Afraid of natural sugars
E02L05
Posts: 9 Member
I love 1% milk and bananas but if I eat them I go way over my sugar goal for the day. Am I wrong to be avoiding them? Trying to lose 80 pounds so every little bit helps!
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Not wrong per say, but there really isn't any need to avoid them unless you have some sort of underlying medical condition that would forbid you from ingesting it.
Focus on the bigger picture and stay under on your calories whilst intaking a wide variety of nutrient dense foods.
No reason to avoid things you like unless you have control issues or allergy/health related issues.9 -
Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy1
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i have a friend who's afraid of bananas....11
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Sugar is sugar no matter what it's source is. For weight loss the only thing you need to worry about is calories. I look at the macro goals as minimums to be met. Going over them by a little is not a concern. Going over them by really huge margins might be a problem, moreso for some people than for others.7
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You can eat stuff with sugar (natural OR added) if you want. Make room in your calorie goal for things you enjoy. I still eat donuts, ice cream, cookies, etc and have lost more than 47 lbs this year.7
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Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
Why? What's wrong with refined sugar?4 -
Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
No need to avoid anything if you're not diabetic. Limit, sure. Avoid? Unnecessary.6 -
I love 1% milk and bananas but if I eat them I go way over my sugar goal for the day. Am I wrong to be avoiding them? Trying to lose 80 pounds so every little bit helps!
Either your sugar goal is really low (lower than MFP's 15% of calories) or you are eating a lot of bananas and milk (or using the wrong entries -- something to be careful about).
How much sugar you eat has nothing to do with weight loss, but if you aren't tracking in some other way watching added sugars and macros (making sure you get enough protein, healthy fats) is a good way to somewhat make sure your diet is nutrient-dense (and to reduce calories), which is why the WHO et al. recommend limiting ADDED sugar to below 10% of total calories. Milk and bananas don't have added sugar, of course, and I don't think milk or bananas are bad foods to be eating, at all (I feel like I should say of course here too), but if you are really going way over sugar it's not a bad thing to look at fiber, protein, fat, and glance over your overall diet to make sure you aren't getting in more sugar from other sources than you'd expect or maybe not having a balanced diet.
But mostly it doesn't matter, especially if the main goal at the moment is just losing 80 lbs and you aren't having a problem sticking with your calorie goal.1 -
Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
The only thing you need to avoid when it comes to weight loss is excess calories. There's no black magic that causes added sugar to make you fat.8 -
Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
I think the official hierarchy of irrational carbophobia is actually a step gradient, not a binary:
Plants -> very healthy, not scary
Plant juice -> fairly healthy, somewhat scary
Mechanically separated plant juice -> potential health threat, moderately scary
Dehydrated mechanically separated plant juice -> terrifying poison22 -
Nothing wrong with sugars, I don't ever pay attention to anythings past calories, hitting my protein, keeping my fats in line. In my opinion unless you have medical issues the rest is a waste.1
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No one should be afraid of food unless they have an allergy that is life threatening. Eat in moderation and stick to your calories allotment.1
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I ignore my sugar goal. Unless you have a medical reason there is no need to worry about sugars. You might want to limit sugar from sources that don't help you meet your nutritional goals. But you don't have to. If you can fit it in your calories and you ate meeting your nutrition goals then go for it. I lost all my weight without paying attention to sugar. I eat bananas frequently and put sugar in my coffee. I would never stress about sugar in fruit.1
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I love 1% milk and bananas but if I eat them I go way over my sugar goal for the day. Am I wrong to be avoiding them? Trying to lose 80 pounds so every little bit helps!
You should never be afraid of a food. Sugars will not make you gain weight... calories will. Just look around and you will see a lot of threads about people eating "clean" or low carb or paleo or whatever diet and gaining/maintaining. The common theme, calories are not controlled. Calorie determine energy balance. Energy balance determines weight loss/maintenance/gain.
And sugars can actually be helpful, especially when it comes to muscle recovery.3 -
Thanks everyone, I eat a lot of salad which also has natural sugars and that plus a glass of milk or putting a banana in a smoothie seems to bring up my sugar. Once I see that negative red number I feel like I screwed up.0
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The only thing I really worry about is excess sodium because it tends to cause my ankles to swell and I retain a lot of water for a day or two after it. The biggest thing with Sugar isn't diet related, but as a culture our taste buds have become dependent on sugar. Multiple studies (I can't confirm how reliable they were) out there show that if you cut out sugars for a while and then go back to eating high sugar foods, you become much more sensitive to how sweet they really were and therefore rely on less sugar for those same foods to taste good.
