Do added sugars cause damage to your body?

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jbvpn
jbvpn Posts: 17 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I often fancy a cinnamon bun but unfortunately most contain 30-40g of sugar! quite hefty but I don't consume much sugar from anything else I eat. I eat lots of oily fish - omega 3's and lots of fibre. Fairly lean I would say - not many bad fats

At this current stage I am trying to gain a little weight but not a huge amount.

My question is do added sugars actually cause damage to your body when consumed or is it the over consumption of them that lead to excess calories with no nutritional value?

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Replies

  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    What do you mean by damage to your body? If you have a metabolic condition or perhaps to your dental health. But in excess pretty much anything is not good (even water and many vitamins). As long as you are eating an overall balanced diet, getting enough protein, fats and fibre, vitamins and nutrients.. having some sugar is fine. Especially since you are gaining .. sugar is great for energy and carbs help muscle building. More sugar will not cause more fat gain unless it puts you into a higher surplus.
  • jbvpn
    jbvpn Posts: 17 Member
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    sardelsa wrote: »
    What do you mean by damage to your body? If you have a metabolic condition or perhaps to your dental health. But in excess pretty much anything is not good (even water and many vitamins). As long as you are eating an overall balanced diet, getting enough protein, fats and fibre, vitamins and nutrients.. having some sugar is fine. Especially since you are gaining .. sugar is great for energy and carbs help muscle building. More sugar will not cause more fat gain unless it puts you into a higher surplus.

    Thanks for your fast response.

    So are blood sugar levels not an issue to worry about when consuming the occasionally high sugar treat maybe twice a week or so?

    https://www.livestrong.com/article/350074-the-disadvantages-of-sugar/

    Are these facts based on over consumption and poor diet?
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    In lean, active individuals, sugar consumption is less of a problem. Again... Excess.. is the key word. You don't want the majority of your calories to come from cinnamon rolls.
  • Fuzzipeg
    Fuzzipeg Posts: 2,298 Member
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    Excess is key. For someone who hardly ever has foods with added sugars and who's sugar count recorded on here is usually at or below the amount suggested, all should be well. I believe this article was aimed at the majority of the population who have not started to care for themselves, to know the pitfalls. I have come across Live Strong looking around and to generalise their advice is good.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,005 Member
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    It's all about moderation!

    And I'm planning to make these slow cooker cinnamon buns my aunt introduced me to a couple years ago for New Years Day breakfast. I won't give sugar a second thought ... except to enjoy all that delicious syrupy sticky sweet cinnamon-y sauce. :grin::grin::grin:

    But that's a once-a-year thing.
  • jbvpn
    jbvpn Posts: 17 Member
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    Fuzzipeg wrote: »
    Excess is key. For someone who hardly ever has foods with added sugars and who's sugar count recorded on here is usually at or below the amount suggested, all should be well. I believe this article was aimed at the majority of the population who have not started to care for themselves, to know the pitfalls. I have come across Live Strong looking around and to generalise their advice is good.

    I have always tried to stay clear from foods with added sugar - I don't really snack much though and I just feel like treating myself a couple times a week as I can fit it into my calories and I generally eat well anyway.

    In the morning I have quite a filling breakfast - big bowl of oatmeal with a handful of blueberries, flax seeds, chia seeds and some almonds - the sugar from blueberries is probably the food with most sugar I have on an average day too so I don't consume that much.
  • pmm3437
    pmm3437 Posts: 529 Member
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    jbvpn wrote: »
    sardelsa wrote: »
    https://www.livestrong.com/article/350074-the-disadvantages-of-sugar/

    Are these facts based on over consumption and poor diet?

    These statements clearly indicate they are talking about excess consumption.

    The Institute of Medicine does not provide a RDA for sugar, as it is not a required nutrient. It does suggest no more than 25% of calories.

    The W.H.O. used to recommend no more than 10%, but now recommends only 5%.

    A standard size bun ( think Pillsbury ) is 15-18g, while a jumbo/oversize ( bakery size ) is 24-27g of sugar. 2x week averages out to < 7.5g day of sugar from this source, worst case. That's half the sugar you get from a daily serving of blue berries in your oatmeal.
  • csporter54
    csporter54 Posts: 13 Member
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    I am also trying to gain weight it had always been a battle because I have Tyrod issues to keep it on. I started researching my body type to find the best plan for me I found it helpful. I went to bodybuilding. Com it has a lot of info on body types
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
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    Sunna_W wrote: »
    Everyone is different and feels differently when ingesting sugar or carbs over a specific amount or if not combined with a dairy or a protein.

    Generally, what I do is one of three things: 1) Don't eat it; 2) Eat it after consuming a dairy or a protein; 3) make it myself and use about half the amount of sugar (generally doesn't affect the consistency or final taste or product) *or* just eat less of it.

    If you are trying to gain weight, eating protein can also help you increase muscle and muscle weighs more than fat (which is what happens to sugar -- it makes fat).

    My recommendation is to consult a nutritionist or a reputable website and figure out what would work best for you.

    Ref: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/18-foods-to-gain-weight#section17

    While protein is important, getting more than you need is not going to add extra muscle. Also excess calories will turn to fat, and sugar isn't stored as fat as readily as actual fat.
  • CarvedTones
    CarvedTones Posts: 2,340 Member
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    I am on a low starch diet to limit inflammation and a significant portion of my carbs are fruits and sugary snacks. I blow by the MFP suggested sugar amount every day and usually come up short on grams of carbs. Starches turn into sugar during digestion; I am just supplying the sugar in a more concentrated form so the carbs being low and sugar being high sort of cancel each other out. I stay within calorie goal and other macros look good. The added sugar would only be a problem if it puts you in surplus and you don't want to be or if it replaces needed nutrients in your diet.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    jbvpn wrote: »
    sardelsa wrote: »
    What do you mean by damage to your body? If you have a metabolic condition or perhaps to your dental health. But in excess pretty much anything is not good (even water and many vitamins). As long as you are eating an overall balanced diet, getting enough protein, fats and fibre, vitamins and nutrients.. having some sugar is fine. Especially since you are gaining .. sugar is great for energy and carbs help muscle building. More sugar will not cause more fat gain unless it puts you into a higher surplus.

    Thanks for your fast response.

    So are blood sugar levels not an issue to worry about when consuming the occasionally high sugar treat maybe twice a week or so?

    https://www.livestrong.com/article/350074-the-disadvantages-of-sugar/

    Are these facts based on over consumption and poor diet?

    The extent to which sugar causes ups and down depends on the person (if someone is insulin resistant they must be more careful about sugar), how active you are, and what it is consumed with (if within the context of a diet with adequate protein, fiber, and healthy fats and, especially, if with other foods, then it likely won't be an issue). Also, there's a difference between eating something once in a while vs a lot of it all the time (one of the reasons soda can be an issue is that most people don't actually consume that much, but the ones who consume a lot apparently consume a LOT, which means lots of cals, etc.).
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
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    csporter54 wrote: »
    I am also trying to gain weight it had always been a battle because I have Tyrod issues to keep it on. I started researching my body type to find the best plan for me I found it helpful. I went to bodybuilding. Com it has a lot of info on body types

    What do you mean by "body types?"

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