Our brains are wired to crave sugar because it is a quick form of energy that our brain and body can easily use to help us go about our day. From bread, to chocolate, to pies, to cookies, to ketchup, to cereal, to juice, to pop, the list is endless where sugar is an added ingredient. Even though our body innately craves sugar because it is a fast fuel, sugar can have grave side effects…
For the past 50-60 years, so called health ‘experts’ have been claiming that saturated fat was dangerous to consume and was the underlying cause of the rising rates of heart disease worldwide. They warned to stay away from butter, red meat, pork and anything that contained fat. Instead, they highlighted following the food pyramid and eating a diet high in heart healthy carbohydrates like grains, pasta and bread because these foods were purported to reduce the incidence of heart disease.
Well, fast forward to the 21st century and how are we doing? Well, just look around. Two-thirds of Canadians are obese and one-third of children! They now have a World Obesity Day on March 4, to combat the rapidly expanding obesity crisis. It is common knowledge that obesity leads to increased morbidity and mortality and on the Government of Canada’s website it states, “Children and youth living with obesity are at a higher risk of developing a variety of health problems on both physical and emotional fronts which are likely to persist into adulthood, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, joint problems, depression, low self-esteem, and negative body image.”
How did all this happen if we were avoiding saturated fats and following the health experts and the food pyramid? Well, the truth can be illusory…In 2016, the Journal of the American Medical Association, wrote that in the 1960’s the sugar industry paid scientists to play down the link between sugar and heart disease and promote saturated fat as the culprit instead. Five decades of research into the role of nutrition and heart disease, including many of today’s modern dietary recommendations, may have been largely shaped by the sugar industry.
Wow! So consuming all types of sugar is slowly killing us from the inside out and health experts have known this and turned a blind eye for close to 60 years. It is interesting that we want to hold our hats on ‘Scientific Research’ when people and results are easily bought and paid for.
If you want to do your own research, just look on the label on the side of a loaf of whole grain bread. It says that in 100g of bread (about 2 slices) there is 4 grams of sugar. And you might think well that’s not much, but appearances may be deceiving. If you look at the amount of carbohydrates in that same quantity of bread, there is 41 grams. And what is a carbohydrate? It is a big fancy word for sugar. So there are over 40 grams of sugar in 2 slices of bread!
I have also heard that people are trying to use more natural sugars like maple syrup and honey. These sugars may be more recognizable to your body than high fructose corn syrup, but at the end of the day it is still sugar.
So what diet do you recommend?
I don’t recommend any diet, because diets fail as soon as you stop. I recommend eating healthy food as a way of life. Your plate needs to have healthy sources of protein, that should include saturated fat! Along with more protein, eat some vegetables and limit your complex carbohydrates (i.e. potatoes, rice, sweet potatoes). Fruit contains fructose, which is a natural sugar, but is sweeter than cane sugar, so stick to fruits with lower sugar content like blueberries or raspberries.
If you need more help with your nutrition, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
Dr. Thom