I know a lot of people once they cut drinking pop can't go back to drinking it and say it tastes way too sweet now.2 -
You don't need to avoid them unless you struggle to stay within your calorie goal if you injest them. What foods allow you to comfortably attain your calorie goal while getting the macro and micronutrients you need comes down to personal choice. Sugar can cause some people issues with having too many calories for not enough satiation but thats highly personal.
If I may ask I noticed you refer to "natural" sugars. What sugars are "unnatural"? To my knowledge all of the sugars in our foods are natural.4 -
shadowfax_c11 wrote: »Sugar is sugar no matter what it's source is. For weight loss the only thing you need to worry about is calories. I look at the macro goals as minimums to be met. Going over them by a little is not a concern. Going over them by really huge margins might be a problem, moreso for some people than for others.
Well if your trying to lose weight so you might as well try to eat healthy. When you say sugar is sugar it's a green light to eat a donut for breakfast instead of fruit (for argument sake they have the same calories and same sugar).
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Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
You may be the only person on this thread that's making any sense.
In 2018 the USDA will require food companies to provide the amount of added sugar on the label. I wonder why?1 -
Thanks everyone, I eat a lot of salad which also has natural sugars and that plus a glass of milk or putting a banana in a smoothie seems to bring up my sugar. Once I see that negative red number I feel like I screwed up.
You didn't screw up anything. The only reason to watch your sugar intake (unless you have a medical reason to do so) is if you're eating foods with lots of refined sugar that put you over your calorie goal or are taking the place of more nutritious foods. Sugar intake, on its own without context, is meaningless. Eating a Twinkie, if you have room in your day for it, is fine; eating 6 Twinkies instead of your veggies and proteins isn't a good idea if you make a habit of it. Bananas, salad and milk are all very nutritious foods and give you things like vitamins and fiber, which you need.
Lots of people here don't look at that sugar number and instead track things like sodium or iron. If you watch your total carbohydrates and keep a "common sense" eye on the amount of refined sugar you're taking in (and by that I mean maybe don't replace dinner with 6 Twinkies), you'll be fine.0 -
gonetothedogs19 wrote: »shadowfax_c11 wrote: »Sugar is sugar no matter what it's source is. For weight loss the only thing you need to worry about is calories. I look at the macro goals as minimums to be met. Going over them by a little is not a concern. Going over them by really huge margins might be a problem, moreso for some people than for others.
Well if your trying to lose weight so you might as well try to eat healthy. When you say sugar is sugar it's a green light to eat a donut for breakfast instead of fruit (for argument sake they have the same calories and same sugar).
I have no trouble staying satisfied eating a donut for breakfast. What's your beef?7 -
gonetothedogs19 wrote: »shadowfax_c11 wrote: »Sugar is sugar no matter what it's source is. For weight loss the only thing you need to worry about is calories. I look at the macro goals as minimums to be met. Going over them by a little is not a concern. Going over them by really huge margins might be a problem, moreso for some people than for others.
Well if your trying to lose weight so you might as well try to eat healthy. When you say sugar is sugar it's a green light to eat a donut for breakfast instead of fruit (for argument sake they have the same calories and same sugar).
No, not unless you don't understand nutrition.
Sugar is sugar, but a donut and fruit is [edit: are, argh!] different.
And I have a green light to eat a donut for breakfast in that I know I can if I want, and even can without blowing my calorie budget should I so choose. But you don't have to scare me straight by saying that donut sugar is different and prevents weight loss or some such, because I can nonetheless make what I think is a reasonable decision and normally have a breakfast that is consistent with my own ideas of nutrition (which means, for me, vegetables, protein, maybe some fruit, maybe some whole grains).
Also, I'm curious why my prior response is deemed to make no sense.0 -
Unless you have a medical reason to worry about it, OP -- don't.
I've lost 92 pounds not worrying about sugar.
Personally, I find milk (all dairy really) and fruits (especially those with a lot of fiber) to be very filling foods, and they are big staples in my diet.
The only time to worry about overconsumption of sugar is if you are going over your calorie intake or you are eating foods that leave you feeling hungry and unsatisfied with the calorie deficit you need to eat to lose weight. As long as your food choices fit within your calorie goals? Enjoy. And that includes food choices containing refined sugar. Life is too short to never have chocolate.2 -
gonetothedogs19 wrote: »
Well if your trying to lose weight so you might as well try to eat healthy.
I think trying too hard to eat "healthy" is a terrible idea, particularly if weight is your primary health concern:
1. "Healthy" is a very nebulous term, not a clear and easily defined goal, particularly when looking at foods in isolation. It's impossible to measure quantitatively.
2. The more dramatic the change, the less likely you are to sustain it. Making unnecessary change reduces success of necessary change.
3. You can't focus on more than 1-3 goals at once. You need to pick the wildly important ones for your own health. The hardest thing in most types of management, whether it be managing a company or your health, isn't saying 'no' to bad ideas, the hardest thing is saying 'not now' to good ideas.
