicals Posts: 1,537 Member
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    Carbs are bad so I dont eat carbs

    Fat makes you fat so I dont eat fat

    I was eating protein for a while but now I know its destroying my liver in such large quantities...

    now, I just dont eat anything, ever... I think its the healthiest option...


    sugar is the devil and supplements are the end all be all cure to everything
  • eeemaleefitz
    eeemaleefitz Posts: 3
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    Same! I eat a bowl of cereal and a garden salad and I'm already over my limit.
  • alsaxon
    alsaxon Posts: 124 Member
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    It's a good idea to not think a piece of fruit = a serving of fruit. For me 1/2 an apple, 1/2 a banana, 1/3 cup of berries and so on or I go by weight.
    That's pretty smart! Never thought of that.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    Carbs are bad so I dont eat carbs

    Fat makes you fat so I dont eat fat

    I was eating protein for a while but now I know its destroying my liver in such large quantities...

    now, I just dont eat anything, ever... I think its the healthiest option...


    sugar is the devil and supplements are the end all be all cure to everything

    and they all give you cancer too, don't forget that!
  • Sectility
    Sectility Posts: 37
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    Are the daily limits for sugar referring to added sugar only? I sure hope so, because after I eat one or two pieces of fruit and a plain yogurt, I'm already drastically over the limit. I am always over my limit. On a average day I take in about 50 to 60 grams, most of that being from natural sources. I wish they would change the wording to say added sugars if that's what it means, because seeing myself over that so-called daily limit is discouraging.

    Since I need my 100% Vitamin A and C, it's practically impossible doing that without fruit, which has a lot of sugar.
  • WVmom24
    WVmom24 Posts: 266 Member
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    Unless you have a health condition requiring you to watch your sugar intake, just don't pay attention to it. If you're eating healthy foods such as plain yogurt/fruits/vegetables, and you're not eating a bunch of processed sweets...you really have nothing to worry about. MFP's preset limits don't HAVE to govern your mind about how much sugar or other nutrients you should eat. Especially when those sugars are coming from healthy natural foods.
  • FeelinChastastic
    FeelinChastastic Posts: 78
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    Recommended sugar intake refers to ADDED sugar. Daily intake guidelines do not apply to certain foods such as fruits, which are natural forms of sugar. Natural sugars do not pose as much risk to your "diet". The AHA (American Heart Association) advises women to limit their sugar intake to 24-30g per day.

    I think we all have this problem. I do not count the fruit that I eat on a daily basis. And I also refuse to buy anything that that claims "added sugar". Aspartame is another very very bad sugar substitute! Stay away from that at all costs! I have completely given up soda (for over a year), sweetened tea, flavored water... It's water, unsweetened tea, and when I feel I need coffee, I take it black.

    Hope this helps! Feel free to add me! :)
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    Care to enlighten us on the differences between added and sugars from natural sources, take sucrose found in your sugar jar vs sucrose form an apple

    Studies at the University of Google have shown that when viewed under a microscope sugar molecules from fruit clearly have wings and a halo whereas sugar molecules from candy have horns and cloven feet.

    Moral of the story is that there's no point in the vast majority of people tracking sugar separately - if you stick to your calorie and macro targets you will be fine. Very sad if people avoid eating fruit (or dairy...) to meet a pointless sugar limit.
  • Tctr
    Tctr Posts: 24 Member
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    If you're in this to "simply" lose the weight and not to obtain the perfect "model" body type, guy or girl, just keep to the calorie limit and eat responsibly during the day.

    For most of us, once you start getting too strict with your intake this lifestyle change becomes the dreaded DIET instead. Once that happens, a large number of people stop following the program and revert back to their much worse eating habits.
  • MsPudding
    MsPudding Posts: 562 Member
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    Carbs are bad so I dont eat carbs

    Fat makes you fat so I dont eat fat

    I was eating protein for a while but now I know its destroying my liver in such large quantities...

    now, I just dont eat anything, ever... I think its the healthiest option...


    sugar is the devil and supplements are the end all be all cure to everything

    and they all give you cancer too, don't forget that!

    Not to mention Alzheimer's, IBS and fungal nail infections.
  • danielle_hester
    danielle_hester Posts: 7 Member
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    You can change what you track in the Settings...one pickle & my sodium is through the roof, which is depressing to me, so I changed it to track my fiber!:smile:
  • shannashannabobana
    shannashannabobana Posts: 625 Member
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    Since I need my 100% Vitamin A and C, it's practically impossible doing that without fruit
    Fruit is not the only food with nutrients!

