Are you accidentally taking in more sugar than you should be? Checking the nutrition labels on food and drink is crucial to avoid added sugars. “A 16 ounce bottle of one popular soft drink has 51 grams of sugar, more than you should have in one day,” internal medicine and pediatrics specialist Audrey Hiltunen, MD, tells Loyola Medicine. “Sports drinks, energy drinks, fruit juices, sweet tea and sugary coffee drinks are also packed with sugar. Many people aren’t fully aware of how much sugar they drink in a day. I always ask patients how much soda and other sugary beverages they drink. It’s an important discussion, even for people who are relatively healthy, because too much sugar could cause problems down the line.” Here are 7 signs you could be taking in more sugar than you realize.
RELATED: What Happens When You Stop Eating Sugar.
1. Weight Gain From Sugar
ShutterstockEating too much sugar can make weight loss incredibly difficult. “Overall, the problem with too much sugar is that it tends to mean your diet will be high in calories (energy) and this can lead to putting on weight,” senior dietitian Victoria Taylor tells the British Heart Foundation. “Excess weight increases the chances of developing type 2 diabetes and heart and circulatory diseases.”
2. Headaches
ShutterstockFrequent headaches could be a sign of sugar overconsumption. “Eating too much simple sugar may lead to headaches in certain individuals due to how rapidly simple or processed sugars are absorbed, leading to a rapid spike in blood sugar and then a rapid decline,” endocrinologist Dr. Rekha B. Kumar tells NewYork-Presbyterian - Health Matters. “This erratic blood sugar pattern can cause headaches, as opposed to consuming the sugar in complex carbohydrates, which are absorbed more slowly.”
3. High Blood Pressure
iStockHigh blood sugar is another potential sign of having too much sugar. “Consuming too much added sugar can raise blood pressure and increase chronic inflammation, both of which are pathological pathways to heart disease,” says Harvard Health. “Excess consumption of sugar, especially in sugary beverages, also contributes to weight gain by tricking your body into turning off its appetite-control system because liquid calories are not as satisfying as calories from solid foods. This is why it is easier for people to add more calories to their regular diet when consuming sugary beverages.
4. Fatigue and Cravings
iStockHaving too much sugar can cause fatigue, experts warn. “When we eat sugar, our blood sugar spikes and our bodies react by releasing insulin to lower it to a safe level,” Katherine Masoud, APRN, tells Backus Hospital. “Often, the insulin brings blood sugar levels down too low which can cause fatigue, irritability and hunger. Our natural reaction is to reach for more sugar to get that energetic feeling back, which quickly becomes a vicious cycle.”
RELATED: Nutritionists Warn About This Common Breakfast Mistake.
5. Trouble Sleeping
ShutterstockToo much added sugar can lead to sleep disruption. “When blood sugar is raised quickly, your body reacts by releasing insulin, and the resulting drop in blood sugar can lead to the release of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which can interfere with sleep,” says James Gangwisch, PhD, assistant professor of clinical psychiatric social work (in psychiatry) at Columbia University.
6. Tooth Decay
iStockAdded sugars are terrible for your teeth. “Dental caries develops over time; loss of tooth substance (enamel and dentine) is caused by acid production resulting from bacterial metabolism of sugars,” says the World Health Organization (WHO). “Early stages are often without symptoms, but advanced stages of dental caries may lead to pain, infections and abscesses, or even sepsis.”
7. Skin Issues
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Added sugar can cause skin issues and premature aging. “Aging is part of growing older, but it’s accelerated by sugar,” Andrew Nish, MD, tells UnityPoint Health. “Without getting too technical, at the end of each strand of our DNA is a little cap, called a telomere. It protects our DNA from damage. Every time our DNA is read and duplicated, those telomeres shorten. While our bodies normally replace telomeres, sugar quickens that shortening and advances the aging process. We really want to encourage people to start getting rid of sugar early in life. This is particularly important in pregnant mothers. Remember, what’s going on in your skin is going on everywhere in your body. Our skin is just an external display of everything happening in our bodies.”
