Sugar!
Medilia
Posts: 230 Member
It's everywhere. I am trying to cut down on it (not cut it out of course) but it is in everything. I did not realise how much was even in my yoghurt.
What advice do people have on further cutting down on sugar? Feel free to look at my diary (Please ignore the choc-top and kitkat from the cinema yesterday lol) I am not worried about things I know have sugar like chocolate but it's all that hidden sugar.
What advice do people have on further cutting down on sugar? Feel free to look at my diary (Please ignore the choc-top and kitkat from the cinema yesterday lol) I am not worried about things I know have sugar like chocolate but it's all that hidden sugar.
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Replies
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Read labels. That's my primary advice. And consider: what's from fruits/milk (naturally from (dairy), versus what's added to ketchup, soup, dressing, bread, etc. etc. Different stuff. The ADDED stuff? That stuff, I limit.
And ask MFP again to distinguish between fructose and the rest.
And prepare for everyone to say "it doesn't matter" or "it doesn't matter as long as it fits in YOUR macros" to which you reply: lots of added (key word) sugar doesn't.
Good luck!
ps: dairy has sugar. Lots of things naturally do. Read up on naturally occurring versus added sugars etc. PM me if you'd like more info.0 -
Always read the labels. If you've got the choice of a product with none, go for that product. Else go for the product with the lowest. IMHO the low sugar versions always taste better anyway. Be wary of "low fat" versions, often the low fat option has high sugar.0
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One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.-1 -
I dont know I am eating at a deficit and working out and I was not losing the weight. once I cut out the refined/processed sugars(not naturally occurring) I started losing the weight.I also cut out chips(havent had chips in over 3 weeks) I had 2 cookies yesterday after 3 weeks going without them,no soda at all and a few pieces of chocolate rarely in the last 3 weeks. I was watching my sugar intake as well also as I have since I started MFP. but like I said once I did that they started dropping and I feel better and even look better.99% of the time I avoid it.I have no reason to avoid sugar either.I just feel better without all that crap in my system. I can also control how much I eat of those types of things and dont get the cravings like I used to.0
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One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
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Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
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Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
that is fantastic. maybe you never ate that much sugar in the first place?0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
that is fantastic. maybe you never ate that much sugar in the first place?
Just looked it up, I averaged about 75-100 grams a day.
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Sugar makes me strong. I must be a snowflake though.0
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One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
You have to look at the ingredients listing, not just the nutrition label. The nutrition label does not distinguish between naturally occuring sugars and added sugars. The ingredients label will list sugar if it has been added but you have to know all of the names of the commonly used sugars like sucrose, dextrose, lactose, fructose, galactose, maltose, etc. (not to mention things like corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup).
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if sugar is a serious problem in your blood, or you are eating mugs of table sugar every day, then look into it. otherwise, don't worry about it. it's not as dire as most people think it is.-1
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Keep in mind that products marketed as "low fat" will ALWAYS be high in sugar - they have to add sugar in order to improve the flavor from the lack of fat. I'd bet your yogurt is low fat or fat free without looking at it. Avoid "low fat" products - buy the full fat versions and you'll see your sugar intake decrease. Fat does not make you fat, either.
Also... your body does not distinguish between natural and added sugars, so you still do need to watch your sugar intake from fruit. Any nutrients in fruit can be found in vegetables for a fraction of the sugar.0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
I never track my sugar either. I am T2 diabetic and my doctor (a certified diabetic educator) told me that tracking sugar is useless since blood sugar raises and lowers with total carb intake, not just sugar intake. My A1C is down to normal levels and I am off the meds after only 9 months since diagnosis.
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It's everywhere. I am trying to cut down on it (not cut it out of course) but it is in everything. I did not realise how much was even in my yoghurt.
What advice do people have on further cutting down on sugar? Feel free to look at my diary (Please ignore the choc-top and kitkat from the cinema yesterday lol) I am not worried about things I know have sugar like chocolate but it's all that hidden sugar.
Make as many things yourself as possible. Buy plain yogurt and add fruit or protein powder. Make your own salad dressings. Use canned tomatoes and make your own spaghetti sauce or better yet, do pasta primavera instead of sauced pasta. basically, the fewer convenience foods you use, the more control you will have over the ingredients.
