Do you have a sweet tooth? Do you find yourself looking for the midnight snack in the cookie jar every night? Well have you ever found your self looking at your self and asking if all your midnight sugar cravings are worth it. Maybe you have discovered that you are bogged down with brain fog, low energy, series health conditions like cancer, diabetes, or digestion issues, and or maybe you are struggling to loose weight even though you have tried every diet on the planet. Well, your diet could be playing a very big role in all those conditions and in a whole lot more. Today I want to talk about one specific nutrient that could be contributing to some serious health conditions. So Sugar, is it worth it?
So let's define what sugar actually is. Sugar in chemistry terms is anything ending in “ose”. Sugar actually comes in many three different groups and forms.
The first group is called Monosaccharides, which consist of Glucose, Galactose, and Fructose. Glucose is the most basic form of sugar and the only form of sugar that can be transported to our bloodstream directly.
Glucose is required by every cell in our body for energy.
Galactose - which is sugar from milk
Fructose which is sugar found in fruit
Interestingly to note, Galactose and Fructose cannot enter the bloodstream directly like Glucose can, they must first be sent to the liver where they are converted to either fat, energy, or glucose.
The Second group is called , Disaccharides, which are usually found in our foods. Disaccharides include:
sucrose (table sugar),
lactose (milk sugar),
maltose (malt sugar).
Finally, and the last group is called Polysaccharides, which are long branches, much more complex, and found in plant foods.
Carbohydrates, are another form of sugar, because when ingested our bodies goes to work breaking them down into small sugar parts. This process only takes about 30 mins to go from the stomach to the small intestine, but when they enter the colon, It spends up to 72 hours in your colon.
So now that you know a little bit about sugar, is it good for you or not? well the simple answer is it depends. Sugar is needed by the body, as stated previously, “every cell needs glucose for energy” Carbohydrates after spending so much time in your colon actually begin to ferment and produce nutrients that are very good for your colon’s health. So as you can see, sugar is needed and is necessary for your body to function correctly.
However when we take in sugar in the form of a donut, candy, soda, ect… that is when this type of sugar becomes bad. Simple sugars, like those found in candy, treats, and soda have, first off, no nutritional value what’s so ever. The conversion process to break make this type of sugar strips the raw sugar from all its nutritional value and leaves it stripped clean. These types of sugars deplete minerals, disrupt your immune system, cause blood sugar imbalances, impair brain function, cause internal inflammation, cause cardiac problems like heart disease, contribute to systemic candida, and can also contribute to cancer.
Sugar role Mineral Depletion
Our bodies depend upon things like calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, and a few others to be able to break down foods, especially processed sugar, and because candy and those yummy treats we love so much have no nutrients in them, our bodies must them borrow those nutrients from our bones and other areas of our bodies to help us digest the treat we just ate. Over time, this leads to mineral deficiencies and serious complications like osteoporosis, osteopenia, and a host of other complications. A study on sugar and minerals performed by Dr Wallach found that sugar intake increase mineral loss by 300%.
Sugar’s role in Cancer
Sugar's role in cancer is really multifaceted. As stated early all cells need sugar and that includes abnormal cells. The more we feed these abnormal cells the more they grow. Also, because sugar causes a host of other complications including internal inflammation, it promotes the growth of cancerous cells due to this inflammation.
Sugar’s role in Digestion
Excess sugar can causes our blood to become too acidic, and when this happens our bodies try to counter act this acidity by decreasing the acidity of the stomach, the one place you want a lot of acid. This leads to poorly digested food, heart burn, digestive issues, inflammation, and even nutrient deficiencies.
Conclusion
So as you can see, sugar is both necessary for proper function and health, but the wrong type of sugar can promote sickness and health conditions that we definitely do not want. So when you are faced with that late night sugar craving, instead of reaching for cookies, there could be better choices to snack on that are natural and that are going to promote nutrition and a calming effect on the body....promoting health, healing, and yes even weight-loss.
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