Too much sugar. Should I worry?

ashleydeeann
ashleydeeann Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys! This is my first time writing on here. Hope I went to the right place. :)

I am in my early twenties, weigh 140lbs and am about 5'8.

Anyways, I read that as a woman I am suppose to eat 2 cups of fruit daily. So that's what I have been trying to do as well as eat plenty of greens. I want to stay healthy, have more energy, be full & of course lose weight.

So I just started making a green smoothie with one or two pieces of fruit, add a couple hand fulls of spinach & little bit of root ginger (sometimes other veggies like some celery or cucumber) and that's my breakfast. I set my calorie intake to 1,200 a day. I try to stay under my calorie intake but by after lunch or dinner my sugar intake is already over the daily goal that was automatically set to 24 (hope that made sense). Is that okay, or will I gain weight if I go a little over? Usually, whenever I add red peppers and tomatoes to my salad at lunch time that's when I notice that I start to go over my sugar goal. Should I worry? What goal for sugar do you recommend?

Replies

  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
    The goal is based on added sugar recommendations, but it doesn't differentiate.

    At some point I hope they stop automatically setting that goal for people. It's confusing and meaningless.

    If you have a medical reason to track sugar, then you should set your own goal.
  • whiteshorts2013
    whiteshorts2013 Posts: 9
    If your sugar is coming from fresh fruits, I wouldn't worry too much. "I've never heard of anyone gaining weight from eating too much fruit." - not sure where I heard it but it stuck with me because I used to worry about that too.
  • Pearsquared
    Pearsquared Posts: 1,656 Member
    The limit MFP sets for sugar is the FDA recommended maximum for added sugar only - there's no dictated limit for naturally occurring sugar (like in fruit). MFP counts them the same, however, so it's extremely common for people to go over - so common that you may find others express exasperation at having to explain it. If you have no current blood sugar problems, it is perfectly fine to ignore that limit.
  • ucabucca
    ucabucca Posts: 606 Member
    I am always over and was concerned but my Nutricianist had not said anything and i asked and her response was not to worry if it was natural sugars and MFP was not seperating this out. The only reason to watch would be if I was diabetic. I am doing good and fruit has so many other benifits I now ignore it on MFP completely. MD also agreed with this.
  • BajaDreamin333
    BajaDreamin333 Posts: 267 Member
    I may be naive, but I don't really count natural sugar. I'm not diabetic, and fruit, although high in sugar, is natural. When I look at my own sugar intake, I look at refined and processed sugars. It can hide in all sorts of processed foods (ketchup, salsa, soups - the list is LONG) and is as sneaky as sodium.

    I have redisovered fruit, and love it. Especially in the summer when it is straight from the farm. If a peach and a banana in my smoothie first thing sends me over, I kind of stop looking at that number. Again, I may be putting my head in the sand, but my rule is: "If it has a stem, seed, pit or skin and no face -- it's ok to eat it!"

    Fresh produce is one of the secrets to good health, beautiful skin/hair and a happy digestive system. Skip the processed granola bar and have an apple. And a peach. And some grapes :)
  • ritchiedrama
    ritchiedrama Posts: 1,304 Member
    Consume as much sugar as you want if you have no medical issues & are in a caloric deficit.

    Yes, this includes all sugars. Fruit or "Processed" sugars.
  • jennagoogles13
    jennagoogles13 Posts: 266
    I set my calorie intake to 1,200 a day. I try to stay under my calorie intake
    1200 is not a lot to start with, especially for your height and weight, so you should be hitting that as a minimum. 1200 is the goal, your goal isn't to come under that amount.
  • james6998
    james6998 Posts: 743 Member
    So where does honey come into all of this?
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
    If your sugar is coming from fresh fruits, I wouldn't worry too much. "I've never heard of anyone gaining weight from eating too much fruit." - not sure where I heard it but it stuck with me because I used to worry about that too.

    I've seen plenty of people gain weight by eating too much fruit, namely people on weight watchers. Fruit has calories just like everything else, so as long as you're not exceeding your calorie goal, eat all the fruit you want.
  • ashleydeeann
    ashleydeeann Posts: 3 Member
    Thanks everyone for the advice! (:

    Btw, I could use more friends to encourage me to stay in shape on MFP, so please feel free to add me on here if you wish. :)

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