Sugar Savvy Lisa Cui Anne Kim

Why be Sugar Savvy?  How much sugar does the average American eat (in pounds) per year?  Where does this sugar come from?  Where does this sugar go?

Let’s Guess!

Show Me the SUGAR!  Soda, 20 oz.- 69g Sugar, 17 teaspoons  Yoplait Yogurt, 6 oz.- 27g Sugar, 7 teaspoons  Starbucks Frappuccino with whip, 16 oz.- 48g Sugar, 12 teaspoons

Excess Calories From Soda  How long would it take to burn off the 250 excess calories in a 20oz soda? An average 150 pound adult would have to walk at moderate-fast speed for over an hour One 20 oz. soda per day Over the course of one year As many extra calories as 26 pounds of fat!

What About Diet Soda?  Contains zero calories, but consumption is correlated with the same health problems  Obesity  Diabetes  Heart Disease  High Blood Pressure  High Triglycerides  Research suggests diet soda may be tricking our body into craving sweeter foods/beverages

We Can Know How Much Sugar We Have

High Fructose Corn Syrup  55% fructose and 45% glucose  Sugar: 50% fructose, 50% glucose  Has been around for about 30 years  Created as a cheaper alternative to sugar

HFCS Argument The New Trans Fat?No Different Than Sugar? Body doesn’t know how to handle it  Overwhelms the liver  Increases desire for sweet foods Research with fructose/HFCS linked to disease  Obesity  Diabetes Pancreatic Cancer Heart Disease Kidney Disease Recent study showing HFCS had same post-meal effect on triglycerides as sugar Nutritionally equivalent More research needed

HFCS: The Bottom Line  Most Americans need to reduce consumption of all sugars (table sugar, HFCS, fructose, honey…)  HFCS is a good indicator of processed foods, which should be avoided  HFCS is found in many foods so it can be hard to consume in moderation  More research is needed, but negative effects of HFCS are possible