The most protein for the least calories* The Skinny on Sugar Written by registered dietitians for balanced eating and wellness

Transcription

1 The most protein for the least calories* The Skinny on Sugar Written by registered dietitians for balanced eating and wellness

2 Sugar Shakedown The nutritional villain of the moment is sugar. Primarily because we eat too much of it. The American Heart Association recommends that women get no more than 6 of added sugar a day (about 100 calories or 24 grams), and that men consume no more than 9 of added sugar (about 150 calories or 36 grams). Women Men 6 9 VS 22 RECOMMENDED The reality is that to meet these guidelines, we need to slash our sugar consumption by more than half: According to the National Cancer Institute, most adults eat about 350 calories a day from added sugar, which equals 22 of sugar a day. We ve been told that sugar, is sugar, is sugar it does not matter the source whether it is table sugar, high fructose corn syrup, honey or agave. Other experts, make the case that it is fructose that is toxic to the body. Not the fructose found naturally in fruits, which has fiber to slow down the rate of absorption, but the processed kind that is ubiquitous in the food supply. AVERAGE 55% FRUCTOSE 45% GLUCOSE High fructose corn syrup is 55% fructose and 45% glucose. The body readily metabolizes glucose for energy, but if this glucose is not needed immediately, it is stored as fat. Fructose can only be metabolized in the liver. This triggers lipogenesis which cause triglycerides to either build up in the liver or be sent into the bloodstream either scenario causing damage. Excess fructose consumption has been linked obesity, diabetes, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease that affects up to one-third of Americans. Top Foods Containing Fructose Agave (a succulent plant) High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) Honey (most common natural source of fructose) DRIED FRUITS Dates Raisins Figs Fructose (g) / 100g 55-90g 55g 23g 23g 20g 18g While high fructose corn syrup is the biggest dietary culprit, how do the so-called natural sweeteners compare? While high fructose corn syrup is the biggest dietary culprit, how do the so-called natural sweeteners compare? You may be surprised to learn that many have more calories than the same equivalent of table sugar, and are loaded with fructose. 30g

3 Here is the Shakedown on Natural Sweeteners Natural sweeteners are often as sugar, yet their healthier image can deceive consumers into thinking they can eat more of the foods that contain them. Agave Syrup or Agave Nectar Embraced by vegans as an alternative to honey, agave has grown in popularity as a natural sweetener. Agave has more calories than table sugar (60 calories per tablespoon versus 40 calories for sugar), but because it is 1 ½ times sweeter than sugar, theoretically you can use less of it. S Glycemic Index compared to other sweeteners, it does not mean it is any more diabetic-friendly than other sweeteners 50-90% T contains 55-90% fructose. In some cases, it has more fructose than some high fructose corn syrup.

4 Date Paste, Date Sugar, Date Syrup The sweetener that is a bit more confusing is dates. To clarify, we are not talking about fresh dates, which contain fiber, are naturally high in sugar and rich in antioxidants. The ingredient we are referring to which is often used in food products like nutrition bars is dried date paste or concentrated date sugar. Fresh dates Fresh dates are great! Like fresh foods they have a nutritious skin, a lot of water and vitamins and minerals. But even a fresh date is high in sugar: 64% of a date is sugar. Processing dates But processing dates changes them. When water is taken out of the dates, the concentration of sugar increases. They now contain 70% more calories compared with fresh dates. Many protein and energy bars use date paste as the sweetener and binder in lieu of sugar, but still contain almost an entire day s worth of sugar? For example, Larabar s Cashew Cookie contains only two ingredients: dates and cashews, yet has 18g of sugar and 230 calories in one 48g bar. CALORIES SUGAR (G) FIBRE (G) 1 Fresh Date Dried date (8g) Tbsp of date paste Tbsp granulated sugar Maple Syrup or Honey Gram for gram, both honey and maple syrup contain more calories than table sugar, and nearly half of the sugar content comes from fructose (40%). For those looking for a less processed sweetener, these are good options to add to sweeten your morning oatmeal or tea. However, do not be duped into thinking they provide much in the way nutritionally the presence of vitamins and minerals are miniscule and do not provide anything significant. Brown Rice Syrup About one-half as sweet as sugar, brown rice syrup is an alternative for people who are looking for a fructose-free natural sweetener. One tablespoon has 75 calories and 11 grams sugar. Not all brown rice syrups are the same. For example, 62 DE is 62 Dextrose Equivalent, while 22 DE, is 22 Dextrose Equivalen0,t so it has much less sugar. A Simple Choice: Simply Protein At Wellness Foods, we are committed to offering the most amount of protein for the least amount of calories and sugar, without using artificial sweeteners or sugar alcohols. Simply Protein recently further reduced the grams of sugars in our soy and whey protein bars from 3-4 grams to 1 gram. How? We removed brown rice syrup and, instead, use inulin (a soluble fiber that has a slightly sweet taste) and healthy nut butters that hold the bar together. Many of the mainstream protein bars contain more protein than sugar (several even list sugar as the first ingredient). Simply Protein s nutrition facts speak for themselves: One Simply Protein bar contains 140 calories, 15 grams protein, 1 gram sugar and 9 grams fiber.

5 No matter what the source of sugar is, one tenet remains: everyone needs to reduce the total amount of added sugars in their diet. The key is to make sure that when a food does include added sugar, it also is providing some nutritional value in the way of protein, fiber and other nutrients like calcium or iron. Once your clients learn to recognize sugar in all of its forms, they may be surprised at how many foods that are not necessarily sweet contain sugar, and how much sugar is in it (think ketchup, salad dressing, breads, barbeque and Asian sauces). It is important to note where sugar in your diet is coming from. Wherever possible, if a food has added sugar in it, it should also be a good source of protein, and preferably fiber, as well. There s no harm being an avid label reader to look at the nutrition information panel to see how much sugar is actually inside. Remember four grams of sugar is equivalent to one teaspoon! Look at the list of ingredients to point out hidden sources of sugar. If sugar is listed in the first 3 ingredients, you may want to pass on that item. Don t forget a Simply Protein Bar or snack. Keep it in your bag or desk for when you are tempted to reach for an empty calorie, sugar bomb!