Sugar, how sweet it is
July 24, 2000
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Once again we seem to associate guilt with it though.
For years, sugar has been demonised as a taboo substance.
It has been blamed for a variety of ailments from diabetes to hyper-activity in children.
Dietician's Association of Australia (Victoria) claim there is no real detrimental effects from having sugar, nor does it cause any long term health problems.
Rather than trying to avoid sugar, just eat it in moderation.
Obviously we don't just eat it straight from the sugar bowl, but we do however consume cup-fulls a day through the foods in which it is hidden.
As a result, it is important to know what it does to our bodies in facts, fallacies and myths.
Sugars is part of the carbohydrate family and get broken down into the body as glucose.
It is then absorbed into the bloodstream giving energy to the brain and fuel to the body.
The main difference between this carbohydrate and others is that it does not contain vitamins, minerals or dietary fibre.
It does, however make foods more palatable that would otherwise be unappetising.
There is no evidence to indicate that sugar makes you fat, just excessive eating of the food that contains it.
There are no real good and bad foods, just good and bad lifestyles and diets.
The problem lies in the fact that sugar is contained in all the things that are fattening that we like to eat, such as chocolate and cakes.
It is also wrong to say that sugar causes diabetes.
Diabetes is related to genetics and obesity, not the intake of sugar.
Due to increased awareness and safer management of diets, most diabetics can, in fact, eat lollies.
The red cordial syndrome and lolly effect with children causing hyper activity, is another myth.
There is no evidence to support this, however food colourings can cause children to have allergies or intolerances.
The hyper activity may in fact be excitement of a party or, overeating of sugary foods giving them excess energy, not the sugar itself.
One thing that every expert opinion can agree on is tooth decay.
Sugar is not the sole culprit, but it is generally contained in foods that stick to your teeth.
So brush and floss your teeth regularly.
Yours in sport, Dave Murr