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sugar? diagnosis as early as age 9. (Courtesy:
You have tried quitting and it’s too hard? Business insider) Hidden sugars are in the
Let’s tackle each of these questions — bread you eat, the breakfast cereals, every
Is it that you don’t think it is that bad for processed food, canned food, even if it does
you? not taste like dessert, know that the sugar
You think natural forms of sugar such as all adds up.
gud, honey, cane sugar, brown sugar are NOTE: 4grams of sugar =1 cube or
natural, they come from sugarcane, fruit teaspoon, anything less than 5grams of
or from beehives. You are right, this is the sugar is considered LOW sugar.
source, but the amount of processing and
refining that goes into the natural form,
that by the time it reaches your mouth,
it is nothing but refined sugar. Straight-
up sugar with no fibre is absorbed by the
blood stream and causes instant blood
sugar spikes, the same is good for refined
flour products. To bring the rapid glucose
spike down to normal the digestive system
has to go into overdrive, putting pressure You have tried quitting and it’s too
on every organ of your body. Just imagine hard?
this happening multiple times a day, day I am the prime example of making
on day, years on end. Your body will crash resolutions every morning and by dusk it’s
at some point, yes it will and the result is shattered. It took me years to figure out why
type-2 diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular I found it so very hard to give up sugar.
disease and poor dental health and bone Here is the science behind it —
degeneration. Sugar causes its own cycle of chronic
You don’t feel you consume that much of cravings. Sugar stimulates the reward
sugar? center in your brain- called the ‘Nucleus
It’s no secret that sugar is touted as Accumbens,’ to release the hormone
a substance that is okay to eat. It is a ‘dopamine’ and if you don’t know — it is
multibillion-dollar business worldwide. this hormone also known as the ‘happy
Every celebration is lauded and cherished hormone,’ that makes you feel ‘good’
with sweets, it has made its way into every actually ‘really good.’
processed food all approved by FDA, FSSAI So, the more sugar you eat, the more
etc. hidden sugars are lurking in every dopamine is released the happier you feel…
single packet of processed or frozen food, It’s the sugar high.
and we don’t even know that. It’s addictive
Who reads labels at the supermarket or And like all other addictions, your
when you are dining at a restaurant? cravings will continue, your body will
On an average, an adult eats about 152 plateau with the release of dopamine and
pounds of sugar a year, that’s 22 teaspoons your brain will ask for higher doses of
each day and children 34 teaspoons per sugar and the vicious cycle will continue
day, making type-2 diabetes or pre diabetic, till your health is effected hugely and the
SENIORS TODAY | ISSUE #54 | DECEMBER 2023 25
