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holy sugar! ~open thread

By American Girl in Italy on February 17, 2009 at 11:45 PM in Current Affairs

This video, from the Today show, discusses the amount of sugar consumed annually, in a typical American diet. It also has some helpful little tips and reminders about secret hidden sugars.

If you are interested in dropping a few pounds, just cut out extra sugar! You can lose up to 50 pounds in a year, just by eliminating sugar. (that’s what the nutritionist said in the video!)


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It is also interesting to see how manufacturers hide the sugars in their products, breaking them into many different sugars and syrups. There are even hidden sugars in salty foods, and prepared frozen meals.

Dang, that is a lot of sugar!

  • TexasMirth

    Well, if New York Gov. David Paterson has his way, sugar will be more expensive and that will probably cut down on New Yorkers giving in to their sweet tooth. Paterson wants an 18 percent sales tax on soft drinks and other sugary beverages. The cynic in me suspects his motivation isn’t purely for the health of New Yorkers.

    • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ sarainitaly

      I would much rather have a junk food tax than a food tax. Smokes, alcohol and junk food are ok to tax heavily, in my book. (although, leave wine alone! haha) NY is hurting for money, and sugary sodas aren’t a necessity, and they are bad for you, so I don’t have a problem with them being taxed.

      • trixta

        Sara, I think the food politics on junk food is a bit more complicated than that. The problem with taxing junk food is that the poor tend to buy this type of cheap food, since they live in areas that do not have grocery stores. And who can afford (or would want) to take a two-hour bus trip (i.e. round trip) to buy groceries that one can’t afford anyway? Taxing junk food would hit the poorest among us hardest.

        • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

          mccdonalds is cheap, but I don’t think junk food in grocery stores is cheap! it is much cheaper to buy fresh fruit and veggies then fritos and doritos, and ding dongs!

          and it is not ok that poor people have to live off crap junk food, and develop health problems because junk food is cheaper…

          where do people live that they have access to junk food, but not a grocery store? (serisously, I’m asking. There are places that the closest access to real food is two hours away?)

          perhaps if there was a demand for convenience stores to carry some groceries, and not just mountain dew and cheetos, these people would be better off. I think if neighbors joined a task force they could get their local convenience store to stock frozen veggies, and some other real foods. Also, perhaps people who live far out of the city should have gardens. I would LOVE to have a garden, and grow my own veggies.

          I just don’t accept the argument that we have to not tax junk food because poor people live on it. there is so much wrong with that premise.

  • http://lesstalkmoreactivism.blogspot.com whoframedrudy

    Snapple … the worst stuff on earth.

    High fructose corn syrup … you might as well be drinking clorox.

    • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ sarainitaly

      really? i didn’t know that! although, i haven’t had it in YEARS!

  • lark

    Welcome to socialism, really. Sweet yet able to reduce tons of pounds out of sheer happiness.

    Socialism, here it comes. Just don’t cross the government or you will be fried in corn syrup.

  • smiles

    Although I’m not Catholic, I wanted to reduce my sugar intake and saw lent as an opportunity to motivate me to give up sugar. I didn’t eat anything (including fruit) that had sugar for 40 days! I lost 5 pounds! I’m already on the thin side and I wasn’t even trying to lose weight. It just came off. I’ve never gone back to eating sugar the way I did before that lent.

    • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ sarainitaly

      did you avoid all starches that turn to sugar, too, or just *sugary* foods? did your skin change? i wondered if i gave up sugar if i would see a dif in my skin.

      • heather

        Sarah,
        I just saw my college roommate the other day for the first time in a couple of years. I am someone who avoids sugar and high carb foods because I am reactive to carbohydrates, and have found that I am a whole lot better off without it. My roommate, on the other hand, is a Coke drinker. I was so struck by how she and I are almost the exact same age, but she looks a lot older. Her teeth used to be beautiful, but she is now missing one molar, and the one behind is black. She had this beautiful silky hair, and it is now dull. Her skin looks very thin and is much more wrinkled than I would have expected.

        I know that there are genetic differences between people on how they age, but after seeing her I have been ruminating on what caused the extreme difference, and I can only come up with diet – and Coke plays a large part. Either that, or she’s got another addiction that I don’t know anything about.

        One thing that people don’t realize is that foods like white rice, or breads made from white flour are also very quickly turned to sugar by your body. I can never understand the parents who send their kids off to school with a big doughy bagel. Most moms would never hand their child a couple of slices of white bread for breakfast and feel good about it, but somehow the form of a bagel turns it into something healthy???

        Another thing that drives me nuts is the “Wheat Bread” that you see on the shelves in the store. People perceive somehow that it is healthier because it’s brown in color. If you read the ingredients, however, you will most likely see that “Enriched wheat flour” (which is just white flour) is the first ingredient, and molasses is somewhere in there. The reason for the molasses is that it makes the essentially white bread turn brown. You might as well eat white bread.

        Juices are another thing that people don’t get. Just because it says “all natural” on the outside doesn’t mean that it’s good for you. First of all, high fructose corn syrup is considered natural, so it will often be in the ingredients. Second, nobody needs eight to twelve ounces of sugar, which is what juice is. Apple juice is essentially sugar water, and wouldn’t have any vitamins if they didn’t add ascorbic acid to keep it from turning brown.

        Those energy drinks or sports drinks are another thing that boggles my mind why people drink them. First of all, Gatorade tastes like someone spit in my kool-aid – it’s got a watery, almost-flavor to it. Second, people are suddenly concerned about dehydration and loss of electrolytes. Why? Have you been running a marathon in ninety degree weather? It’s a marketing thing, and people don’t even stop to think about it. Seriously, when was the last time you had low electrolytes? Also, most of the containers list the calories per serving, but include multiple servings. I’ve seen kids from my children’s sports teams drinking a four serving bottle of sports drink before a game – that’s somewhere around 56 g. of carbs! Gatorade is also erosive to teeth, so you’re not even doing yourself a favor that way.

