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Sugar is everywhere, and it’s surprisingly hidden. Eating too much sugar — pumped into foods and drinks as opposed to what happens naturally — is a culprit for a host of health problems beyond weight gain and diabetes. Sweets have been implicated in everything from depression to heart disease to cancer. This is a strong indication that the body responds differently to sugary calories compared to other types of calories. And even if you’re watching your sugar intake, added sugars are probably lurking in your everyday foods more often than you think.
How much sugar is too much?
The abundance of sweets in our food supply has become such an important factor that the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans dictate how much we should eat each day. Although calorie and sugar needs vary from person to person—a triathlete can get away with consuming more of both than a sedentary person—you should aim to limit sugar intake to no more than 10% of your total daily calories.
The World Health Organization also recommends striving for a 10% limit, but insists that 5% would be better, or about 25 grams of added sugar a day.
If you’re like most Americans, you’re blowing this upper limit—17% of daily calories in the average diet come from added sugars.
How can I reduce added sugar?
The sheer amount of sugar in our food supply can make it seem like a Sisyphean effort to reduce. From sweets to sodas, and even many savory foods, it’s seemingly everywhere. Although eating sugar is a difficult food habit to break, it’s possible to cut back using these simple strategies to wean yourself off and make better choices.
1. Refine your shopping cart
You know to avoid the pastry counter, checkout line candy bars and ice cream freezers at the supermarket. But what about your go-to pasta sauce? Or your favorite brand of nut butter? The not-so-sweet truth about added sugar is that it’s literally hiding everywhere—even in foods like whole-grain bread.
The sad reality is that nearly 75% of packaged foods on store shelves contain some form of added sweetener, according to a study. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Published. Half a cup of spaghetti sauce can pack almost as much sugar as a donut.
It’s best to assume that any food that comes in a package may contain sweeteners in one form or another. So even if you strictly avoid the obvious sugar-packed drinks and snacks, you may still be consuming more of the ingredient than you realize.
How to shop smarter
You can cut a lot of sweet stuff out of your diet by comparing brands of similar products and choosing items with less added sugar. This process is now easier thanks to a new FDA labeling law that requires food and beverage packages to have a nutrition information label that includes a separate line showing how much sugar has been added versus what occurs naturally.
Another pro move: Look for label lingo like “no added sugar” or “unsweetened” to mean no sugar was put into the item by Mother Nature. Some foods that claim to be low-fat are often high-sugar because manufacturers try to confuse your taste buds while reducing fat.
2. Know the lingo
When you read food and beverage ingredient lists, look for more than just the word “sugar.” Sugar disguises itself with other names that make it seem much healthier than it really is (ahem, fruit juice concentrate). To successfully weed out added sweeteners, you need to be able to recognize the many aliases food and beverage companies employ.
Observation for what
Be sure to flip over packages and check ingredient lists word for word to find sugar by any name These double agents include agave, maltodextrin, evaporated cane juice, brown rice syrup, corn syrup, coconut nectar, barley malt, organic dried cane syrup, fruit juice concentrate, turbinado, dextrose, and maltose (basically any word ending in -ose). .
Even honey and maple syrup should be considered added sugars. A study in Journal of Nutrition found that when people ate the same amount (about 2 tablespoons) of honey, sucrose (ie white sugar), or the much-maligned high-fructose corn syrup per day for two weeks, they experienced similar metabolic changes, including increases in blood triglycerides. and markers of inflammation, both risk factors for heart problems. If you see any of these high on the ingredient list or multiple sweeteners appear on the list, it’s a good bet that the item should be approached with caution.
3. Drink responsibly
Sweetened beverages remain the largest source of added sugar calories in the standard American diet. And because sugar in liquid form is digested more quickly, its effects on health can be more aggressive. Avoiding the usual suspects, including soda, energy drinks, and bottled coffee and tea, is a good starting point, but they’re far from the only sugar-packed drugs out there. Beverages marketed as health-promoting are increasingly feeding our sugar cravings. These range from kombucha to oat milk to green juice to enhanced water.
How to avoid sugary drinks
To avoid drinking your way into the sugar danger zone, make sure the majority of your daily beverage intake is unsweetened beverages such as black coffee, brewed green tea, plain milk, unsweetened veggie juices, and reliable tap water. A good time to introduce any sugary drinks into your diet is during or immediately after a long workout. These include post-sweat recovery smoothies that may include a drop of honey.
Since fruit juice lacks the fiber found in whole fruit and provides a more concentrated dose of fruit sugar, going easy on the OJ is also a good idea.
