Too much Sugar?

Mr_C
Mr_C Posts: 16
edited October 1 in Food and Nutrition
I have always had a sweet tooth, I think my main problem with keeping my weight down is that I have discovered M&Ms only come in single serving containers. ;-)

Having said that, since starting on MFP, I have been able to cut the sweets out of my diet entirely and it hasn't really been a problem. The problem is, even when I *think* I am eating healthy, my sugar is way high.

Here’s a typical day for me. I have cereal for breakfast as I find the milk in it very filling (I am not much of a milk drinker, but I can handle it in cereal). Ignoring lunch, for an afternoon snack I will usually have an orange. I haven't ate anything "bad" but I am already over my sugar and haven't even counted lunch or dinner!

Recommended daily sugar intake according to MFP is 30g

Malt-o-meal Honey nut scooters - 10g
1/2 pint of fat free skim milk - 12g
Orange - 12g
________________________________
total - 32g

To this point, I have been ignoring it because with the exception of the cereal, it hasn't been refined sugars. I am losing weight at a good and consistent pace right now so it isn't an issue, but my goal will actually be to get very trim, and I think as I get my body fat percentage into the mid/lower teens the sugar might be more important.

Is this really something to worry about? Are others dealing with this?

Replies

  • caitlin70433
    caitlin70433 Posts: 60
    Yeah, I'm way over the MFP suger reccomendation but it is mostly fresh fruit with me and I'm not diabetic, so I'm not concerned and, if I don't lose at tomorrow's WI, it is because of the high sodium this week, not the sugar. I know the sugar is the fruit because I usually at are a bit under on carbs but way over on sugar and haven't been eating candy or anything.
  • sundancer1966
    sundancer1966 Posts: 478 Member
    I am not sure how resasonable the MFP numbers are, since you are eating natural sugars and not refined I would not worry. I found that MFP Fiber is very low, and Carbs are high. I blow past the recommended fiber with breakfast every morning, and I am not concerned, and I am less than the recommended.

    I have been thinking about MFP's daily mix and I want to look into more and set up my own.

    Since you are losing at a consistant weight, keep doing what you are doing. The cleaner you eat the better.
  • kriztoferwarren
    kriztoferwarren Posts: 2
    I think the issue is that there is NOT an offical RDA for sugar intake. I believe the goal in myfitnesspal.com is more appropriate for refined sugars, but would not limit your natural fructose consumption from items like fruit. I'm curious what others believe as well...
  • Strive2BLean
    Strive2BLean Posts: 300 Member
    The sugars are way too low on MFP. An apple alone, which is good for you, has 25 grams of sugar so a daily total of 30 is rediculous! Ignore it and just try and stick with whole fruits and veg. which have natural sugar.
  • starrchelly
    starrchelly Posts: 2
    I agree with everyone else but I have something else to say.. You say that you are skipping lunch completely. Even though you're losing weight (Congrats!), it's not healthy to not eat lunch. How many calories are you eating per day?
  • vettle
    vettle Posts: 621 Member
    The sugar intake on MFP and any site that gives you a recommended number is for ADDED sugars. So this is really hard and confusing to stick to because we don't know what's added and not, and MFP counts everything. Natural sugars (milk, fruit, etc.) are good for you. Anything that has added sugar is what you should be careful not to eat too much of. So cake, bread, sugar cereal, you get the idea.

    So try and keep this in mind and take it with a grain of sugar (lol, sorry).
  • PoeRaven
    PoeRaven Posts: 433 Member
    I'm usually over on my sugar as well. It mainly comes from fruits so since it is complex sugars and not refined, It's ok. I do try to keep the fuits with the higher amounts of sugar to a minimum. I.e. bananas.
    As long as you're not consuming a lot of refined/processed sugar or high fructose corn syrup (even worse)...you should be fine. Do watch your carbohydrates too.
    I'm not uinderstanding the sugar content you posted for fat-free skim milk. My milk carton says "0" for sugars.
    You might also look into a cereal that has less?
  • Bretto
    Bretto Posts: 196 Member
    One thing I have done to reduce my sugars is to make my protein shakes with "UNSWEETENED" Vanilla Almond milk. It is more expensive but the calories and sugars are much lower. I think it would taste great on cereal. You might want to give it a try.

