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The Sweetest Trap

If "a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down," what do 156 pounds of sugar a year do? Or how about five tons over the course of 64 years? Based on our national rates of sugar consumption, that's how much added sugar every American consumes over the course of a lifetime.

Nutritional science – not to mention common sense – can give you the answer: Nothing good.

In the short term, high consumption of added sugars leads to short highs followed by crashing lows. Over time, the results range from undesirable to downright devastating. The long-term health consequences of too many added sugars include (but are not limited to):

• a depletion of the storage of critical nutrients such as calcium, chromium, fiber, folate, zinc, magnesium, iron and vitamins A, C and E and other nutrients
• a depressed immune system
• an accelerated rate of aging and weight gain
• serious health problems such osteoporosis, Type 2 diabetes, cancer, and more.

In fact, if you follow the national trend and gobble down five tons of sugar over the course of your life, you should also be prepared to ingest almost as much medicine to counterbalance the effects!

The good news is that neither five tons of sugar nor five tons of medicine is anyone's certain fate. In truth, decreasing your sugar consumption and taking control of your nutritional health isn't rocket science. And it doesn't require super-human feats of will-power. All it takes is a little knowledge, plus focusing on whole foods that are high in nutrients and fiber -- with a smattering of a few wisely chosen on the go convenience foods on hand to tide you over when you're in a rush. With lower sugar and higher protein consumption you will feel satisfied and have the sustainable energy you need to get you through your day.

The Sugar Glut

In the early 1800s, the average sugar consumption was 12 pounds per person each year. This increased to 124 pounds in 1980 and to 152 pounds in 1997, and now, to an estimated 156 pounds of added sugar per person per year. So where's all this extra sugar coming from? And are all sugars created equal -- in other words, are all forms of sugar equally problematic?

Let's answer the second question first: Chemically, all sugars are created equal, and no form of added sugar has any kind of health benefit. However, any balanced, healthy diet based on whole foods includes some unavoidable – and acceptable – naturally occurring sugars. These can be found in dairy products, fruit, vegetables, and whole grains.

Added sugars are another story altogether: On average, Americans get 16 percent of our daily caloric intake from added sugar. Children aged six to 11 consume 18 percent; teenagers aged 12 to 19, 20 percent.

Added sugars are the major culprit in all Americans' sugar-related health problems and are both undesirable and largely avoidable. How? By adhering to the Atkins Advantage mantra of whole, nutrient-dense foods. By taking simple steps like avoiding soft drinks and sugar-laden sports drinks. By reading labels.

Over the past 50 years, the consumption of sugar-laden soft drinks, fruit juice and sports drinks has increased by 500 percent in the United States. The vast majority of added sugar can be traced to one source: Processed foods. In 2003, Science noted that added sugar is often the largest single ingredient in packaged foods and commercial beverages. In fact, soft drinks are the largest source of sugar in the American diet, delivering a third of all added sugars. One of every four beverages consumed in the U.S. today is a soft drink.

Another three-fifths of the added sugars in American diets come from baked goods, fruit drinks, dairy desserts, candy and cereals. The remainder is found in unexpected places including lunch meats, ketchup and other sauces, salad dressings, French fries, even baby foods and diet supplements.

Sugar by Any Other Name

In other words, added sugars pop up in all kinds of packaged foods, from the sweet to the savory. They lurk in forms other than easily recognizable sucrose (table sugar). Read the list of ingredients on your favorite snack and you may well see the culprit called by another name such as cane sugar, evaporated cane juice, brown sugar, beet sugar, or one of several syrups (or syrup solids) such as maple, corn or cane. Other common names on this added-sugar list are:

• High-fructose corn syrup
• Sugar
• Sucrose
• Dextrose
• Maltose
• Honey
• Malts

Do the Right Thing

One of the simplest ways to make sure you're minimizing your sugar intake and turbo-charging your health is to remember the principles of the Atkins Advantage:

• Read labels and avoid high levels of added sugars.
• Include protein in every meal to boost your metabolism and provide your body with the material it needs for repair and maintenance and steady supplies of high energy.
• Eat plenty of fiber to help regulate the flow of fats and nutrients into your blood stream among other benefits.
• Select slow-burning carbohydrates that are high in fiber and low in glycemic impact to keep your energy levels even. Vegetables, low glycemic fruits, nuts, seeds and high-fiber, low-gluten grains such as unprocessed bran are all great options.
• Eat foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals.
• Avoid trans fats by reading the Nutrition Facts panel on all package labels and selecting only those that have no trans fats at all. Even minimal amounts should be avoided. Don't rely on package labels, since regulatory loopholes make it permissible for companies to claim "zero trans fats" on a label, when a product contains less than 1 gram of trans fats.

Of course, one of the most reliable ways to decrease the added sugars you eat is to avoid packaged foods. But in the real world of travel or rushing to business meetings, child care, yoga classes and social engagements, that’s not always possible. And trying to eat 100% whole foods can seem like an incredibly daunting task.

So if you live in the hurly-burly of the real world and don't always have the time or energy to eat whole foods, don't beat yourself up. And definitely don't throw up your hands and give in to the sugar scourge.

Instead, be smart and read the labels to make sure the snack you're grabbing – or handing to your kids – is low in added sugars and has a good mix of nutrients, proteins, fiber, and vitamins and minerals. Even if you're in a super-rush and don't have time to scour the ingredients lists in the supermarket, you can still rest easy. Just grab a snack with the Atkins Advantage label and go. After all, Atkins shakes and bars:

• are higher in protein and fiber, and lower in sugar and carbohydrates than any other leading nutrition bar brand
• taste great
• are the only products on the market that are based on the Atkins nutrition principles, which have been scientifically proven to be healthy, safe and effective for anyone’s lifestyle.

Join Our Online Community

If you'd like to discuss nutrition and healthy lifestyle issues in a lively online forum, come explore the Live Discussion Groups on our web site. The Discussion Groups are the perfect place to ask questions, offer tips, set fitness goals, swap recipes and share your progress toward a healthy, active lifestyle. Nutritional experts lead the discussions and are happy to answer your nutrition and health questions.

Choose from our two ongoing discussion groups:

• The Atkins Nutritional Approach™:  Getting Started and Staying Focused Discussion Group

http://learningcenter.atkins.com/courses/overview.jsp?courseId=3856&mcid=septanadiscgrp

• Healthy Living Discussion Group

http://learningcenter.atkins.com/courses/overview.jsp?courseId=4561&mcid=septhealthlivdisgrp