4. Measure your serving size
Do you really know how much maple syrup you pour into your Sunday pancakes or how many white crystals you stir into your coffee? That 1 teaspoon or 1 tablespoon of brown sugar that went into your oatmeal? Studies show that we’re generally terrible at estimating portion sizes, so it’s easy to see how people can add more sugar to their daily menus than they realize.
How to keep the serving in check
Break out the measuring spoons and cups to get a better sense of how much you sweeten your foods and drinks. If you strain your yogurt with a tablespoon of honey, you can probably cut back to 1 or 2 teaspoons. Can add back a little bit here and there.
5. Scale back the sugar in the recipe
If you’re embracing your inner Martha Stewart and baking up a batch of muffins or cookies, remember that many recipes call for more sugar than necessary—mainly to appease taste buds that are trained to crave a sweet fix. so If you see a recipe for blueberry muffins that calls for one cup of sugar, consider that a red flag that needs tweaking.
How to reduce sugar consumption
Unless a recipe specifically calls for less sugar than usual, try experimenting by reducing the amount of sweetener by one-quarter to one-third. This won’t significantly change the texture, moisture or flavor of the final result, but will give you less of a sugar buzz.
You can also include natural sources of sweeteners in recipes like berries, mashed bananas, dried fruit and pureed pumpkin to reduce the amount of processed sugars. Also, use spices like cinnamon and allspice to add a calorie-free sweet sensation to foods instead of honey or refined white sugar.
6. Set up your plate to stave off cravings
It’s a vicious cycle: sugar-induced blood sugar spikes and sudden drops can lead to more sugar cravings, setting you up for more sugar highs and lows. Making sure to include slow-digesting protein and fiber with your meals and snacks will increase satiety as well as help you develop fewer sugar cravings to stabilize blood sugar levels throughout the day.
Balance sugar with other nutrients
For meals, aim to include at least 20 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber to help stave off hunger pangs. For snacks, look for options that give you at least 5 grams of protein and 3 to 5 grams of fiber—a cup of plain Greek yogurt with ½ cup of raspberries will fit the bill.
7. Satisfy a sweet tooth the natural way
Our cave-dwelling ancestors didn’t get their sweet fix from M&Ms; They get it from foods that contain natural sweeteners. Naturally occurring sugars found in fruits and some vegetables such as beets combine with fiber, vitamins and antioxidants.
Additionally, you generally get less sugar from whole foods because the amount of sugar per serving is often lower. You’d have to eat a lot of carrots to get anywhere near the same level of sugar found in carrot cake. Once you eliminate a good portion of added sugar from your diet, your taste buds will likely become more sensitive to the subtle sweetness inherent in natural fruits and vegetables.
How to Substitute Sugar for Natural Sweeteners
Try to get a larger percentage of your daily sugar intake from plants and unsweetened dairy, which will not only help boost your nutrient intake but also refresh your taste buds. It can be as simple as dressing a bowl of plain yogurt with berries and serving a roasted root vegetable medley for dinner.
Dried fruit can serve as a good alternative to packaged sugary energy foods during long workouts. There are also snack foods on the market such as Kind Whole Fruit Bars and Bare Apple Chips that are richly sweet with no added sweeteners.
8. Sweat away sugar cravings
The next time you’re about to dip your hand into the cookie jar, jump in the saddle instead. Research shows that the simple act of exercising is enough to curb sugary food cravings. Exercise can change your hormone stew by temporarily suppressing hunger hormones and controlling cravings associated with boredom or stress.
How to Fight Sugar Cravings
You don’t need an epic workout to curb your cravings. Just 15 minutes of brisk walking is enough to reset your appetite for sweet things. If there is a specific time of day where you find yourself eating or drinking sweet items, such as after dinner, consider scheduling some movement during this time.
9. Get enough sleep
According to a study by King’s College London, people who get less than seven hours of sleep per night may increase their intake of sugary foods and eat less healthy food in general. Researchers found that improving participants’ sleep patterns led to a 10-gram (2.5 teaspoons worth) reduction in excess sugar intake.
Sleep, or the lack of it, affects our brain and our hunger hormones. For example, a lack of adequate shut-eye can dampen the brain’s reward pathways that serve to drive intake of sugary foods and drinks. It can also increase levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin, making it harder to resist chocolate temptations.
Tips to improve sleep
If you struggle to get enough sleep, look for ways to improve your sleep hygiene. These may include going without caffeinated beverages, meals and supplements later in the day, avoiding electronic screens at least an hour before bed, and establishing a relaxing routine after sunset.