Sugar vs Natural Sugar

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amatrey17
amatrey17 Posts: 23
in Food and Nutrition
Ok guys my husband is very much into fitness and tells me all the time but i want to see it in writing and hear from someone else... What is the difference between sugar vs natural sugar?? To me sugar is sugar and I try to stay away from it. I skipped my orange juice this morning bc it has 22g of sugar in it. Hubby says natural sugars are good but i dont see the difference....

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  • aprildiamond42
    aprildiamond42 Posts: 19 Member
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    Refined sugar is hard for the body to digest and it is actually addictive. Natural sugars from fruits and vegetables are easy to digest. Unless you are diabetic, don't worry about going over with natural sugars. Don't skip your orange juice - but a whole orange would be better for you.

    I am on a quest to eat NO refined sugar - extremely difficult when my husband is constantly bringing home cookies, cakes, donuts, pop, muffins, candy, and anything else made with refined sugar. We have two large cabinets in the kitchen just for those items, and it is packed. I call it the Cabinet I Don't Look In.

    Also, when you read the ingredients in canned/packaged foods, you will see many foods, including breads, spaghetti sauce, fruits, vegetables are made with added sugar (and corn syrup, the same effect as sugar). I usually make my own bread (using honey) and, as much as possible, don't eat foods from cans or packages.
  • busterbluth
    busterbluth Posts: 115 Member
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    Don't skip your orange juice - but a whole orange would be better for you.

    I love OJ but I used to drink too much of it. . .I've switched to actual oranges/clementines for the fiber and reduced sugar.
  • _VoV
    _VoV Posts: 1,494 Member
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    Refined sugar is stripped of all the fibrous part of the plant, and is absorbed into the body at a faster rate than sugar in its natural form. Non-disrupted sugar molecules in fruit, vegetables, grains, beans, etc. exist in a cellular matrix with fiber and other natural components which benefit health. I am no expert on the glycemic index, so I can't really get into the blood sugar effects of things like carrots vs. white pasta. There are some really odd things in the research that seem counterintuitive.

    But, I always prefer eating plants in their natural state over processed foods. I always wonder what next miracle substance will be reported about whole foods tomorrow and the next day. There's plenty we know about already, but not everything.

    Here's a link about the sugar in fruit: http://www.discovergoodnutrition.com/index.php/2011/02/the-truth-about-sugars-in-fruit/

    Keep it whole. Keep it real. And keep eating those plants!
  • darlilama
    darlilama Posts: 794 Member
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    "Natural Sugar" is sugar in it's "whole" or natural state! That is, it's the sugar in the apple, banana, etc. It's not sugar that has been processed. It is easier on the body - even for those with diabetes - because it is digested along with the other parts of the food, such as the fibre in fruit.

    I would suggest going to the American Diabetes Foundation. Lots of useful information there about sugar in foods and how it's handled by the body. If there's a food that diabetics should avoid, likely we all should be trying to avoid quanities of it. :D However, I'm not going to deprive myself of a good old piece of cake or banana bread or chocolate. But, I am going to be sure these things are not a big part of my diet. Lots of calories in little bits of food… I'd rather have more food with more nutrients and fewer calories!

    Good luck!
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Chemically speaking, sugar is sugar is sugar, and your body sees it as such.

    Table sugar is sucrose- one molecule of glucose bonded to one molecule of fructose.
    Fruit sugar is fructose, glucose, and some sucrose.

    In my opinion, "natural" vs. uh... I'm not really sure what to call the alternative, because sucrose is a "natural" product of the sugar cane or sugar beet..... but you get the idea... well that only matters when you consider the extra stuff that comes with the sugar.

    The sugar in fruit is accompanied by vitamins, minerals, fiber, and other good stuff.

    The sugar in skittles (for example) is accompanied by artificial flavors, etc...

    Orange juice has some great vitamins in it, BUT it is relatively high calorie and it's not going to keep you full for very long.

    I drink orange juice occasionally. Because I'm calorie restricting, I usually avoid juice in general simply because it too high calorie for the amount of 'fullness' it gives me.

    I also eat skittles occasionally :D

    And I love fruit and veggies. I keep blueberries handy nearly all the time. They're a great treat and they're rich in antioxidants.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
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    In my opinion, the biggest difference worth noting is that natural sugars "tend" to be contained in food items that are nutrient dense, and artificial sugars "tend" to be contained in foods that aren't very nutrient dense.

    EDIT: See Rebekah's post above.

    In the presence of a varied diet with "mostly" whole food sources, you may not need to bother tracking it unless you are diabetic.
  • jaynewould
    jaynewould Posts: 33
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    The thing with juice, too, is that you probably wouldn't sit down and eat four oranges or apples in one go - you'd start to feel full from all the fibre. But there's easily that much fruit in a glass of juice! So you're actually getting a lot of food - nutrients and vitamins, but also a lot of sugar - at once, just in a form that you can drink very quickly without really feeling full.

    I like smoothies, since you get the on-the-go convenience of being able to drink your breakfast, but there's a still (in my case) a whole banana and berries and a handful of spinach in there, and some yoghurt, so it's more of a proper meal.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Chemically speaking, sugar is sugar is sugar, and your body sees it as such.

    Table sugar is sucrose- one molecule of glucose bonded to one molecule of fructose.
    Fruit sugar is fructose, glucose, and some sucrose.

    That structure isn't right, not saying you're incorrect, but... The disassociation reaction is:
    C12H22O11(sucrose) --> C6H12O6(Fructose) + C6H12O6(glucose)
    Fructose + glucose = 24 Hydrogen atoms
    sucrose only has 22 Hydrogen atoms.

    There is something weird going on here. Same with the oxygen atom.

    *grumbles* (in a nice grumbly way- I had to look it up). The chemical reaction is C12H22O11(sucrose) +H2O <--> C6H12O6(Fructose) + C6H12O6(glucose). :D

    You create H2O when glucose and fructose are bonded. You use up an H2O when sucrose is broken into glucose and fructose.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,692 Member
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    Whichever is believed to be better, the fact is that sugar is a carb that if taken in large amounts, regardless of source, and not burned off, will result in energy storage in the form of fat.


    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

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