Whelehans Pharmacys Aisling Murray : Sugar part 1

Healthy Eating with Aisling Murray from Whelehans Pharmacy

Sugar part 1

When I discuss sugar in the nutrition clinic the first response I get is “oh I don’t add sugar to my food”; you may not add it but its hidden in many of our favourite foods. Sugar is a cheap preservative and whether you add it or not, too much sugar in the diet can cause problems. We consume too much sugarand this is leading to an epidemic of type two diabetes, tooth decay and obesity. Infact many experts argue, too much sugar has more negative health effects than too much fat in a diet.

Check the label: I stress the importance of always reading labels; it’s one of the first protocols to reducing sugar intake. It’s not enough to read the outer label and see 0% fat and think “I’m eating something heathy”; when you remove the fat you remove the flavour and it needs to be replaced to make the food tasty. Sugar or salt is usually the way companies reintroduce flavour and expand shelf life. Sugar can be hidden in foods you wouldn’t even suspect like ketchup, soups, fruit juices and creams. It’s also present in processed foods and breads; even meat can contain sugar.

What is sugar? Sugar is a carbohydrate that comes in many forms. Simple sugars called monosaccharides includes glucose, fructose (fruit sugar) and galactoses. Table sugar or sucrose is a disaccharide (made from fructose and glucose) other disaccharides include maltose and lactose (sugar found in dairy).

 

Fruit sugar: Also known as fructose, it is present in your favourite fruits. Many of us think that fruit sugar is not as damaging as table sugar, however like all “good things”, if over consumed it can still damage teeth; especially if consumed as a juice. Fruit has a number of benefits such as vitamins, minerals and fibre and should be included as part of a healthy diet; 2-3 portions of fruit daily are recommended (include portions of veg to make up the balance of your “5 a day”).

 

Corn syrup: When I was studying my nutrition degree, my lecturers advised avoidance of corn syrup. Also known as high fructose, corn syrup is a highly processed form of sugar, and is much cheaper and 20% sweeter. It’s used more in America as a food additive but its slowly creeping into processed foods in Ireland and can be hidden.

Too much sugar in the diet

4g of sugar is 1tsp; the RDA of sugar for a healthy adult is 90g (23 tsp of sugar). This may seem like a lot but a medium apple can contain 19g of sugar so fruits need to be factored into your recommended daily allowance.

 

The average Irish person consumes 32 teaspoons of sugar a day which is far too much. In March 2015 the WHO released a statement saying they wished to reduce the RDA of sugar to 6 tsp a day or 24g of sugar for women and 9 tsp 36g for men. Reducing the sugar RDA by this much would actually mean that sugar consumption is limited to only fruit.

Sugar Information Event

Whelehans pharmacy are teaming up with a number of health professionals to hold a Sugar Information Event on Thursday March 3rd at 7pm in the Greville Arms Hotel. We will have interesting speakers and inactive demonstrations to illustrate both the dangers of sugar and show how much sugars we are actually eating. There will be lots of tips to help you reduce your sugar intake without reducing your enjoyment of food. It will be of great interest to parents and kids to help learn fun facts and ways to reduce sugar. Parents are especially welcome to bring kids along. You will have the chance for free advice from diet and health experts on the night. It is a free to attend; call Whelehans at 04493 34591 to book your free place.

 

To be continued next week...more about sugar

 

Aisling Murray has a Bachelor of Science in Nutrition and offers a one to one specialist nutrition service at Whelehans Pharmacy. Call Whelehans at 04493 34591 for an appointment. Clinics cost €10 per week