Sugar Consumption

In my opinion one of the most compelling global health issues we are facing is sugar consumption. This issue is striking to me because of the fact that oftentimes it goes unnoticed how much added sugar can be present in foods we eat, and what is consumed on a daily basis. In an average human diet, marketing techniques in combination with lifestyle are large contributors in food choice. A lot of the consumed sugar can be accounted for in soda pop, and empty liquid calories, or candies. Even items such as vitamin water, which we perceive as a healthy alternative to soda, has roughly 13 grams per 8 oz glass, or 33 grams of sugar per 20 oz bottle. Another drink is saturated with sugar is Odwalla’s Original Superfood drink, which contains 37 grams of sugar per 12 oz bottle. This is equal to roughly 10 percent or of the contents being made up of sugar, which isn’t something you would expect from a drink typically thought of as being natural and healthy. Looking closer at the label you can also see that apple juice is listed as the first and main ingredient, which explains the sugar content. Apple juice ranks in as having 26 grams of sugar per 8 oz (http://www.odwalla.com/good-products/superfoods/original, http://www.sugarstacks.com/beverages.htm).

Other sources of the unnecessary sugar in our diets can be equally unsuspecting. Some of the most sugar is present in things we unknowingly assume to be healthier choices, or a part of a balanced diet. Yogurt is another example of this. There are 26 grams of sugar in a 6 oz Yoplait vanilla flavored original yogurt  (http://www.yoplait.com/products/yoplait-original-style). This is something most people would consider a healthy part of breakfast, though contrary to many peoples knowledge, it contains only 4 grams less sugar than a snickers candy bar, and 3 grams more sugar than 6 Oreo cookies, which contains 23 grams of sugar. If we pay more attention to the nutrition information and read the labels on foods we can greatly reduce the amount of sugar we consume. By doing this, you can choose instead to buy Vanilla Dannon Light and Fit yogurt and reduce the total grams of sugar you would consume to 7 total grams. You can also get plain yogurt to reduce total sugar even more, and add fruit to it for a more healthy and natural unprocessed source of sugar (http://www.sugarstacks.com/cookies.htm).

           

Another area of concern is food that is marketed towards children. Children’s juices, snacks, and cereals can be a major source of sugar consumption. For instance, a typical thing for children to eat is an Oscar Meyer Lunchable, which contains 36 grams of sugar. If the child were to also drink 6.75 oz, or one Juicy Juice berry juice box, with the Lunchable, they would be drinking another 23 grams of sugar (http://www.juicyjuice.com/Products/Juicy-Juice-Fruit-Juice/Berry.aspx). Alone, these two food options would total 58 grams. This amount is equivalent to feeding the child the amount of sugar in a 12 oz can of Coca Cola and 2 Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnuts (http://summertomato.com/shocking-sugar-content-of-common-food-products/). In order to consume the same amount of sugar, the child could instead eat an array of fruits and vegetables. To put it in perspective, it equates to consuming 2 lbs 11 oz of carrots (http://www.sugarstacks.com/carrots.htm). This would be an example of a natural and unprocessed source of sugar, and a much larger quantity of food that wouldn’t leave them feeling hungry afterward.

Addressing global nutrition is a challenge because often people don’t like being told what they should and shouldn’t eat. Also when something is being marketed to you through media as being healthy or reducing risk of disease, generally people are more prone to want to buy the product even if the advertizing contains false or misleading information. Starting by limiting or eliminating highly processed and artificially sweetened foods and drinks is the best way to cut out sugar. Reading food labels and checking ingredients to observe which foods contain higher amounts of sugar is something that should also be done by the population. Being proactive by reducing the amount of sugar in your diet can have many benefits. It can improve clearness of skin, and strength of teeth. It can also greatly reduce the risk of childhood and adult obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer (http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/benefits-lowering-sugar-intake-4563.html).