Consuming Sugar & Heart Disease

Consuming too much added sugar in food and drinks can be a huge threat to cardiovascular disease. On one hand, sugar occurs naturally in many fruits, vegetables and whole grains which is okay to eat as the body digests these foods slowly so the sugar in them offers a steady supply of energy to your cells. However, added sugars that most food manufacturers use in their foods are the core of the problem. Manufacturers use added sugars because it lengthens the shelf life of products and makes them taste better.

In a typical American diet, the top sources of added sugars are soft drinks, yogurts, cookies, cakes, cereals, candy, and most processed foods. Sugar consumption becomes a serious problem when the sugar comes from processed foods. A diet high in sugar has been proven to raise your risk of heart disease regardless of health, activity level, age, or gender.

Consuming too much sugar

A study published in 2014 showed that a diet high in sugar puts you at a greater risk of dying from heart disease, even if you aren’t obese. You are twice as likely to die of heart disease if at least 25% of calories in your daily diet come from added sugar. Sugar can affect your heart in many different ways including:

• Increasing blood sugar levels.
• Stopping triglycerides (fat found in the blood) from breaking down.
• Lowers the level of HDL cholesterol (the “good” cholesterol) while raising LDL (“bad” cholesterol) levels.
• Increasing blood pressure through increasing sodium accumulation in the body.
• Increasing the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes, which in turn increases the risk of heart disease.

Unfortunately, Americans consume processed foods daily, which means an increased intake of added sugars. On average, Americans consume 66 pounds of sugar per person per year, which equals almost 20 teaspoons per day.

What about other sugars?

Not all sugars are created equal. There are various options of healthier sweeteners that can replace added sugar like sucrose and high fructose corn syrup. Consider swapping out these added sugars for natural sugars like maple syrup, stevia, monk fruit, agave, and coconut sugar. Natural sugars are lower on the glycemic index than table sugar, possess less calories than table sugar and offer additional nutritional benefits.

Additionally, they are sweeter than table sugar which means we can use less of them to achieve the same level of sweetness. The glycemic index indicates the rank of carbs in food and how that affects blood sugar levels. Substituting added sugars for natural sugars will reduce your carb intake and blood sugar levels.

Limiting Sugar In Your Diet

It’s a good idea to limit the amount of sugar you consume in your diet because it will decrease your risk of developing heart disease and potential heart failure, but will also help with your overall health. Sugars should not take up more than 10% of your daily calories (based on a 2,000 calorie per day diet) according to The Food and Drug Administration. Additionally, the American Heart Association recommends men should have no more than 36 grams of sugar per day and women should not consume more than 24 grams of sugar per day. Just 4 grams of added sugar is equal to one teaspoon, which says a lot. Here are some tips to help limit your intake of additional sugars:

• Read all food labels carefully as sugar can be hidden on labels. Many companies have renamed sugar on labels to deceive people like brown rice syrup, barley malt, beet sugar, agave, and sucrose.
• Avoid processed foods as much as possible. Try cooking with whole foods and shopping the outside aisles of the grocery store. You can naturally decrease sugar consumption and increase the amount of vegetables and fruits you eat.
• Avoid sugary drinks such as soda and fruit juices. Instead, try carbonated water (flavored or unflavored) or adding a splash of lemon juice to your water.
• Keep healthy treats readily available such as fresh fruit. For a frozen treat, try freezing grapes or making your own frozen yogurt berry bites.

It’s important to remember that all calories are not created equal and should try to avoid added sugars as much as possible. The more added sugar you consume, the more you crave it so moderation is the key to staying healthy and keeping your heart healthy. The problem with many foods is that sugar is often disguised on the labels.

With more than 70 different names for sugar, it’s hard to determine how healthy a food item actually is, which is why it’s important to look at labels closely. Remember to practice self discipline and don’t keep sugary food items in the house constantly so there isn’t added pressure to consume sugary foods.