Reasons to limit Sugar & Fructose

Below are 10 reasons to eat less sugar
1. Sugar can elevate glucose and insulin responses and return them to fasting levels slower in oral contraceptive users.
 2. Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
3. Sugar can lower the amount of Vitamin E in the blood.
 4. Sugar can impair the structure of DNA.
 5. Sugar can make tendons more brittle.
 6. Sugar increases estradiol (the most potent form of naturally occurring estrogen) in men.
 7. Sugar can lead to prostate cancer.
 8. Sugar can contribute to mild memory loss.
 9. Sugar can cause brain decay in pre-diabetic and diabetic women.
10. Sugar can cause endometrial cancer.

One of the greatest effects on our health these days is high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) which is in just about everything we eat out of a packet, jar, tin. The first step to achieve improved health and body composition is eliminate this nasty stuff out of your diet. The 3 main sources of sugars are fructose, glucose and sucrose – they all should be minimised for improved health and weight management.  A lot of people will opt for fructose believing it is a better option, but is it really?  

Fructose
If you think fructose is the answer to your sugar problems think again. Fructose is referred to as a simple sugar, which means when eaten it is absorbed slowly in the intestine. When looking at dropping the fat a lot of people lean towards fructose consumption over other sugar sources e.g. glucose. The problem with fructose is it can only be processed in the liver in two ways: used for energy by liver cells or get stored as glycogen in the liver. How is this a problem? If your diet consists of too much fructose there is only one destination for it – your liver. What this means is more than likely your liver glycogen or fuel tanks are full so the fructose needs to go somewhere. The body will convert the fructose into fat to be stored on other parts of the body and well, hello lover handles! The difference with fructose and glucose is glucose can be used in other body tissues, namely your muscles.  

Fructose Foods You Should Avoid
– High fructose corn syrup. Check the labels of all your foods you’ll be surprised how much of it you are consuming.
– Table Sugar, 50:50 combination of glucose and fructose
– Brown Sugar
– Maple Sugar
– Cane Sugar
– Molases
– Concentrated fruit juice

Not only is fructose addictive, but it’s also twice as sweet as glucose. And because fructose doesn’t trigger our “I’m full now” message, we can’t stop eating the stuff! Even though fruit can contain fructose it’s consumption is important due to the anti oxidant, vitamin, mineral and fiber content. Generally 2 pieces a day is recommended. The key is to chose fruits that are lowest in fructose and consume the higher fructose fruits in the morning because this is when your liver glycogen levels are lowest. This means your liver will use the fructose for energy and what’s not used can be stored in the liver and not be converted to fat.