We Eat and Drink Too Much Added Sugar

Americans over the age of 2 now consume 15.8 percent of their daily calories as added sugar. That's a 50 percent increase from 30 years ago, when added sugars contributed only 10.5 percent of our daily calories. Even worse, studies suggest that added sugars amount to as much as 25 percent of the caloric intake of children and teenagers. 

Oddly, it's possible that the increased sugar intake is a consequence of the recommendations of the American Heart Association (AHA) to reduce dietary fat. Food manufactures responded by creating a variety of low-fat foods but at the same time increased the amount of sugar in these packaged products. The AHA has recently recognized the dangers of added sugar by advising that they comprise less than about 5 percent of total calories. That means no more than 100 calories per day for women and 150 daily calories for men. This AHA limit on added sugars is much more strict than those of earlier dietary guidelines. Sucrose (table sugar from refined beet or cane sugar) and the inexpensive sweetener, high fructose corn syrup, are presently the most commonly added sugars.   

Why worry about added sugar?

Added sugar promotes tooth decay and weight gain, especially the accumulation of fat within the abdomen (visceral fat). This visceral fat increases the danger of type 2 diabetes by producing resistance to the action of insulin. Obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes are risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

A recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that added sugar also has adverse effects on blood lipids, other important risk factors in cardiovascular disease. Another study, The National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHANES) of 1999-2006, showed problems with a higher sugar intake as well. In the survey 6,113 adults were divided into five groups based on their added sugar intake. The most dramatic effect of added sugars was on protective HDL cholesterol. HDL cholesterol was only 47.7 mg/dL in those who consumed more than 25 percent of calories as added sugars. This compared to 58.7 mg/dL among those whose diet contained less than 5 percent of calories as added sugar. High intake of added sugars was also associated with modestly higher triglycerides and LDL cholesterol (but only in women). In other studies, added sugar produced a more substantial increase in triglyceride levels. 

How can we reduce the amount of added sugar in our diet?

One important step is to avoid or limit sweetened beverages and vitamin waters. Adding one 20-ounce soft drink daily would lead to a weight gain of 2.5 pounds in one year and 25 extra pounds at the end of 10 years. I’m especially perplexed by the sales of highly promoted vitamin waters (which include sugar for flavor) to young adults who have no need for the vitamins and minerals they contain. Other ways to lessen added sugars include the use of fruit instead of sugar to sweeten cereals and replacing the sugar in recipes with unsweetened juices.

Some people may be taken in by television ads for a chocolate syrup which encourages viewers to "pour it on” because it contains little fat. But there is a catch. We need to be as careful about sugar consumption as we have become about fat.