How many calories are in sugar, the benefits and harms, the composition of the product

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Don't worry, there is something in your food. In the cereal you ate for breakfast, in ketchup, sprinkled on french fries… The addictive substance lurks in many foods that you never knew existed. Far more hated than fat or cholesterol, sugar has become public enemy No. 1 these days when it comes to he alth. In this article, you will find out how many calories are in sugar, its benefits and harms.

The hidden "enemy"

In fact, we can only listen to scientists and doctors who advise to consume less fat and less cholesterol. People turned to "he althy" low-fat foods that were actually loaded with sugar. In its recent report, the Food Advisory Committee cited sugar as one of the top causes of he alth problems and recommended that sugar make up 10 percent or less of our daily caloric intake.

How many calories are in sugar

100 grams of sugar contains 389 calories. That's about 23 teaspoons.

World He alth recommends that no more than half of your daily calories come from foods with added various sugars. How muchcalories in a teaspoon of sugar? Approximately 14. That is, you need to consume about 6 tsp. or 100 calories for women and 9 tsp. or 150 calories for men.

But we're eating way too much sugar: the average person eats between 13 and 20 teaspoons of added sugar per day (about 230 calories for women and 335 for men).

Useful properties of sugar

In its natural state, sugar is a relatively harmless, even essential carbohydrate that our bodies need to control. For those who are losing weight, it is important to note that the number of calories in a spoonful of sugar (how much you eat, you already know) is equivalent to one glass of kefir. It is found in fruits, vegetables and dairy products as a compound known as fructose or lactose.

The harm of sugar

The problem occurs when sugar is added to foods during processing to add flavor, texture or color. This is more common than you might imagine. You don't have to eat all the hard candy to be surrounded by added sugar. Eating too many of these empty calories has many he alth effects, the most obvious being significant weight gain.

Added sugar raises your insulin levels, messes with your metabolism and causes those calories to go into body fat.

Sugar lowers blood pressure

Besides how many calories are in 1 spoon of sugar, and harmthese calories for your figure, with an overdose of glucose, there may be other problems.

Recent research suggests that eating dietary sugar, regardless of weight gain, can also raise blood pressure. And this is important: high blood pressure increases the load on the heart and arteries, and can also lead to damage over time to the entire circulatory system. This can eventually lead to cardiovascular disease, heart attacks, stroke, kidney damage, arterial disease, and other serious coronary diseases. What's more, people who follow a diet where at least 25 percent of their calories come from sugar they eat are twice as likely to die from cardiovascular disease than those who follow a diet where less than 10 percent of their food is sugar.

Sugar causes a jump in cholesterol

People who eat a lot of sugar are more prone to bad cholesterol as well as higher blood triglyceride levels. Bad cholesterol and blood triglycerides clog arteries and blood vessels, leading to heart disease. Here it doesn't matter how many calories are in a spoonful of sugar, we are talking about the heart, the organ thanks to which we live.

Increased risk of heart attack

People with higher blood sugar levels are significantly more likely to have heart attacks than those with lower sugar intake. One study showed thatSugar and candied drinks increase the risk of coronary heart disease. "For every extra soda or sugary drink you consume, you can raise your risk of heart disease by 25 percent," says Darria Long Gillespie, an emergency physician assigned on board at Emory University Hospital. “Look how many calories are in a teaspoon of sugar – it’s a shock to the body!”

Sugar eats your brain

You may have heard that sweets can eat your tooth enamel, but what's even scarier is that sugar can eat your brain too. Studies show that eating too much sugar can damage the brain's cognitive function and reduce the supply of proteins needed for good memory and quick response.

In one particular study, lab rats fed sweets were slower and showed less brain synaptic activity than the control group. "High sugar intake is as addictive as a drug - a condition associated not only with cognitive decline, but perhaps even changes in brain structure," says Long Gillespie.

The calories in a teaspoon of sugar, no matter how much people argue about its benefits and harms, are enough to drive a little rat crazy.

High chance of Alzheimer's

A diet high in sugar reduces the production of a chemical known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which helps the mind formnew memories and never forget the old ones. Levels of this substance are especially low in diabetic and pre-diabetic people and have been linked to Alzheimer's disease.

Sugar causes depression

And not the answer to the question of how many calories are in sugar. In one study, adults who drank more than four glasses of soda a day were 30% more likely to be depressed than people who drank unsweetened water, coffee, or tea. And how many sugar calories they don't get doesn't matter.

To function properly, the brain needs a constant supply of nutrients such as glucose and insulin. When glucose (the scientific name for sugar) enters the bloodstream, insulin opens the cell doors to let the sugar in. However, when your brain experiences continuous pricks of sugar spikes (from your breakfast cereal to your afternoon coffee and ice cream), insulin becomes more immune to it and therefore less effective. This eventually leads to depression and anxiety. So don't be fooled by the myth that sweets make you feel better. The pressure rises and there is a sharp jump in glucose, from which you feel more excited (read - happy). But this is a momentary feeling.

All good things should be in moderation

But if you approach things wisely, do not overdo it with sweets and watch your diet, sugar will only be in favor. How many calories are in 2 tablespoons of sugar added to tea? Not so much to cause he alth problems - only thirty. If you miss a cup of sweet coffee ortea at breakfast, nothing bad will happen. The main thing is to know the measure. Read food packaging, see how many calories are in the sugars that they contain, count them and do not go beyond. Then you will not know he alth problems.