Sugar is often referred to as a "white poison" and is sometimes demonized. But does it really have to be?
In this article, we will examine the question of how bad sugar really is, what effect sugar consumption has on our bodies, and how a sugar-reduced, healthy breakfast or a healthy diet works.
What causes sugar in our body?
Even though sugar is often demonized and portrayed as a thickener, sugar molecules are energy providers for our bodies. For example, our brain relies on a daily intake of sugar for it to function properly.
Even if sugar is not necessarily bad and harmful, you should still take care not to eat too much when consuming it. According to various studies, we tend to eat too much sugar in our latitudes .
On average, we eat 5 percentage points more sugar than we should. If you consume more sugar than you need in the long term, this can lead to various diseases.
Do you suffer from various symptoms such as tooth decay, cravings, constant thirst, poor skin, indigestion, and headaches? Then you should take a closer look at your sugar consumption. Find out more about the symptoms of overconsumption of sugar here.
Probably the most well-known disease that can be attributed to excessive sugar consumption is type 2 diabetes . Other diseases that promote overconsumption of sugar include overweight and obesity, cardiovascular disease, and various cancers.
The official WHO recommendations for daily sugar consumption are 25 g of sugar per day.
What exactly does sugar do in our body?
When we eat food, it causes the sugar chains in our body to be broken down into their components .
This happens until only the simple sugars (monosaccharides) fructose and glucose remain . These then immediately enter our bloodstream and the absorption of glucose consequently also increases the blood sugar level .
So that the body can then transport the glucose into the cells, the body releases the hormone insulin .
The simple sugar fructose, unlike glucose, is further processed in the liver and has virtually no effect on insulin secretion.
If the insulin level is chronically elevated, i.e. too much sugar is consumed for a long time, then this can promote a variety of chronic diseases. This is because elevated insulin levels promote inflammation.
Sugar makes you tired!
If you eat sweets, especially if they contain a lot of simple sugar, it causes the blood sugar level to rise rapidly. Due to the fact that simple sugar is processed by the body very quickly, the blood sugar level also drops quickly .
The bottom line: You get energy quickly and then fall into an energy hole even faster. This often leads to the feeling that you have to eat something again that gives you energy. We often go back to snacks that contain a lot of sugar.
A balanced blood sugar level can prevent us from falling into an afternoon low and fatigue from rolling over us . You should therefore particularly resort to complex carbohydrates, which consist of multiple sugars.
Since the body takes longer to break down multiple sugars, blood sugar levels rise only slowly and not so much. In addition, when you eat complex carbohydrates, you stay full for a long time.
Can you get addicted to sugar?
Studies have not yet been able to confirm sugar addiction. However, scientists suspect at least a possible addictive potential of sugar . Experiments with rats have shown that they developed a kind of sugar addiction.
However, it has not yet been confirmed that these results can also be transferred to humans and whether humans can also develop a sugar addiction. The answer to this question is therefore no. However, this is still not a free pass to simply consume as much sugar as you want.
Be careful when combining sugar and fat
Not only can the sweet tooth cause us to eat too much of it, but in the long term, we can no longer do without sugar. The combination of sugar and fat also has an effect on our body.
Because when we combine sweets with fats, this mixture activates our reward system in the brain, and an increased dose of dopamine (the happiness hormone) is released.
Therefore, if you combine sweets with fatty foods very often, such as by consuming chocolate, the body will get used to this dose in the long term, and in the future, you will have to eat more chocolate so that the same amounts of dopamine are released. This is because, over time, there is a lower dopamine release for the same amount of sugar and fat.
Hidden Sugar Traps
It is particularly important that you get an overview of how much sugar you actually eat. Especially in processed products, there is often more sugar than in homemade foods.
It is always worth taking a quick look at the nutrition table on the back of the product or the packaging. It is best to always look at the nutritional values for 100g here, as the nutritional values in the portion information may be partially distorted.
Find out how you can reduce your sugar consumption and easily implement this in everyday life.
Go for sugar alternatives rather than industrial sugar
If you want to reduce your sugar consumption, you can start by removing industrial sugar from your diet and replacing it with slightly healthier sugar alternatives.
Although various sugar alternatives, such as honey, agave syrup, maple syrup, or birch sugar, are not really much healthier, they are sweeter and have a stronger taste than white sugar.
Therefore, you need a lower amount of sugar substitute than normal sugar and can at least save some sugar and calories.
How to have a healthy breakfast without sugar
Basically, it is not so difficult to do without sugar once you have identified the different sources of sugar. For many, it may seem difficult to do without sugar as much as possible at breakfast.
It is not difficult to start the day healthy and avoid sugar . For example, you can start your day strengthened and fit with a healthy porridge consisting of complex carbohydrates .
Especially the oatmeal in the porridge keeps you full for a long time and ensures that your blood sugar level remains constant. You can find more tips for a healthy breakfast without sugar here.
Porridge basic recipe – sugar-free and vegan
Ingredients
- 180 ml milk or plant drink
- 3-4 tbsp oatmeal
- 1 pinch of salt
Preparation
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Bring the milk (or plant drink) to a boil in a saucepan.
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Add oatmeal and switch the stove to a low setting.
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Simmer the porridge for about 5 minutes (stirring constantly with a spoon so that the milk does not burn and the porridge gets a nice creamy texture).
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Remove the pot from the heat and let the porridge steep until it gets the right consistency.
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Finally, add a pinch of salt. This enhances the flavor of the oatmeal even more, whether you want to enjoy your porridge with sweet or savory toppings.
You can read more about the topic of healthy breakfast and nutrition in our guide to a healthy breakfast .