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5. Cut back on refined carbs and sugary drinks. White bread, white rice, white pasta and potatoes cause fast and furious increases in blood sugar, as do sugary soft drinks, fruit punch, and fruit juice. Over time, eating lots of these refined carbohydrates and sugar may increase your risk of type 2 diabetes. To lower your risk—switch to whole grains and skip the sugar, especially the sugary drinks.
hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/type-2-diabetes/
Stirs the pot.
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Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
I am getting the impression based on your response that you didn't actually read my post. Right before the phrase you bolded, I say "Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar"; immediately after the phrase you bolded, I clearly say "it is not going to impact your weight loss." At no point did I say anything about tracking sugar for health. I was quite clearly talking about the role of tracking sugar in weight loss. The only reference I made to overall health was stating that weight loss often causes significant improvement in health markers in and of itself, which it does.
You'll also notice that I suggest incorporating as many whole foods as possible to cut back on sugar since the labels do not delineate between added and natural sugars. As earlnabby points out, you can identify added sugars on the ingredient list, however for tracking quantities of natural vs added sugars, nutrition labels don't really give one the information the OP seems to be trying to track.
Not sure who you are or why my post would draw such ire, but please leave me out of whatever perceived feud is going on between you and whatever group you have a bone of contention with on the forums.0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
that is fantastic. maybe you never ate that much sugar in the first place?
Just looked it up, I averaged about 75-100 grams a day.
Apparently that wasn't too much for your body. Good for you. Others aren't so lucky.0 -
^^ This.It's everywhere. I am trying to cut down on it (not cut it out of course) but it is in everything. I did not realise how much was even in my yoghurt.
What advice do people have on further cutting down on sugar? Feel free to look at my diary (Please ignore the choc-top and kitkat from the cinema yesterday lol) I am not worried about things I know have sugar like chocolate but it's all that hidden sugar.
Make as many things yourself as possible. Buy plain yogurt and add fruit or protein powder. Make your own salad dressings. Use canned tomatoes and make your own spaghetti sauce or better yet, do pasta primavera instead of sauced pasta. basically, the fewer convenience foods you use, the more control you will have over the ingredients.0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
maybe because if you are in a calorie deficit and eating sugar you will lose weight …
it' is more absurd to say that sugar is what is causing weight gain...0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »Dave198lbs wrote: »One thing you might want to consider is that food labels do not distinguish between natural and added sugars (neither does your body, but that's a separate discussion). If you're aiming to keep your added sugar under a certain number, you're going to have trouble doing that definitively with existing labels.
Which means that you're basically left with focusing on incorporating as many whole foods as possible into your diet to cut back on sugar. Nothing wrong with cutting back on sugar, but unless you have a medical reason to track sugar, it is not going to impact your weight loss, and just losing weight in and of itself often causes significant improvement in health markers.
ugghhhhh.........the magic catch phrase of MFP. A good and valid reason to track sugar is for overall health. To say you don't even need to track it is absurd. If you just ignore it then why even bother with any of this counting and tracking. All the IIFYM crowd actually do sort of track sugar if they track carbs, which of course they do. As others have said....read labels,,,,aim for whole fresh foods rather than packaged and boxed and heat and eat type foods. It is a learning process....good for you for starting it.
Never tracked my sugar intake. Lost 121 pounds, plus the fact my blood work came out awesome and I have reverse my heart issues!!
that is fantastic. maybe you never ate that much sugar in the first place?
Just looked it up, I averaged about 75-100 grams a day.
Apparently that wasn't too much for your body. Good for you. Others aren't so lucky.
"too much for your body.." < what does that even mean???? Others are not so lucky because they eat in a calorie surplus, sugar has nothing to do with it..unless we are talking about people with a medical condition ...-1 -
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Keep in mind that products marketed as "low fat" will ALWAYS be high in sugar - they have to add sugar in order to improve the flavor from the lack of fat. I'd bet your yogurt is low fat or fat free without looking at it. Avoid "low fat" products - buy the full fat versions and you'll see your sugar intake decrease. Fat does not make you fat, either.
Also... your body does not distinguish between natural and added sugars, so you still do need to watch your sugar intake from fruit. Any nutrients in fruit can be found in vegetables for a fraction of the sugar.
good post. I will never understand why so many are so quick to brag about all the sugar they eat. Sugar is not the devil but all the sugar that is added to so many foods (like the low and no fat versions of otherwise great food like greek yogurt) can easily be avoided by buying the full of good fat variety. Unfortunately, many stores sell mainly the no fat versions because people buy it more than the full fat versions.0 -
Are you trying to cut back on sugar to keep yourself in a calorie deficit! or for some other reason?
