Scientists have turned their attentions towards sugar and the initial results are alarming. Fat is still bad, but sugar is wrestling to become the front runner when it comes to heart disease.

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Since the age of 13 I have gone into the ring for a Wrestlemania event of my own against weight gain. I have followed the food pyramid and have eaten low-fat/low-carb diets. Today, I eat a lot of chicken and very little red meat. I limit my carbs and have increased my veggie consumption over the years. I eat some fruits (not enough, so says my doctor) and almost never eat dessert. ( I am not a saint on the dessert, I just don't care that much for cakes, cookies, ice cream and the like) I have done fairly well in my 'weight-life', sometimes up sometimes down, but generally I am happy. Now there seems to be a quiet threat that staying away from too much fat or red meat won't cure and that's sugar. Glucose/Fructose: Sugar/Corn Syrup all are bad in today's dietary world because of the increasing amounts in our foods. Over the decades we have gone from 15 g of (sugar) a day to 73 g, that number has steadily increased since the induction of HFCS in 1975-76. That means our daily caloric intake has jumped to about 12% of all calories consumed being sugar.

During a 60 minutes special on sugar called "Sugar and Kids: the Toxic Truth" one expert,  Eric Stice, a neuro scientist at the Oregon Research Institute, says that sugar is as addictive as Cocaine. He says in the 60 minute interview:

Sugar activates the brain in a special way that's very reminiscent of drugs like Cocaine

Here's the deal obesity isn't new, its been around for a long time. What is new is the increasing rate of obesity. How can that be? How can we be getting fatter when we have cut our fat in half and are more aware than ever what we put into our bodies? It's simple, without the fat we lose flavor, so to keep selling their products manufactures add sugar/high fructose corn syrup.  According to some it starts and ends with sugar. Dr. Robert Lustig, Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at UCSF has dedicated his career to educating everyone that will listen about the dangers of sugar.

On top of obesity, sugar is linked to heart disease and can potentially enable some cancers. Dr. Lustig and his colleagues research show that the problem is only getting worse, not just in America, but in all countries with similar diets. And again it points back to sugar. Did you know that some french fries and hamburgers have added sugar to make it taste better? Sugar in hamburgers, yep!?

What does all this excess sugar do to the body? Dr. Lustig's research suggests that our body begins to have trouble breaking things down and essentially get's overloaded and confused. Excess sugar can be linked to:

  • Heart Disease
  • Hypertension
  • Obesity
  • Insulin Resistance/Type 2 Diabetes
  • Fatty Liver
  • Always Hungry (the brain gets overloaded and kind of loses the receptors to indicate that you are full)

Obviously I am not an expert on the American diet nor an expert on sugar, I have however listened to several lectures on the topic and have read a few articles. I really like what Dr. Robert Lustig has to offer on the topic and encourage you to view one of his lectures.

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