    You can get VitaminA from: cod liver oil, liver, sweet potato (709 μg 79%), butter (684 μg 76%), kale (681 μg 76%), spinach (469 μg 52%), pumpkin (400 μg 41%), collard greens (333 μg 37%), Cheddar cheese (265 μg 29%), cantaloupe melon (169 μg 19%), egg (140 μg 16%), apricot (96 μg 11%), papaya (55 μg 6%), mango (38 μg 4%), pea (38 μg 4%), broccoli (31 μg 3%), milk (28 μg 3%), tomatoes

    Vitamin C from:
    broccoli, bell peppers, parsley, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, lemon juice, strawberries, mustard greens, kiwifruit, papaya, kale, cabbage, romaine lettuce, turnip greens, oranges, cantaloupe, summer squash, grapefruit, pineapple, chard, tomatoes, collard greens, raspberries, spinach, green beans, fennel, cranberries, asparagus, watermelon, and winter squash.
  • CraftyWeeWifey
    CraftyWeeWifey Posts: 17 Member
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    I recently saw a talk show where a dietician was a guest and he claimed that if you eat less than 3g of sugar daily, no matter what the rest of your diet/exercise for the day looks like, that you'll rapidly lose weight. I suppose there might be something to that since cutting out sugars would mean cutting out most unhealthy foods. He said that even eating fruit is bad in daily amounts.

    Hmm. I would actually suspect that for most people, cutting out ALL sugars would result in cutting out all favored snack foods, and therefore losing weight by default. But I'm calling BS on 'no matter what'. 1) I do not believe that I could eat hundreds if not thousands of calories over my TDEE and not gain just because I'm not eating sugar. I would love to see a study showing that that's possible, because almost all of my favored snack foods are low-sugar -- such as oil-popped popcorn, where I can easily put away 1200 calories in an hour if I'm not paying attention. 2) I have seen people who eat a raw vegan diet with huge proportions of calories coming from fruit. If this were true -- if you needed to cut sugar to lose weight -- they ought to be monstrously obese, but most of the ones I've met (it's popular at my college lately) were on the lean side.

    I went fructose free (as much as possible) mainly as an experiment to see if it would suit me and I have found it really interesting how I have majorly upped my fat consumption (have butter on everything, frying my meat, eating way more meat) and the weight is steadily coming off. Definitely some of it is not having the junk food, but i still have potato chips and non/low sugar junk food (and I'm sure my daily calorie intake isn't that much less than it was before) and as of today (nearly 3 months since starting) have lost 7kg. So its not speedy weight loss but its a little bit each week. I was just going to do it for 8 weeks but it seems to be working for me so I'll keep going.

    Have to say its the easiest way I've ever tried to lose weight.
  • Dragn77
    Dragn77 Posts: 810 Member
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    I replaced sugar with iron. The only "sweets" I eat is half a banana at breakfast and and apple for a snack, and the rest of my sugars come from the various other greens and such I eat during the day. And Im always over on my sugars. Not by much but still...

    so to me its pointless...Im not going to avoid eating fruit. I have however stopped drinking fruit juices...the cals in that add up fast, and its not as filling as eating an actual fresh fruit.

    But anyway, iron is more important to me than sugars because Im anemic, so I track that instead.
  • teamAmelia
    teamAmelia Posts: 1,247 Member
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    I just now noticed that. Right before seeing your post, I added Sugar to report and I have 2 grams left for the day! WTH? From eating 2 bananas today? That means I would have to have just protein and veggies for dinner. Which, I guess sounds like a good idea, but I was planning on a taco salady sort of thing. And God forbid I try to satisfy my sweet tooth by eating an orange tonight for dessert. Ugh. I am sorry I even looked now.

    Wow. You're doing good if you can satisfy your sweet tooth with an orange and not actual junk food. So jealous.
  • Lorijp
    Lorijp Posts: 47 Member
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    This is what has worked for me and I realize all of us are different on what works for them. I have only went over 30 grams of sugar daily very few times the past year. To be honest, I am mostly unde 10-15 daily. I have found that staying lower on this, I don't crave it. However I don't eat fruit daily but I do eat it. I try to do high protein and watch my carbs. Keeping my carbs from 30-80 normally but I do go over at times. I do my best to flucute my routine. For snack Ideas I eat Quest protein bars, Nature valley (great vallue) protein bars, sugar free blue bell bullet popsicles (these hae saved me many times lol), sugar free jello, celery and peanut butter, peanuts/almonds pre-packaged, apples/peanut butter pre-packaged in produce department. It's possible to keep your sugar intake low. One of my main goals was to stay away from sweets because that was my trigger point. Hope this helps!
  • ashleywilcox88
    ashleywilcox88 Posts: 1
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    I watch my sugar limits, but I always go over. I eat fruit for breakfast, like strawberries and blueberries, and occasionally yogurt, and it puts me over. So, as long as I don't go crazy with sugar, then I think it's ok.

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