Every day, the typical American consumes 17 teaspoons of additional sugar! And how much sugar should he consume every day? The American Heart Association (AHA) advises a daily sugar intake of no more than six teaspoons for women and nine teaspoons for men, with no added sugars for children under the age of two.
They shouldn’t, but that doesn’t mean they always won’t. Added sugars may be present in supplemental feeding formulae, and there’s a link between their consumption and fast weight growth in newborns and toddlers. It’s an issue, as 250 million youngsters will be fat by 2030.
This added sugar consumption calculator is designed to help you keep track of how much-added sugar you consume on a daily basis, which you may be unaware of. Continue reading to learn about the dangers of exceeding the recommended sugar consumption, how to look for added sugars in our diet, and what healthier options (such as artificial sweeteners) are available.
Sugar and health
Sugar is bad for you if you eat too much of it. Yes, we are all aware of this. But, exactly, what does “unhealthy” imply?
First and foremost, have you ever wondered how many calories are in a teaspoon of sugar? It’s only 20 calories! Because most individuals consume more sugar than the AHA recommends on a daily basis, the consequences are pretty obvious: obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are the top causes of mortality in industrialized nations.
However, it has serious life-threatening implications in addition to weight gain and deteriorating skin issues. By accumulating fat in the liver, a higher sugar consumption per day raises the risk of heart disease.
Insulin resistance is caused by consuming too much sugar. It implies that glucose is unable to reach your cells, signaling your body to eat more. More insulin is created, which helps at first but eventually causes your tissues to become insulin resistant. It’s a vicious cycle that develops to type 2 diabetes without any obvious signs.
Added sugar, which is the subject of this calculator, raises blood pressure and induces inflammation. All of these characteristics are linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and overall mortality: fatty liver, diabetes, hypertension, and inflammation.
Skinny fat phenomenon
Let’s pretend you’re the lucky ones. You can be in shape even if you don’t care about the calories in a teaspoon of sugar. The problem is that it’s tough – it’s known as the “skinny fat phenomenon.” A “normal” BMI does not mean that you are healthy.
Even if your fat levels are not excessive, you have poor muscle mass as a result of a non-balanced diet (which includes, among other things, consuming a lot of added sugars). Muscles increase metabolism, protect critical organs, and aid in everyday activities, therefore their absence can cause weariness and make it harder to do daily tasks.
How to use an added sugar intake calculator?
This calculator for added sugar consumption is simple to use. It just estimates the quantity of sugar added to the diet.
Decide if you’re a guy or a woman first. The American Heart Association makes different guidelines for daily sugar intake according to on gender.
Then, from all of the categories, decide how many goods or amounts you’ll consume in a given day. The calculator includes both apparent sugary meals like chocolate and cakes, as well as things containing hidden sugar that we aren’t aware of.
✅The calculator calculates your daily intake of added sugars as you fill in the blanks (in teaspoons). You’ll discover some practical advice on how to deal with this white foe at the conclusion.
Where to find information?
It’s fine if you want to eat sugar, as long as you don’t consume it in large quantities. How can you figure out how much sugar you consume each day? To begin, you must first determine which products contain sugar. The list of the top sugary products we list in the paragraph below includes not only sweetened drinks or baked goods but also flavored yogurts or bread.
By 2021, all Nutrition Facts labels must segregate added sugars from natural sugars. It’s expressed as a number of grams and a percentage of the Daily Value ( percent DV).
The DV value is less than 5% if the product has little added sugar. If the DV is 20% or more, the meal is considered a high source.
Below you have the names of all the added sugars you may find in your food:
- Agave nectar;
- Brown sugar;
- Cane crystals, cane sugar;
- Corn sweetener, corn syrup;
- Crystalline fructose, fructose;
- Dextrose;
- Evaporated cane juice;
- Fruit juice concentrates;
- Glucose;
- High-fructose corn syrup (glucose-fructose syrup);
- Honey;
- Invert sugar;
- Lactose;
- Malt sugar, malt syrup;
- Maltose;
- Maple syrup;
- Molasses;
- Raw sugar; and
- Sucrose.
Top high-in-sugar foods and drinks
Here are some examples of items with a lot of added sugar:
- Sweetened beverages. 🥤 Luckily, more and more companies are introducing more sugar-free options, often with artificial sweeteners instead.
- Cookies, chocolates, candies, and pies. 🍫
- Ice cream. 🍦
- Flavored yogurts.
- Energy drinks.
- Jam, marmalades.
Hidden enemy
Sugar is often hidden in products that you would never say are sweet, such as bread, sauces, ketchup, or premade soups. 🥫
We know the amount of sugar in sauces is overwhelming. Imagine that one tablespoon of ketchup has almost one teaspoon of sugar!
On the other hand, there are some beverages and food that even though they seem sweet, we don’t perceive them as unhealthy. Granola, cereal bars, and breakfast cereal to begin with. “Healthy bars” are often healthy only in their name, but they contain very little fiber and loads of sugar inside.
Even though oats are the major component, producers often add a lot of sugar, almonds, honey, dried fruit, and even chocolate to make it more appealing to consumers. It turns into a dish full of sugar, fat, and not much fiber!
How can I cut down on sugars?
As you may be aware, we are constantly bombarded with added sugar in the foods and beverages we eat. Here are some suggestions:
- Switch to artificial sweeteners. That’s the easiest way to change into better habits immediately. Remember to consume those products considerately; anything in great amounts may be harmful.
- Change sodas for water. That’s the next step after artificial sweeteners.
- Look at the Nutrition Facts labels; from 2021 all the products should have added sugar listed separately.
- Watch out for all of the different names of added sugar products use to trick us. You can find them in the section above.
- Eat full nutrient-dense meals. If you have enough protein and fats, your sugar cravings lower significantly.
What other options do we have? Artificial sweeteners vs sugar
Artificial sweeteners have transformed the processed food industry. Remember that a teaspoon of sugar has roughly 20 calories? Artificial sweeteners are chemicals that are thousands of times sweeter than sugar, therefore they’re used in lesser amounts in food and beverages. Their usage leads to a large reduction in sugar consumption.
Are they, however, secure? Yes, in reasonable amounts. Of course, if you drank a liter of diet coke every day, it wouldn’t be the healthiest choice. Bloating and diarrhea are common side effects, although no research has identified a relationship between sweeteners and metabolic abnormalities in humans.
| Name | Sweeter (than sugar)? | Additional info |
|---|---|---|
| Aspartame | 200x | |
| Acesulfame K | 200x | full name: Acesulfame potassium |
| Advantame | 20,000x | |
| Glucose-fructose syrup | 1.5x | Made from starch |
| Neotame | 13,000x | |
| Saccharine | 700x | |
| Sucralose | 600x | |
| Sugar alcohol (erytritol, maltitol) | 600x | Laxative effect. Less decaying effect on teeth. |
| Stevia | 300x | Natural sugar, not for baking |
check our other calculator:
- General BMI calculator
- BMI calculator for kids
- BMI calculator for teenagers
- BMI calculator for women