If you are cutting back for a calorie deficit, sugar is definitely the low hanging fruit (excuse the pun). There's not much wrong with sugar (in fact nothing wrong in moderation), but apart from offering some quick energy for the body it does or gives little else, so if you are going to cut it purely to keep under cals - well good choice!
If you are cutting back for medical reasons, well I would suggest the quick fix is to cut back on the things you definitely know have added sugar (try half a kit kat, or a kit kat and no choc top, whatever that is).
Other things you can do is to reduce your fruit intake (if you eat a lot that is) and increase you veg intake!
Anyway good luck OP!
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Keep in mind that products marketed as "low fat" will ALWAYS be high in sugar - they have to add sugar in order to improve the flavor from the lack of fat. I'd bet your yogurt is low fat or fat free without looking at it. Avoid "low fat" products - buy the full fat versions and you'll see your sugar intake decrease. Fat does not make you fat, either.
Also... your body does not distinguish between natural and added sugars, so you still do need to watch your sugar intake from fruit. Any nutrients in fruit can be found in vegetables for a fraction of the sugar.
Not true. Lots of low fat and fat free dairy is just dairy (read the ingredients) and tastes fine.
Dairy is always going to have sugar because lactose.
Nothing wrong with full fat dairy, which I eat too, but this claim that skim or low fat has sugar added is just not true, IME. Flavored yogurt will have either added sugar or sugar from fruit, or both. I've never seen skim milk or low fat cottage cheese with added sugar and plain Fage 0 percent doesn't have it but some brand of course may. Check your label.
Also, if one truly eats mostly whole foods and understands the packaged products one buys, it's hard to accidently eat sugar. (Not saying you must at all, but it's an easy way to address the issue.)
I also agree that sugar isn't that big a deal if you track calories and macros and micros. You might want to limit some things that have a lot (although not all, I never limit fruit and dairy) but probably not simply due to the sugar unless you have insulin problems or the like. I don't so this anti sugar thing seems over the top to me.0 -
Dave198lbs wrote: »Keep in mind that products marketed as "low fat" will ALWAYS be high in sugar - they have to add sugar in order to improve the flavor from the lack of fat. I'd bet your yogurt is low fat or fat free without looking at it. Avoid "low fat" products - buy the full fat versions and you'll see your sugar intake decrease. Fat does not make you fat, either.
Also... your body does not distinguish between natural and added sugars, so you still do need to watch your sugar intake from fruit. Any nutrients in fruit can be found in vegetables for a fraction of the sugar.
good post. I will never understand why so many are so quick to brag about all the sugar they eat. Sugar is not the devil but all the sugar that is added to so many foods (like the low and no fat versions of otherwise great food like greek yogurt) can easily be avoided by buying the full of good fat variety. Unfortunately, many stores sell mainly the no fat versions because people buy it more than the full fat versions.
You are wrong. Non and low fat yogurt only has added sweetener (either real or artificial) if they are flavored. Plain has nothing added. The label on my Roundy's (local brand) Non-fat Greek yogurt lists "Cultured, pasteurized skim milk. Contains 5 active live cultures including S. thermophilis, . bulgaricus, acidophilus, bifidus, and L. casei". 1 cup (227 g) has 9 g sugars which are the naturally occurring milk sugars.
Manufactured foods that are low fat versions of regular foods, like salad dressings, DO frequently have added sugar for flavor.
ETA: I am not anti sugar or anti fat. I need to cut my calories and have made choices as to where the cuts come from. One choice is to cut fat from my dairy so I can get more of it from different cuts of meat (instead of living on chicken and turkey) or full fat cheese and whole eggs. I choose to cut added sugar so I can have more fruit for my calorie allotment.
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Good reminder. Foods that are made low fat foods are usually pretty crappy "food" all the way around, but yes, they typically do have more sugar to replace the fat.Keep in mind that products marketed as "low fat" will ALWAYS be high in sugar - they have to add sugar in order to improve the flavor from the lack of fat. I'd bet your yogurt is low fat or fat free without looking at it. Avoid "low fat" products - buy the full fat versions and you'll see your sugar intake decrease. Fat does not make you fat, either.
Part of why, if limiting sugar is important to you, you need to read labels. Recently one of my favorite local tortillas swapped lard for high fructose corn syrup. Now they are my former favorite tortillas.0
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