Believe It Or Not These Are The Sugar Guidelines

The American Heart Association has proposed specific guidelines for sugar consumption.  Most women should consume no more than 25 grams (about 6 teaspoons) of added sugar a day;  most men no more than 37.5 grams (about 9 teaspoons) a day.  This translates to no more than 100 calories of added sugar for women and no more than 150 calories for men.

Think about this.  That is precious little sugar and it is so easy to exceed these limits.  In factost Americans do exceed them, frequently by alot.  For example a 16 ounce bottle of soda has about 44 grams (11 teaspoons) of added sugar.  How many sodas do you drink a day?  Even foods like yogurt and baked beans may be loaded with extra sugar, beyond the sugar naturally in them.

If you are serious about reducing your sugar intake you need to act like a detective and examine the labels on the foods that you eat.  Here are a some examples of added sugar in beverages and foods.

Beverages (8 oz)                                                     Added Sugar (G)

Cola                                                                                   22

Tea, instant, sugar sweetened                                            21

Cranberry juice cocktail                                                    20

Soy milk, chocolate                                                          10

Food

Candies, caramel, 2.5 oz package                                    36

Milk chocolate candy bar                                                 19

Vanilla pudding 4 oz                                                        19

Canned baked beans 1 cup                                               15

Glazed doughnut 1.4 oz                                                   14

If it feels to you as though you are in sugar trouble, you are not alone.  Most of us are. If you are really serious about wanting to improve your health, lose weight or just plain feel better you must pay attention to the sugar trail., and greatly reduce the amount of added sugar that you consume.It will not be easy to do this since most of us are addicted to the sugar high.  In the next blog we will discuss common sense actions that will give you a jump start toward defeating the sugar siren.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

How Sugar Can Kill You

Can sugar kill you? In previous blogs we discussed the fact that sugar is a siren killing us softly with her song. Now there is new and reliable evidence that excess sugar can increase your risk of dying from heart disease.

In an article recently published in the JAMA Internal Medicine magazine the investigators reported that people whose sugar intake accounted for more than 25% of their total daily calories had twice the risk of dying from heart disease than those whose intake was less than 7% of their total calories.

It does not take that much extra sugar to make a difference. The problem is that sugar is hidden in so many processed foods. This results in most Americans eating more than the safest amount of sugar. For example having a cinnamon roll with your morning coffee, a sugary soda at lunch and some ice cream after dinner would put you in a high risk group.  Someone who normally consumes 2,000 calories a day would substantially increase their risk of heart disease by drinking only two 12 ounce sodas a day.

In our opinion this has been the most important and reliable study to document the link between sugar consumption and heart disease.  The researchers are not certain about the exact mechanism that is responsible for the increased incidence of heart disease.  In previous blogs we have reported that excess sugar has been shown to increase blood pressure and levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.  It may also increase inflammation linked with heart disease.

According to the researchers, sugar from fresh fruits and vegetables does not count in the unhealthy tabulation of bad sugar calories. This does not make complete sense to us since sugar is sugar is sugar. We think that it may also be the chemicals and additives present in processed foods that are partly responsible for the increase in heart disease reported in this study. In any event it makes sense to follow the dictates of moderation in eating. Focus on fresh fruits and vegetables. Avoid processed foods and avoid extra sugar calories whenever you can.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Sugar The Siren Part 2

We all love sugar. It is yummy and  tastes so good, but it is not good for us. Sugar is a major health risk. Somehow sugar has stayed out of the limelight while the blame for obesity, high blood cholesterol, high triglycerides, heart attacks and strokes has been laid primarily on too much saturated fat in our diets. As a result fat makes up a smaller portion of the American diet than it did a generation ago but the numbers of obese Americans continues to grow. As does the incidence of diabetes.

Sugar is responsible for two health problems. The first is obesity. Sugar is a source of easy calories. There are four calories to every gram of carbohydrate and sugar is a carohydrate.  The sugar calories found in every bite of sweets, pastry, white bread, snack foods and in every sip of soda add up quickly. Take in more calories than are necessary to sustain all of your body's functions and the excess are converted to fat. More calories means more fat.

The other health problem caused by sugar is a bit more complicated. Sucrose or table sugar is a disaccharide comprised of equal parts of glucose and fructose. Glucose is the fuel that makes the body run. Fructose is the kind of sugar that is found naturally in fruit. Glucose is metabolized by all of the cells in the body. Fructose, on the other hand is metabolized primarily by the liver.

Possibly you have heard or read of the health problems caused by ingesting too much high fructose corn syrup {HFCS} HFCS is also a disaccharide mixture of glucose and fructose. The impact on health of sucrose and HFCS is similar. If you eat too much fructose your liver metabolizes the fructose and produces fats called triglycerides. Some of this fat stays in the liver and over a period of time your liver may become dysfunctional.  Most of the trigycerides are pushed into your circulation. Over time your tissues become more resistant to insulin. Eventually a condition known as the metabolic syndrome can develop. It is characterized by obesity, high blood pressure and other metabolic changes. It can also lead to the development of type 2 diabetes.