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@E02L05 , how much milk do you consume in ounces daily? Why 1%. Why not something like soy milk or almond milk or even full fat whole milk? Maybe even buttermilk, which has no fat. I'm just curious. I've read a lot of successful losers of weight on this site who pointed out that their goal each day is to have the final over under numbers at 1 digit only and don't care about red or green.0
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The sugar "limit" set by Myfitnesspal.com is not only arbitrary but ridiculous. They're using the WHO "added sugars goal" but not distinguishing between any sources of sugar. If course, your body doesn't either, distinguish between sources of sugar, which just illustrated how silly the " added sugar " guideline is in the first place.
You can change your food diary to track something useful like fiber instead of sugar. That is what many of us do. Most people get very little fiber in their diets, and there's strong evidence that fiber is beneficial both in the short term and long term.6 -
Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
Why? What's wrong with refined sugar?
WHO calls on countries to reduce sugars intake among adults and children
4 MARCH 2015 ¦ GENEVA - A new WHO guideline recommends adults and children reduce their daily intake of free sugars to less than 10% of their total energy intake. A further reduction to below 5% or roughly 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day would provide additional health benefits.
Free sugars refer to monosaccharides (such as glucose, fructose) and disaccharides (such as sucrose or table sugar) added to foods and drinks by the manufacturer, cook or consumer, and sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit juice concentrates.
“We have solid evidence that keeping intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake reduces the risk of overweight, obesity and tooth decay,” says Dr Francesco Branca, Director of WHO’s Department of Nutrition for Health and Development. “Making policy changes to support this will be key if countries are to live up to their commitments to reduce the burden of noncommunicable diseases.”
The WHO guideline does not refer to the sugars in fresh fruits and vegetables, and sugars naturally present in milk, because there is no reported evidence of adverse effects of consuming these sugars.
Read more: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/sugar-guideline/en/1 -
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gonetothedogs19 wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »Raptor2763 wrote: »Natural sugars aren't any big deal - it's the added sugar, ESPECIALLY the REFINED sugar one need to avoid. That's where reading labels comes in really handy
Why? What's wrong with refined sugar?
WHO calls on countries to reduce sugars intake among adults and children
4 MARCH 2015 ¦ GENEVA - A new WHO guideline recommends adults and children reduce their daily intake of free sugars to less than 10% of their total energy intake. A further reduction to below 5% or roughly 25 grams (6 teaspoons) per day would provide additional health benefits.
Free sugars refer to monosaccharides (such as glucose, fructose) and disaccharides (such as sucrose or table sugar) added to foods and drinks by the manufacturer, cook or consumer, and sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit juice concentrates.
“We have solid evidence that keeping intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake reduces the risk of overweight, obesity and tooth decay,” says Dr Francesco Branca, Director of WHO’s Department of Nutrition for Health and Development. “Making policy changes to support this will be key if countries are to live up to their commitments to reduce the burden of noncommunicable diseases.”
The WHO guideline does not refer to the sugars in fresh fruits and vegetables, and sugars naturally present in milk, because there is no reported evidence of adverse effects of consuming these sugars.
Read more: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2015/sugar-guideline/en/
But wait a minute, all the "experts" on MFP will tell you over and over again - sugar is sugar, doesn't matter where it comes from. Obviously, they know more than WHO. And also the USDA, which has just mandated the "added sugar" category on nutrition labels.
Point to where the World Health Orginization states that there is a chemical difference between "natural" sugars and "added" sugars please?
The idea of limiting added sugar is to limit overall sugar intake because sugar is generally speaking in and of itself very high calorie to satiation and therefore a lot of added refined sugar is probably going to lead to problems with obesity on an average since you are adding calories without adding micronutrients or adding any feelings of satiation.
That doesn't mean that the fructose in high fructose corn syrup is somehow different or processed differently in your body than fructose in a bananna or an apple.
I'm not disagreeing with the WHO, I'm disagreeing with you...who seems to be thinking the WHO is saying something they aren't.12 -
gonetothedogs19 wrote: »But wait a minute, all the "experts" on MFP will tell you over and over again - sugar is sugar, doesn't matter where it comes from. Obviously, they know more than WHO. And also the USDA, which has just mandated the "added sugar" category on nutrition labels.
If you read the actual WHO report, the reasons they are recommending reduction in free sugars is:
1. To reduce tooth decay,
2. To reduce the overall calories consumed and thus reduce body weight.
If you are controlling your calories directly, #2 is of no benefit to you since you're eating the same amount anyway. As to #1, sugar reduction can give a benefit, but dental cavities are much more easily prevented by better oral hygiene. Brushing your teeth and flossing before plaque has a chance to form is the best way to prevent cavities.8
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