45g of sugar too high?

Options
bsbprincess
bsbprincess Posts: 161 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I was setting up my diary and goals, and noticed that even though my calorie intake goal is only 1200 daily, my sugar allowance is 45g. Isn't that high? I did some googling and found numerous sites that said your daily allowance should be 20g for women, based on a 2000 cal diet.

I tried to find answers about this on here but only found pages of people saying they go OVER all the time if they eat fruit. I'm lost. Any input is appreciated! :) I really want to be healthy on top of losing weight.

Thanks all!!
«13

Replies

  • lizkharvey
    lizkharvey Posts: 65 Member
    Options
    Good question. Interested on answers for this as well. My sugar intake is always too high :(
  • bsbprincess
    bsbprincess Posts: 161 Member
    Options
    It started because my Aunt was asking what the sugar max was on MFP, when I told her 45 her jaw dropped. She thought it was way too high for anyone trying to be healthy so I did some research. Really hope someone here can shed some light on this for us.
  • Blueseraphchaos
    Blueseraphchaos Posts: 843 Member
    Options
    I don't have any medical issues, so i just don't track sugar, lol. If you have medical issues, you should see your doctor for guidance on setting a goal (diabetic, insulin resistant, etc). Without a medical condition, you can eat what you want as long as you're under your calorie goal and still lose weight. For the best nutrition, it's better to make the majority of your diet fruits, veggies, lean proteins, healthy fats, and whole grains, since those will typically give you the best nutrition and also prevent extreme hunger. But you can still eat whatever you want in moderation; learning portion control of high-calorie, low-nutrient foods helps prevent you from feeling deprived.

    Of course, as i said before though, if you have a medical condition requiring you to limit sugar, it's best to see a doctor.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    Options
    Depends on your goals. Some people will do well on that, others eat more and others eat less. If you have insulin resistance it could be a bit high. If not, you may be fine.
  • MelaniaTrump
    MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
    edited January 2016
    Options
    That 20 grams is for added sugars in processed foods.
  • Blueseraphchaos
    Blueseraphchaos Posts: 843 Member
    Options
    Also, mfp doesn't differentiate between added sugars and naturally occurring ones, while many recommendations are to limit added sugar. That could be the disparity you see. I won't even get into the discussion of whether or not added sugar is different from sugar in fruits; just throwing a possibility out there for the disparity in recommendations.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    Options
    MFP's sugar recommendation does not differentiate between added and natural sugars, which is why people will go over with just a few pieces of fruit. The 20g recommendations are for added sugars, so in order to make sure to stay within that, you would have to check labels against your MFP numbers.

    If you don't have a medical reason to track sugar, I wouldn't worry about that number. Many people don't even track sugar, they swap it out for fiber instead.
  • bsbprincess
    bsbprincess Posts: 161 Member
    Options
    Thanks so much, all!! I don't have any health issues, but my Grandpa had diabetes so it's in the back of my mind for if I don't get my butt in gear soon (I'm 29 now). I think that's a good point, unless I pack in fruit all day, I can't imagine getting an unhealthy amount if I eat natural things such as that.

    Thanks Blues... that didn't even occur to me. That maybe they're not talking about grams in natural stuff like that.
  • bsbprincess
    bsbprincess Posts: 161 Member
    Options
    kgeyser wrote: »
    MFP's sugar recommendation does not differentiate between added and natural sugars, which is why people will go over with just a few pieces of fruit. The 20g recommendations are for added sugars, so in order to make sure to stay within that, you would have to check labels against your MFP numbers.

    If you don't have a medical reason to track sugar, I wouldn't worry about that number. Many people don't even track sugar, they swap it out for fiber instead.

    Thank you!!! Really appreciate all the input.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    Options
    kgeyser wrote: »
    MFP's sugar recommendation does not differentiate between added and natural sugars, which is why people will go over with just a few pieces of fruit. The 20g recommendations are for added sugars, so in order to make sure to stay within that, you would have to check labels against your MFP numbers.

