All You Need to Know About Sugar

If we accept to mainstream opinion, sugar is one of the dangerous things we can ingest, and frequent consumption is considered dangerous as smoking and alcoholism.

People have reached here by accumulating one false opinion on another, gradually increasing dietary difficulties.

So let’s begin with explaining the topic of what sugar truly is

The myth of the sugar molecule

Sugar has become a misunderstood term including all sorts of substances, ranging from fruit to honey to cookies.

Some people make the differences between natural sugars such as the ones from fruit and raw maple syrup and processed sugars such as table sugar.

So let’s get more precise here and cast some light on this mysterious sugar.

First, all sugars are classes of carbohydrates, and their fundamental purpose in the body is energetic.

There are three types of sugars:

1. Monosaccharides

Monosaccharides are usually described as simple sugars because they have a very simple composition.

The monosaccharides are…

Glucose. Glucose is a sort of sugar also perceived as blood sugar, which is found in our blood and fabricated from the food we eat. When people speak about “blood sugar levels,” they’re referring about the quantity of glucose floating throughout the blood.
Fructose. Fructose is a type of sugar normally found in fruit, and also found in processed products like sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup. Both of them are about 50% fructose and 50% glucose. Fructose is transformed into glucose by the liver and then discharged into the blood for use.
Galactose. Galactose is a type of sugar detected in dairy goods and it’s metabolized likewise the fructose.

2. Oligosaccharides

Oligosaccharides are molecules that comprise some monosaccharides connected together in chain-like arrangements.

These sugars are one of the elements of fiber seen in plants, which our bodies are capable to partially break down into glucose.

Many vegetables also carry fructooligosaccharides, which are short strings of fructose molecules.

Another popular sort of oligosaccharide that we eat is raffinose, which is composed of a chain of galactose, glucose, and fructose. This can be detected in beans, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli, asparagus, other vegetables, and whole grains.

Galactooligosaccharides are also oligosaccharides. These are indigestible but perform a part in stimulating healthy bacteria increase in the gut.

3. Polysaccharides

Polysaccharides large chains of monosaccharides, regularly containing ten or more monosaccharide parts.

Starch and cellulose are two models of polysaccharides we usually eat. Our bodies are capable to quickly break starches down into glucose, but not cellulose.

There’s a Design Here that leads to Glucose

All kinds of carbohydrate we consume are metabolized into glucose or are left indigested, working as dietary fiber.

Our body can’t differentiate the natural sugar found in fruit, honey or milk, and the processed sugar found in a chocolate bar. This is why they’re all digested in the same way.

The chocolate bar will transform into glucose just like the cup of peas, but only faster. The chocolate bar has a bunch of monosaccharides that are promptly metabolized and the peas have a bunch of oligosaccharides that take longer.

The “Good” and “Bad” Sugars

It’s basically unachievable to dodge sugars. Unless you follow a ketosis diet, you’re consuming sugars every day.

Table sugar and high-fructose corn syrup are massively accused, though. These are the molecules, we’re informed, that cause obesity, dysfunction, and disease.

But, why specifically?

Table sugar is a disaccharide consisting of one molecule fructose and one molecule glucose.

Sucrose is found in natural foods like pineapples, sugar cane, beets, sweet potatoes, and even walnuts, pecans, and cashews. It’s also supplemented to foods to make them sweeter.

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is chemically similar, normally consisting of about 55% fructose and 45% glucose. It isn’t found in nature and the only distinction between it and sucrose is the fructose and glucose aren’t chemically bonded.

So, do we get fatter and unhealthier with each and every gram of sucrose and HFCS that we absorb? No, so let’s find out why.

Sugars Don’t Make You Fat But Overeating Does

Sugar is that escape for many.

Well, while it’s correct that some people’s bodies do better with carbohydrate than others, it’s really not correct that sucrose or even HFCS are particularly fattening. They are just an origin of glucose for the body like all carbohydrates.

And in reality, carbohydrates aren’t saved as body fat as efficiently as dietary fats are.

What is very fattening, then? Overeating. That is, feeding your body more calories than it needs, despite what foods are giving the excess energy.

The more carbohydrates you consume, the more calories you insert into your body. The more energy you give your body, the more energy you have to burn to avoid fat storage.

If you give your body a lot more calories than it needs every day, whether, from excess quantities of protein, carbohydrate, or dietary fat, you’ll become fatter.

And this is where we get to the real problem with sugar consumption and getting fat.

This is particularly true of liquid carbohydrates, including drinks with added sugar.

Sugars Don’t Ruin Your Health

Long-term consumption of simple sugars has been connected with an enhanced risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Many “specialists” will use a statement like this as conclusive proof that simple sugars destroy our health. But there are other circumstances to examine.

One is the fact that the consequences of these simple sugars vary considerably among people depending on how fat and active they are. Overweight, inactive individuals don’t deal with simple sugars nearly as well as lean, physically active ones do.

Moreover, when you mix carbohydrates with other forms, the insulin response is decreased.

Even as part of a mixed meal, simple sugars still do raise insulin levels greater than more complex forms of carbohydrate, such as the polysaccharides found in vegetables.

So, if you’re overweight and don’t train, you shouldn’t be consuming simple sugars every day. You will be crippling your health. But, if you exercise constantly and aren’t overweight, your body can handle the simple sugars just fine.

Also, by eating a lot of meals with added sugars you will reduce the number of micronutrients your body receives.

The answer here is simple: get the preponderance of your daily calories from healthy foods and you’ll be fine.