11 Nov The Hidden Silent Killer

I have just been watching the news and listening to the warnings about our obsession with sugar and the horrendous health consequences we can look forward to if we continue to indulge in this silent killer.

They have talked about the obvious culprits like fizzy drinks, chocolate and sugary cereals, but what about all the sugar loaded into other food that isn’t quite so apparent.

For instance if you ever buy low fat food then I suggest next time, you take a minute to look at the ingredients list, you may notice that when the fat is reduced the sugar (or even worse sugar substitute) content is higher, well they’ve got to get the flavour from somewhere haven’t they?!

Sugar (including honey, agave nectar, maple syrup etc) is made up of 50% glucose and 50% fructose. The glucose element can be used by the body as energy, as long as there is not too much consumed, but fructose converts into fat and deposits itself around the abdomen. So as you can see reducing the fat and increasing the sugar is certainly NOT a healthier and is NOT really a low fat option at all!

I never buy low fat products and even if you’re on a diet, full fat is still definitely best, besides your body needs fat for various things, just not too much of it! Dairy products are a little different, low fat just means low fat, no added sugar, which is why milks get thinner in consistency as fat is reduced.

So obviously you need to cut down on fizzy drink, sweets, chocolate and sugary cereals, drink more water, herbal teas, fresh fruit and veg (although not too much fruit!) and choose healthier snacks etc but please watch out for the hidden stuff too and you may be able to avoid obesity, type 2 diabetes and tooth decay all in one go!

There are natural and healthier sugar alternatives too like Stevia and Xylitol but that will come up in another blog… watch this space!