Sugar and new label question?

MelaniaTrump
MelaniaTrump Posts: 2,694 Member
edited May 2016 in Food and Nutrition
A person that is on 2,000 calorie diet can have 60 grams of sugar?
For some reason, I think my math is wrong.
http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceRegulation/GuidanceDocumentsRegulatoryInformation/LabelingNutrition/ucm385663.htm
Scroll down to see the new label.

I am so confused over this it's not even funny.
Is that 60 grams added sugar or total sugars.
I would like to watch my added sugars.

In the example: 12 grams of sugar
Includes 10 grams of added sugars
20%
So is 20% of daily value from the added sugars or or total sugars?
So that 60 grams a person on a 2,000 calorie diet is total sugars, right? Or added sugar?

I wish it would have been clearer - I don't need percentages.
Just 12 grams of sugar
10 grams of added sugar.
Perhaps it's the word includes that is fouling me up.
Maybe it's just 2 grams of natural sugar.

Replies

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited May 2016
    The current limit recommended for added sugar is no more than 10% of total calories. That's 50 g if one is at 2000 calories, which is what the example label indicates.
  • Nikion901
    Nikion901 Posts: 2,467 Member
    edited May 2016
    It doesn't say you SHOULD eat that much sugar ... it says do not eat more than 10% ... or 200 calories on a 2000 calorie diet ... which is actually 12.5 teaspoons of sugar. That said, it is too much sugar from a health perspective in ADDED sugar. A teaspoon of sugar has 4 grams of sugar in it ... that means that a teaspoon of sugar has 16 calories (4 grams * 4 calories per gram as with all carbohydrates) ... and yes, the more healthy approach to added sugar is to no more than 6 teaspoons added sugar for a woman, half that for a child, more than that for a man.

    Total sugar in a product, from natural as well as added sources and the amount of added sugar on a food label is a big step in the right direction. In your example, yes ... if Total sugar is 12 grams and added sugar is 10 grams, then naturally occurring sugar in the product is 2 grams.

    On MFP, if you ever looked on the guideline for sugar, it currently uses 60 grams as the total sugar guideline. Somehow i seem to recall that it was 50 grams total sugar before the new guildelines came out.

    :blush: I have an oatmeal muffin recipe that uses 1- 2/3 cup of brown sugar in the recipe to make 12 muffins ... that comes out to 6 -2/3 teaspoons of sugar per muffin ... more than a woman should have of added sugar in an entire day!

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited May 2016
    Nikion901 wrote: »
    On MFP, if you ever looked on the guideline for sugar, it uses 60 grams as the total sugar guideline.

    Nope. It uses 15%. How much that is depends on total calories. It's only 4 g at 1200, and 75 g at 2000.
  • OyGeeBiv
    OyGeeBiv Posts: 733 Member
    15% of 1200 is 180
    15% of 2000 is 300
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    [

    Nope. It uses 15%. How much that is depends on total calories. It's only 4 g at 1200, and 75 g at 2000.

  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,959 Member
    64crayons wrote: »
    15% of 1200 is 180
    15% of 2000 is 300
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    [

    Nope. It uses 15%. How much that is depends on total calories. It's only 4 g at 1200, and 75 g at 2000.

    That's calories. You have to divide by 4 to get the recommended limit on of grams of sugar.

    0.15 (1200)/4 = 45
    0.15 (2000)/4 = 75
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    HarperWinterberry wrote: »
    Gosh, that's sure high.

    It includes all sugar, since until the new labels are introduced there's no easy way to separate.

    I find it possible to hit 45 g with just vegetables, so I don't consider it high.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,388 MFP Moderator
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    HarperWinterberry wrote: »
    Gosh, that's sure high.

    It includes all sugar, since until the new labels are introduced there's no easy way to separate.

    I find it possible to hit 45 g with just vegetables, so I don't consider it high.

    Of the 120g of sugar I eat a day, probably 90% of that is from fruits, veggies and dairy. So not that high IMO.

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