    If you don't have a medical reason to track sugar, I wouldn't worry about that number. Many people don't even track sugar, they swap it out for fiber instead.

    This

    I have no idea what my sugar has been over my weight loss and maintenance but know my fibre

  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Options
    bsbprincess wrote: »
    I was setting up my diary and goals, and noticed that even though my calorie intake goal is only 1200 daily, my sugar allowance is 45g. Isn't that high? I did some googling and found numerous sites that said your daily allowance should be 20g for women, based on a 2000 cal diet.
    Thanks all!!

    You're comparing apples and oranges, no pun intended. MFP's goal is for total sugars from all sources and is 15% of calories, the other numbers you quote are for added sugar.

    The prevailing attitude of many on here to sugar intake is head-in-sand.jpg
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    edited January 2016
    Options
    yarwell wrote: »
    bsbprincess wrote: »
    I was setting up my diary and goals, and noticed that even though my calorie intake goal is only 1200 daily, my sugar allowance is 45g. Isn't that high? I did some googling and found numerous sites that said your daily allowance should be 20g for women, based on a 2000 cal diet.
    Thanks all!!

    You're comparing apples and oranges, no pun intended. MFP's goal is for total sugars from all sources and is 15% of calories, the other numbers you quote are for added sugar.

    The prevailing attitude of many on here to sugar intake is head-in-sand.jpg

    The prevailing attitude of many on here to sugar intake is ..hit your calorie goal across the week, meet your nutritional requirements and your sugar intake will be appropriate to health providing you do not have a medical condition where you need to track sugars

    I know where some people's heads are in relation to this and it isn't in the sand
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
    Options
    Yes - set to 30. :)
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
    Options
    I also tracked fibre instead of sugar, and it worked well for me.
  • hamlet1222
    hamlet1222 Posts: 459 Member
    Options
    I suspect most vegans consume way more than 45g of sugar a day, and I've never seen a fat vegan.

    Given your family history though I would get your fasting blood glucose level tested.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,701 Member
    Options
    45 grams of sugar is 180 calories. Most people could burn this off by walking moderately for about 45 minutes.
    Total calories overall at the end of the day matter most. Of course if you want your health better, also ensure your macro/micro nutrients are in line with your goals. But let's say that goal is 1200 on a 40/30/30 ratio. That's still 480 calories allowed for carbs and that 180 fits in easily.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
    Options
    hamlet1222 wrote: »
    I suspect most vegans consume way more than 45g of sugar a day, and I've never seen a fat vegan.

    Given your family history though I would get your fasting blood glucose level tested.

    Really? There are a lot of fat vegans like there are a lot of fat meat eaters.

    Back on topic though. I don't ever track my sugars, I swapped it out of my diary for fibre. Don't let that sugar target stop you eating your fruit and veggies. Good luck with your weight loss goals :)
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
    Options
    I'm with @blankiefinder . Get rid of the sugar tracking, and track fiber instead. Tracking fiber is much more useful and informative. There's sound science behind the recommendation of 25-30g fiber minimum daily, both in short- and long-term benefits @ninerbuff pointed out, rightly so, that worrying about macronutrient goals / micronutrient goals is also far more important.

    I got annoyed by the "you ate too much sugar" warnings from my bananas and apples so I put a ridiculously high target in manually (like, 200g). This has been wonderful for Christmas :wink:
  • star1407
    star1407 Posts: 588 Member
    Options
    Really glad I saw this, my little red alert always tells me I've had too much sugar. Didn't know I could switch it for fibre. Plus that's a good thing for me to monitor as I have ibs
  • umayster
    umayster Posts: 651 Member
    Options
    yarwell wrote: »
    bsbprincess wrote: »
    I was setting up my diary and goals, and noticed that even though my calorie intake goal is only 1200 daily, my sugar allowance is 45g. Isn't that high? I did some googling and found numerous sites that said your daily allowance should be 20g for women, based on a 2000 cal diet.
    Thanks all!!



    The prevailing attitude of many on here to sugar intake is head-in-sand.jpg



    How apropos

Categories