        I don’t keep pop or juice in the house, our rice is brown, and our bread is always whole wheat. I make my children’s cookies and muffins with real ingredients, like butter and sugar, rather than hydrogenated oil and high fructose corn syrup. None of my kids are overweight, and none of them have ever had a cavity. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but then again, maybe not?

        • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ sarainitaly

          wow! your poor friend.

          I don’t drink juice or pop. I do every once in a while have a Coke Zero, but not often. Pops are terrible! I have cut out a lot of bread, but do eat pasta or rice almost every day. But, just a very small portion. And since moving to Italy, I use only real butter, no more margarine. But, I still probably consume more sugar then I should. I use fake sugar for my caffe and lattes. I think I am going to try an experiment, and see how much I eat. I don’t eat all those prepared meals like they showed in the video, but I bet I still consume a good amount. I would love to drop 10 pounds or so!

          • heather

            I’m a believer in real butter – one of the reasons that I don’t buy cookies from the store. I also use olive oil rather than the corn or canola oils if I can. Corn and canola are not shelf stable (meaning they will go rancid) at room temperature, so they are treated with hexane to prevent that. I like to eat things that are close to what they started out as, and those things don’t qualify, in my mind.

            Don’t believe in all these reduced-fat, reduced sugar things either. If God didn’t mean for you to eat fat, then why’d he make it taste so good? I’m not kidding, was it put there to tempt you, or is it essential to your body’s health? I’m not saying sit down and eat pounds of butter, but fat is not the enemy that they make you believe that it is. I’ve never bought margarine, don’t cook reduced fat, and don’t have a weight problem and never have. I use salt in my cooking as well. Maybe it will all catch up with me in twenty years, who knows, but I think we are all being sold something because there are people who make money off of our fear.

            My sister is a big believer in raw milk (meaning unpasteurized). She has a cow for that purpose, and makes her own cheese, butter, etc. They eat organic, but actually include a lot of different fats in their diets, with very little sugar or processed food. Her children are seven and four and have never even had antibiotics.

            There are some new sugar substitutes coming out. I think the one is called something like “Whey low”. It can be used in baking and doesn’t have any artificial sugars in it, but has a lower glycemic index (so is much less likely to affect blood sugar). It’s very expensive, apparently, compared to sugar. I haven’t used it, but have considered it because I really have a hard time eating anything with sugar in it.

          • trixta

            A great sugar substitute in STEVIA, a natural substance that has few calories and is good for gut flora and fauna.

      • smiles

        Hi sarainitaly,

        I didn’t necessarily give up bread. I read the labels on everything and distinctly remember giving up ketchup. I was surprised that ketchup had sugar in it. At that time I only looked for the word “sugar” in the ingredients. If I were to do it again (and maybe not such a bad idea with lent right around the corner), I would look for the words “sugar”, “dextrose”, “sucrose” and all of those other “-oses” and starches. Yes, my skin did get clearer – no pimples and just the overall size of the pours seemed to get nicer too.

        Another surprise was my temperament. I was calmer, more balanced and grounded as the days went on. Also that little tummy pouch/bump in my stomach got a whole lot smaller. (hmmmm. I think it’s time to give up sugar again)

        To help motivate me I remember printing out a list of how sugar is a poison for the body. It was a rather long list of all of these horrible things that sugar does to the human body.

        I also gave up red meat years ago because my body had a hard time digesting it. But an interesting story is what a friend told me when she gave up red meat. She was living with her boyfriend at the time and she decided to change their diet just to be healthy. They, as a couple, gave up red meat for a few months. Then they added it back into their diet. She noticed that after they added it back in, they argued a lot more and she’s convinced the red meat wasn’t good for their relationship.

        • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

          you are motivating me to be more sugar aware, and try to give up most sugar! :OD

          I will see how it goes, and if i have success, i will post an update.

          thanks for the info!

          • trixta

            I was a vegetarian then a vegan for a stretch of four years and I became very ill for years after that. Vegetarianism isn’t for everyone. My health improved after including protein in the form of meat (of all colors) in my diet. I think it’s the carnitine in red meat that is good for you. But I do believe in moderation.

  • Linda Anselmi

    It makes me nausious just to look at all that sugar.

    • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

      isn’t it just awful!!

      I used to drink three espressos a day, and we used real sugar. I was so grossed out one day to realize how much sugar we went through in a month. I now use Dietor. So, just that alone cut out a lot of sugar.

      • Animal Control

        Carlo Gambino used to drink about 14 espresso’s a day and i’m sure it had sugar and he lived into his 90′s. All kidding aside, if that’s all the sugar you get your’e ahead of the game. It’s not the sugar we use it’s what already in the food we buy that the culprit.

        • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

          unfortunately that isn’t the only sugar i was getting. :O) BUt, I figured every little bit helps. I would rather have gelato, and forego the sugar in my latte!

  • Seattle Moss

    Open thread comment..
    I want to congratulate all the NQ posters for their vigilance in opposing the fairness doctrine
    Because we and others have spoken out on this issue obama has backed off on trying to reinforce this doctrine.
    Let’s keep the pressure on…

    • http://americanpumainitaly.blogspot.com/ American Girl in Italy

      I keep watching that. It seems to be gaining some traction, but then not. Who knows. All I know, is I am ticked off that they waste their time on these stupid issues. This one, and the no term limits for President, and who knows what else. They should be fined for wasting their time on stupid bills like these.