I don’t know many people who hate sweets, but it seems that we sometimes have sugar cravings and don’t know why. One view is that sweets are associated with fun, happiness, or celebration. If you win a basketball game, you could celebrate with ice-cream. Some people have sugar cravings because it is a routine or habit. Maybe you go to the movies and always get Twizzlers or just always eat dessert after dinner. It’s important to also know that too much sugar can be really detrimental to your body and mental state. Take a look at some of its negative effects below:
* Sugar can contribute to hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, concentration difficulties, and crankiness.
* Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
* Sugar can cause kidney damage and increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
* Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
* Sugar can promote tooth decay.
* Sugar can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and grey hair.
* Sugar can increase total cholesterol and contribute to weight gain and obesity.
* Sugar can contribute to diabetes and osteoporosis.
* Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
* Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease and hypertension
* Sugar causes food allergies and contribute to eczema in children.
* Sugar can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
* Sugar can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver
* Sugar can increase the amount of fat in the liver.
* Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
* Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.
* Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance.
* Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
* Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind’s ability to think clearly.
* Sugar can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots and strokes.
All of these negative factors don’t mean you should completely stop consuming sugar. There is not a definite answer to the daily amount of sugar you should consume a day, but 40 grams is the recommended amount. Forty grams of sugar refers mainly to added sugar, which is anything that is put into foods rather than that in which sugar is naturally occurring, such as in fruit. For example, ALL sugar in soda would be considered “added,” since the beverage itself is constructed rather than harvested.