    Other than that, I agree with most comments above, MFP numbers are too low and you are eating healthy sugars so no need to worry. A trainer once told me to eat a protein with my fruit to balance the sugars out. Such as cottage cheese or a couplepieces of sliced turkey.

    Good luck.
  • CatMauro
    CatMauro Posts: 225 Member
    I just did a quick on-line search of reasonable amount or DRI for sugar and sadly MFP is actually being overly generous with their sugar. The general rule of thumb is 6 tsp (1 tsp = 5 g) for women and around 8 tsp for men. This includes fruit, condiments and sweetners. No idea how that's even feasable but as others have said I worry less about the natural sugars and more about the unnatural ones.
  • lockef
    lockef Posts: 466
    I set my sugar to 10g/day, and don't usually go over unless it's a cheat day (public diary). It was very hard at first, but you start to get use to it.

    I just want to mention that sugar is sugar, no matter the source. It could come from soda or fruit. Your body metabolizes it exactly the same.
  • kriztoferwarren
    kriztoferwarren Posts: 2
    Wow, 10g per day? Do you eat fruit? A braeburn apple would have 17g of sugar. A banana has roughly 19g of sugar.
  • Mr_C
    Mr_C Posts: 16
    Thanks for the feedback everyone.... I am learning a lot here.

    @starrchelly- Just to clarify, I am not skipping lunch, I am just ignoring the numbers for this example, since my breakfast and a snack put me over the amount without even counting the lunch. I eat about 1550 calories a day plus most of my exercise calories (I don't always eat all of them, but I am usually pretty close).

    I really like fruits, and usually eat a couple small oranges and an apple a day.

    @PoeRaven- I don't know why my milk has sugar, but it does. It is just a prepackaged 1/2 pint of Land 0 lakes Fat free skim milk with vitamin A&D. Honestly I never drink milk so I don't know what to expect.

    One of the things that complicates weightloss is I am really cheap, and I work in an office that has FREE unlimited Soda, Coffee, etc. I have finally been able to work myself off the free Soda and Juices, and now just grab a free milk for my breakfast (that I eat at my desk) so I don't plan on buying other milk..
  • gavini
    gavini Posts: 248 Member
    thank you all for your comments but as usual there is some conflicting advice here.

    how can a diet like mine, which inculdes a banana and blueberries with my morning oatmeal, an apple and an orange at some point during the day be close to the limit on sugar right there? doesnt make sense to me. and i love my fruits so i dont want to cut back on them and i cant avoid a gram or two here or there.
  • h3h8m3
    h3h8m3 Posts: 455 Member
    thank you all for your comments but as usual there is some conflicting advice here.

    how can a diet like mine, which inculdes a banana and blueberries with my morning oatmeal, an apple and an orange at some point during the day be close to the limit on sugar right there? doesnt make sense to me. and i love my fruits so i dont want to cut back on them and i cant avoid a gram or two here or there.

    It can't. You have a decision to make. Does your sugar intake matter to you? Many people don't bother counting sugar from fruits. Some of us limit ourselves to one fruit a day. That's the route I go. I'm not SURE what the right solution is, but I try to just load up on veggies instead, so I'm getting all the vitamins I need, without all the sugar.

    I sure do love fruit though, and I consider them a treat when I get to eat them. It's nice to be able to "treat" myself to an orange instead of a candy bar. It was so funny last night when I went out to dinner at MiMi's and ordered the broiled chicken... it came with two orange wedges on the side. I saved those till the end and enjoyed them like I would have a piece of cake. Times have sure changed.
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