Why Sugar Is Harmful to the Body

Obesity is a growing concern for governments around the world. Authorities are trying to find solutions to minimize sugar consumption among both children and adults. In Great Britain, for example, a tax has been imposed on the soft drink industry, to combat the obesity crisis.

Thus, Chancellor George Osborne announced that producers would be charged according to the volume of sugar-containing beverages they produce or import.

The products will also be divided into two categories - those containing 5 g of sugar per 100 ml and those containing 8 g per 100 ml. Nutritionists and researchers on the effects of sugar on the body also have several arguments regarding the danger of excessive sugar consumption.

So what is sugar?

We all know that sugar is a white, crystalline substance that we add to tea or powder that is pressed into freshly baked cakes. At the same time, the substance is a carbohydrate that provides energy. These are of two types: molecules of monosaccharides and disaccharides.

They are composed of fructose and glucose that can be found in fruits, vegetables, and honey; sucrose or sucrose; lactose contained in milk and maltose known as malt sugar which is contained in beverages such as beer. Such molecules are naturally contained in foods such as fruit or can be added in the production process, for example, in chocolate.

Why is sugar harmful?

Graham MacGregor, president of the Association for Research on the Effects of Sugar on the Body, says that sugar itself is not toxic. It directly affects only the teeth. This substance causes tooth decay, and as a result causes acute pain, especially in children.

Consuming sugar in reasonable amounts in the form of complex carbohydrates is not harmful to the body. However, if the accumulated energy is not used, the body will deposit it in the form of fat. This in turn can lead to obesity, which can lead to diabetes as the body becomes insulin resistant.

What effect does this have on your body?

When the body digests sugar, enzymes in the small intestine break it down into glucose. After that, glucose hits the bloodstream, which carries it to the cells of our muscle tissue and organs, where it is converted into energy.

Beta cells in the pancreas continuously monitor the amount of glucose in the blood and produce insulin to control it. If you consume more sugar than your body needs at that time, it will be stored so that your blood sugar level can be kept constant.

If your body stops producing enough insulin or if your body's cells become resistant to it, it can lead to diabetes, which means raising your blood sugar levels to dangerous amounts.

What happens to your body?

Sugar is a basic substance for the human body that provides energy to our cells to sustain our lives. However, its excessive consumption can have negative effects on our health. Foods that contain added sugar, that is, those that are not naturally contained in them, contain empty calories, which provide the body with nothing but energy. If we consume more sugar than we need, then our body has to do something with the extra accumulated energy, which results in several problems. Excessive sugar consumption is one of the main causes of obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.

Why do we like sugar so much?

You have high blood sugar after consuming a large number of carbohydrates. The result is a protective reaction in which insulin removes sugar from the blood and directs it to the muscle tissues, which need energy. However, different types of sugar cause different effects. Researchers say, for example, that sucrose causes a faster rise in blood sugar than carbohydrates in brown rice.

The desire to consume arises from the body's need to maintain an amount of blood sugar equal to about 2 teaspoons to function normally. If we happen to eat foods that contain large amounts of sugar, the body reacts by producing a lot of insulin needed to process the substance.

However, once we stop eating sugary foods we are at risk of having too much insulin in our blood, which causes a sudden drop in blood sugar and a desire to eat sweets, the researchers explain.

What sugar products should we avoid at all costs?

First of all, drinks contain sugar, because liquids should only be a source of hydration and not energy. In addition, sugary drinks do not provide nutrients to the body but only contribute to the accumulation of unnecessary calories.

How should we manage sugar consumption?

Professor MacGregor states: "Just as we strive to consume less salt, so we should do with sugar. In this case, consumers should gradually reduce the amount of sugar in food and beverages over a few years. This method would allow the person to get used to the different tastes of the food and would give the producers time to change their strategies.

The Association for Research on the Effects of Sugar on the Body urges the population to reduce the amount of sugar by 50% and the amount of fat by 20% over 5 years. This would reduce the accumulation of about 200 calories a day and as a result reduce the number of obese people and the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Food experts in the UK consider, for example, the imposition of a tax on sugar-containing products to be a "huge victory" in the fight for children's health, which encourages people to eat healthier drinks. for consumers and businesses.

However, experts say that only imposing a tax on sugary drinks will not solve the childhood obesity crisis. That is why it should be accompanied by severe restrictions on the marketing of unhealthy foods on the Internet and in the media.