The American Heart Association has issues warning about limiting the amount of sugar in the diet.  The rational for that warning is that sugar provides calories with no nutritional benefit. We call this kind of calories empty calories. According to numerous experts this warning is necessary, but it misses the most important point. Excessive sugar is not just empty calories. It can be toxic. 

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Sugar The Siren

There is no doubt about it.  Sugar is a powerful siren. More powerful  than the mythical Sirens of Scylla  that lured men and their boats to destruction.  Sugar is killing us, killing us legally and we allow it to continue killing us.  More about that later.  First let's go to the beginning.

In the beginning sugar cane was domesticated about 10,000 years ago. Natives picked cane and ate it raw,  To them it was magically  medicinal.  It was an elixir and a cure for every ailment.  It even appeared in ancient myths where one of the first men made love to a stalk of sugar cane thus propagating the human race.

Sugar spread slowly reaching the Asian mainland around 1000 B.C.  It has been stated that when Alexander the Great and his armies crossed into India his men refused to march further because they were intoxicated with the high they got from chewing on the new elixir from sugar cane. By about 600 the art of processing sugar from cane had spread to Persia.  From there it spread to wherever the Arab armies went. The first Europeans to fall in love with sugar were British and French crusaders in the 11th century.  They came home with visions and memories of eating sugar.

The first European market for sugar was built on the trickle that was carried across the dessert by traders. It was so expensive that it was consumed only by nobility and so rare that it was considered a spice. The dawn of the western sugar era began with the cultivation of sugar cane in the new world.
As more cane was planted, the price of sugar fell and demand increased. By the mid 17th century sugar changed from being a luxury spice to a staple.

At first sugar was available to the nobility. Then access to it trickled down to the wealthy, then to the middle classes then to the working classes. Nevertheless we were not inundated with soft drinks, soda, cookies, crackers, desserts, cakes, pies and you name it until well into the 20th century.

Now we have a situation where one-third of adult worldwide have high blood pressure, when only 5 percent had it in 1900. There are twice as many diabetics and obesity is rampant. What is the cause?  Blame most of these problems on sugar.

We will explain why in the next blog.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Get High Naturally Without Drugs

Many people who engage in sustained moderate or high intensity exercise experience "runners high."

It is described as a feeling of euphoria that occurs during or right after exercise. 

There is not total agreement about the reaction in the body that is responsible for causing this feeling of euphoria. A long-held theory is that "runners high" is caused by endorphins that are generated by intensive exercise. These endorphins are neurotransmitters that act by binding to the same cell receptors as drugs like morphine or heroin. In this manner they act as natural pain killers and mood enhancers.

Exercise also increases levels of other neurotransmitters that impact mood. In addition exercise causes the production of endocannabinoids. These compounds are related to cannabis, better known as marijuana, and can be thought of as a natural marijuana generated by your own body when you exercise. In other words you can do something that is totally legal and healthy with the added benefit that you can get high naturally.

There is no agreement regarding how intense you must exercise to activate the pleasure reward center in the brain. In fact some researchers suggest that only moderate  exercise boosts endocannabinoids. It is also important to point out that not everyone who exercises, no matter how hard they work out experience this natural high.

Nevertheless even if you do not experience this classic runners high exercise generally makes you feel better and can improve your mood as well as help you to sleep better. Our advice to you is to begin an exercise program You will never regret taking this first step to a longer and healthier life. If you would like more information on a good starting exercise program go to our book Live Longer Live Healthier.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Hearing Loss And Dementia

It is no secret that as we get older many of us have impaired hearing. In fact it is estimated that about 48 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss. Most of these people never seek treatment, partly because of the cost of hearing aids and partly because many believe that some hearing loss is normal and harmless.

Unfortunately there is growing evidence that hearing loss may increase the risk of cognitive problems. In a recent study published in a well regarded medical journal the authors evaluated the cognitive and hearing levels of 1,984 older adults. They compared those with normal hearing to those with hearing loss. Those with hearing loss had lower scores on baseline cognitive testing and were more likely to have significant impairment after six years, The authors also found that the worse the hearing, the worse the mental decline.

The take away message is that there is good reason to treat hearing loss. If doing so even slightly heads off dementia it would be a big plus.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net

Is It Unhealthy To Eat Eggs?

For at least half a century we have been cautioned against eating eggs. The rational was that since eggs have a high cholesterol content eating them would raise blood cholesterol and increase the risk of heart disease.

The truth is that this fear was not based on actual science. Dietary cholesterol has relatively little effect on blood cholesterol. In fact the real culprits are saturated fats and trans fats. A large study of nearly half a million people followed for 8 to 22 years found no relationship between eating one egg a day and the incidence of heart disease and stroke.

The bottom line is that eggs are an excellent source of protein and other nutrients including choline, carotenoids, lutein, and some vitamins. For most people, easting an egg a day will have no ill effects. In fact it may even be beneficial.

Get more information in our book Live Longer Live Healthier

or visit our website at trienergetics.net