Sugar, Sugar

No, this isn't a post about that annoying Archies song. Then again, it wasn't as bad as Seasons in the Sun. :-p

Anyway...

Although sugar consumption has been linked to raising levels of obesity, tooth decay and diabetes, food companies are continuing to increase the amount of sugar they add to many of their products. Processed foods contain some of the highest amounts of sugar, often with levels closely approaching or even higher than 20 grams of sugar per 100 grams of food.

When you think of sugary foods, you may think of cupcakes and pies but breakfast cereals, bread, and even soup have seen large increases in added sugar. It’s now routine to find whole grain bread that contains almost a teaspoon of sugar per 3 slices. In 1978, tomato soup had less than 3 grams of sugar; today it has more than 6 grams. In that same time period, Kellogg’s Special K went from approximately 10 grams of sugar for every 100 grams of cereal to 17 grams, almost equal to the sugar level in vanilla ice cream.

U.S. sugar consumption has climbed dramatically over the years. At the end of the 1800's it averaged about 20 pounds per person per year. Current estimates range from 142-170 pounds per person per year!

The average American eats 20 teaspoons of added sugars per day, twice the USDA recommended limit of 10 teaspoons for people eating a healthy 2,000 calorie diet.

People are always looking for the latest diet. No fat, low fat, low carb, no carb, cabbage soup, etc. If you did nothing else but limit your consumption of processed foods (most anything that comes in a bag or box) and added sugar, you would lose weight.

And it's not just a matter of expanding waistlines. For information on the negative effect on excess sugar on your health go to Sugar's Effect on Your Health
.