All You Need To Know About Sugar If You Are Trying To Lose Weight

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One of the easiest ways to lose weight is to cut as much sugar from your diet as you are able. Especially added sugar which can sometimes be in disguise, hiding in plain sight as an ingredient in the processed goods we buy. I have included a link to a list here of some of the more common guises it can use.

We need carbohydrates in our diets as they are broken down into glucose by our bodies and used for energy to survive. What we get from natural foods is enough to provide the energy we need.  It is definitely not necessary to include sugary foods or added sugars into the diet.

What is sugar?

Sucrose is often called table sugar. Made up of glucose and fructose, it is extracted from sugar cane or  beet and also naturally present in most fruits and vegetables

Fructose and glucose are found in fruits, vegetables and honey

Lactose is commonly called milk sugar because it is found in milk and dairy products

Maltose is also known as malt sugar and is found in malted drinks and beer.

Since maltose is made up of just glucose, not fructose, it might be slightly healthier than table sugar. However, no research has investigated the effects of substituting fructose for maltose, and more research is needed.

Which of these should we be eating and which should we be leaving out.

Fructose is a fruit sugar or carbohydrate found in fruits and can only be broken down by the liver.

Fructose in small amounts has been in our diets forever. When consumed in fruits and vegetables it’s absorption is slowed due to the fibre it is encased in and the body metabolises it efficiently. In the whole form, they also contain vitamins and minerals.

However, our livers can only metabolise the amount of fructose contained in two small pieces of fruit a day.

Let’s not overload that important organ by giving it truckloads of fructose to deal with.

When too much fructose enters the liver it is unable to process it so it sends it off to our thighs, bum, where ever, to turn into fat.

As if becoming overweight wasn’t enough it raises the bad cholesterol, may facilitate insulin resistance, and eventually even type 2 diabetes

To add insult to injury, hormones, associated with feeling full, release in lesser amounts so appetite-regulating hormones aren’t triggered—and you’re constantly hungry.

That sh*t is deadly.

Fruit contains a lot of fructose.

What do I eat?

Cut as much added sugar from your diet as you are able and limit your natural sugars to one small serve of fruit and a good selection of non-starchy vegetables.

Dried fruit and juice are ridiculously high in sugar so if you are planning on losing weight these would be a no-go zone. Try a green smoothie instead.

Limit yourself to a maximum of 1 serving of fresh local seasonal fruit per day – particularly if you are trying to lose weight. My go-to fruit is a few raspberries on my breakfast in the morning.

Eat the whole fruit as the skin contains nutrients and fibre.

Eat plenty of non-starchy vegetables as they are naturally low in sugar.

The best low fructose fruits include:

• Lemons and limes
• Kiwi Fruit
• Blueberries and Raspberries
• Honey Dew Melon

The fruits to avoid are:

• Grapes
• Apples.
• Mangoes
• Cherries.
• Bananas
• Pineapples

Some high-sugar foods to avoid are:

• Fruit juices
• Yoghurts
• Sauces
• Fizzy drinks
• High-sugar cereals

Low-sugar foods are fairly obvious:

• Avocados
• Leafy greens
• Healthy fats like olive oil and coconut oil
• Unprocessed proteins
• Eggs
• Homemade salad dressing
• Homemade nut butter

Some vegetables can be quite high in sugar and yes they are the ones we all love to eat!

These veg are low to zero so go crazy and fill up.