Naturally Occurring Sugar- Is it bad for you?

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CaptainAnonymous
CaptainAnonymous Posts: 1
in Food and Nutrition
I just tracked my first day of meals. I was fine on protein, carbs, fat, and sodium, but supposedly I had too much sugar. The only significant sources of sugar in my diet are milk and fruit. Since these are naturally occurring, is it okay to go over the suggested limit?

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  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    Sugar, refined or natural, are just carbs. If you are tracking carbs, there is no need to track sugar separately. Switch it to fiber instead.

    That is assuming there is no medical condition for you to need to track sugar.
  • parkscs
    parkscs Posts: 1,639 Member
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    I just tracked my first day of meals. I was fine on protein, carbs, fat, and sodium, but supposedly I had too much sugar. The only significant sources of sugar in my diet are milk and fruit. Since these are naturally occurring, is it okay to go over the suggested limit?

    That depends on what the suggested limit is and how much you're going over. Sugar, and even the dreaded fructose, are fine in moderation and only problematic when consumed in excess. Agree entirely with hornsby's suggestion to track your fiber instead of sugar.
  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
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    Even the most anti-sugar doctors and nutritionists tend to give sugar from fruit (and the little bit that is in some veggies) a pass because it comes with fiber to slow absorption as well as all kinds of healthy nutrients. Fruit juice, syrup, and honey are different stories, though. Some doctors and nutritionists don't consider the sugar in milk an issue, either.

    After you eat it, does it make you lethargic, or ravenous, or feel bad in any way? If not and if you have no medical reason to avoid, I wouldn't stress it too much if I were you. Of course, I'm not a nutrition expert. You could always find one to ask I guess. But hell, if you ask two, you might get two different answers. Such is the current state of nutrition related medicine.
  • leahraskie
    leahraskie Posts: 260 Member
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    All sugars will eventually break down into the same thing, no matter their source. As long as you aren't diabetic or consuming too many calories with the sugar then you really don't need to worry.

    If you are interested in types and sources try these articles: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar
  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
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    Sugar, refined or natural, are just carbs. If you are tracking carbs, there is no need to track sugar separately. Switch it to fiber instead.

    That is assuming there is no medical condition for you to need to track sugar.

    ^This :D
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    As others have said, there is no reason to be concerned about sugar promotion providing that you have no medical reason to do so and you are not sacrificing other macronutrients in favor of sugar over a long period of time.
  • Glaziazisaur
    Glaziazisaur Posts: 30
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
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    Short answer: Yes
    Long answer: Yes
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    Check the label. It will say if it has fiber or not.

    And blood sugar spikes are fine in terms of weight loss. Though, could affect mood and energy levels.
  • Meerataila
    Meerataila Posts: 1,885 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    Check the label. It will say if it has fiber or not.

    And blood sugar spikes are fine in terms of weight loss. Though, could affect mood and energy levels.

    For some of us blood sugar spikes also screw with appetite, though. Cranky and hungry, always a fun time! :laugh:
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    Check the label. It will say if it has fiber or not.

    And blood sugar spikes are fine in terms of weight loss. Though, could affect mood and energy levels.

    For some of us blood sugar spikes also screw with appetite, though. Cranky and hungry, always a fun time! :laugh:

    I was too lazy to include that. :tongue:
  • parkscs
    parkscs Posts: 1,639 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    Check the label. It will say if it has fiber or not.

    And blood sugar spikes are fine in terms of weight loss. Though, could affect mood and energy levels.

    Weight loss is very straight forward and comes down to a caloric deficit, but what is "bad for you" is a much more general and complex question. Dismissing blood sugar spikes as "fine" when someone is asking about overall health is a bit off in my opinion.
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    Check the label. It will say if it has fiber or not.

    And blood sugar spikes are fine in terms of weight loss. Though, could affect mood and energy levels.

    Weight loss is very straight forward and comes down to a caloric deficit, but what is "bad for you" is a much more general and complex question. Dismissing blood sugar spikes as "fine" when someone is asking about overall health is a bit off in my opinion.

    Feel free to reread what I wrote. I said in terms of weight loss. And that it could affect mood and energy levels, both of which contribute to overall health.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    I have been wondering this too!
    Does the sugar in milk also come with fiber? I try not to think too much on my fruit sugars but I have milk in coffee (though recently I've been switching to black only) and was wondering if that could also lead to blood sugar spikes

    No fiber in milk, fiber doesn't attenuate blood sugar spikes in fruit anyway, but does reduce the insulin response and subsequent blood sugar crash.

    All sugars are of course natural http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1181259-so-what-s-with-this-sugar-then-revised-faq-jan-2014
  • Aikigoth
    Aikigoth Posts: 40 Member
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    Strictly speaking everything- from a blade of grass to a chemical that comes out of a lab is 'natural' as it wasn't made via the supernatural. Some of these things are man-made but again, you know...we are natural. It would be like calling a bird's nest not natural because a bird assembled it. But that's just the chemist in me screaming. :)

    Remember, fruit can be a whole food but it is often bred from a genetically selected line for increased sugar production. Likewise, milk can be natural. Raw milk and non-homogenized pasture milk tend to have more fat and protein than regular milk.

    1% milk has all the sugar of whole milk but little fat and slightly less protein. So its more junk food to me (more like whey protein vs actual meat). Blood sugar wise, whole milk is at 41 on the hypoglycemic index and skin is at 32.

    To me, its a question of good vs best. Sure, eating more veggies is probably better than having a piece of fruit. Can you live like that for the rest of your life?

    FWI I may try to murder the next person who says 'calories in, calories out'. If that was true, corn syrup wouldn't make mice fatter than the same caloric amount of sugar. The body is a complex machine that is not going to be simplified in 4 words.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    FWI I may try to murder the next person who says 'calories in, calories out'. If that was true, corn syrup wouldn't make mice fatter than the same caloric amount of sugar. The body is a complex machine that is not going to be simplified in 4 words.



    Can you post this study? I would like to read it. I know of one study by Princeton on rats, but that one didn't regulate the intake of regular food at all so it kinda negates the study.
  • imogen__may
    imogen__may Posts: 78 Member
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    Hornsby wrote: »
    Sugar, refined or natural, are just carbs. If you are tracking carbs, there is no need to track sugar separately. Switch it to fiber instead.

    That is assuming there is no medical condition for you to need to track sugar.

    Please excuse if this is terribly dim, but are you just suggesting that you track in order to always meet your finer goal, or are you suggesting going over fiver goal is more harmful? .. out of interest! Ta!

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