How much damage are we doing to ourselves if we eat sweets as part of a balanced diet? (teeth, plague)
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Interesting info. When sugar is mentioned, does this include raw fruit, which is fructose, or is it just sucrose?
I don't know, but wouldn't be surprised if there are bacteria which specialize in each. I guess you could test it; does a piece of fruit satisfy the sugar craving?
You’re a health nut clearly, and a rude one at that. You’re calling my appetites “bizarre” when I’d say it’s pretty darn normal. If it’s “bizarre” to enjoy an ice cream on a hot summer night or an ice cold soda once in a while, yeah, I guess myself and many other Americans are “bizarre” too. What a joke.
So are you worried about your sugar intake or not?
If you are, maybe curtail that sugar intake. Not sure what you expect from an internet forum.
I don't know, but wouldn't be surprised if there are bacteria which specialize in each. I guess you could test it; does a piece of fruit satisfy the sugar craving?
Thanks for your reply.
I don't have sugar cravings, fortunately & never eat sweets, like cakes & treats... surprising coming from a family of women of daily dessert eaters & sugar nibblers.
Never eat sugar besides what is in fruit. Occasionally, I'll eat 1 date, a few raisins or 1 fig... I get the opposite of satisfied craving, I feel jittery... they're almost too sweet. Once/yr I'll eat a banana split... the sugar drains me after an hour (sugar drop, I guess?) & I'm lethargic for the rest of the day. Shaky even. Have always been that way.
BTW, I don't have diabetes... just sugar sensitive, I guess? I do love fruit though & an occasional ale, so was wondering when eating 1-2 pieces of fruit/day, if that's the same as eating table sugar? Is any sugar bad the body?
You’re a health nut clearly, and a rude one at that. You’re calling my appetites “bizarre” when I’d say it’s pretty darn normal. If it’s “bizarre” to enjoy an ice cream on a hot summer night or an ice cold soda once in a while, yeah, I guess myself and many other Americans are “bizarre” too. What a joke.
Except you started this thread by stating clearly that you aren't drinking an ice cold soda "once in awhile," but rather 3x per week. and you're not having just "an" ice cream on a hot summer night, but a mininum of 1 Blizzard every week, sometimes twice a week.
Since I like Heath Bar, I did a check on the Blizzard Heath Bar flavor treat. And since you didn't specify and I'm pretty sure you aren't getting the "mini" size, I selected the "small" size.
Here's that one small Blizzard has for you, at least once every week:
600 calories
25 grams fat
84 carbs - with 74 of those carbs being sugar
11 grams protein
50 mg cholesterol
300 mg sodium
There are 13 grams of carbohydrates in 1 tablespoon of sugar.
So once every week, you are shoveling at least 5.5 tablespoons of sugar into your mouth. On purpose. That's minimum, because I'm only checking on the small size.
And at least three times a week you're having an average of 20 ounces of cola. That's another 8 tablespoons of sugar - 150 calories total per bottle.
So you eat "healthy" foods, you say. And then, if you combine JUST the Blizzards and the soda, and no other bad habits, you top off all those healthy foods with an entire day's worth of calories made out of sugar.
Honestly - you're not eating mostly healthy foods. You're eating a lot of garbage, and supplementing it with healthy foods.
I suggest you go to an actual doctor, get a complete physical and blood workup, and find out EXACTLY how "healthy" your diet is.
when I spoke to my nutritionist friend about this, he said he was surprised I haven’t developed Type 2 diabetes, destroyed my stomach lining, or gotten heart disease yet from “all the toxic poison” I’ve been putting into my body. But then the health nuts say I’m 100% going to get cancer, heart disease, diabetes, liver damage, etc, if I even dare to touch anything that’s not nutritious.
Anyone can call themselves a nutritionist. It doesn't actually mean anything. It's like calling yourself a dog trainer or fitness instructor.
I have other news for you...if you live long enough, and don't get cancer, a heart attack will get you.
I have a couple Registered Dietician's in my family. A handful of times, some family member will make a comment about something, be it soda, be it carbs, some controversial ingredient, etc...and turn to the RD for support. Which, they rarely get. They always point out that within moderation assuming you don't have or aren't at risk for something that's caused by that particular food vice it doesn't matter, it's the bigger picture that matters.
I have a bit of a sweet tooth and I’m wondering how much damage I’m actually doing by eating these things.
I would say that my typical meals each week are a decent balance of proteins, starches and vegetables, and my snacks are mostly healthy as well. I’ll stick to things like tortilla chips and hummus, granola, bananas and peanut butter, and nuts. However, I do admit that I eat a lot of unhealthy things on top of this.
Just a few of the unhealthy things I eat would include the following. Now that the weather is getting warmer, I’ll occasionally treat myself to a Dunkin iced coffee with cream and sugar, usually once or twice a week. Sometimes, I’ll get a flavor swirl and cream and omit the sugar if I’m really craving a sweet drink that tastes nothing like actual coffee. I hang out with my local friend once or twice a week, and every single time we hang out, we go to Dairy Queen and I’ll get a small M&M Blizzard. So I usually have one Blizzard per week, occasionally two. At home, I’d say I either have an after-dinner snack or dessert on an additional one or two nights. This will usually be a Chipwich or 5-6 Oreos.
In addition to all the sweets, I drink regular soda, mostly Coke or Dr. Pepper, three times per week. This is always with a meal at a restaurant or if I get takeout at home. I don’t keep soda in the house, nor do I get it as an afternoon snack the way I do with iced coffee. It’s strictly with food to minimize tooth decay.
I always thought I was doing okay and my diet was balanced, but when I spoke to my nutritionist friend about this, he said he was surprised I haven’t developed Type 2 diabetes, destroyed my stomach lining, or gotten heart disease yet from “all the toxic poison” I’ve been putting into my body. I really try and be balanced, but I enjoy these things, and I don’t understand people whose lives revolve around drinking only plain water and never touching soda or even juice, and avoiding the occasional ice cream like the plague. But then I wonder if he’s right. Am I just asking to die early, become a diabetic or have stomach issues the rest of my life by consuming the things I listed on top of healthy things? I do exercise 3 or 4 times a week as well and generally stay active, so I always thought I didn’t need to torture myself and live in fear by never eating or drinking anything unhealthy. But then the health nuts say I’m 100% going to get cancer, heart disease, diabetes, liver damage, etc, if I even dare to touch anything that’s not nutritious.
if you're asking and are worried about it
then you know the answer.
too much. cut back.
you are eating way more than "the occasional ice cream"
and you know it
That's actually quite a bit of sugar, to be honest. Tortilla chips aren't great, granola is loaded with sugar, and then the daily treats on top of it.
I absolutely think the occasional treat can be part of a healthy, balanced diet. But I think you are a little past the occasional part. Try making some small changes. Instead of tortilla chips with your hummus, try veggies dipped in hummus. Switch out the soda (nothing good about soda) to flavored sparkling water without added sweetener - there are a ton of good ones available now. Switch to a natural peanut butter where the only ingredient is peanuts. Making small changes makes a big difference without making you feel too deprived.
Consuming 3 non-diet sodas a week increases your risk for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. If you drink alcohol as well, as I seem to recall you do, you're hammering your liver even more.
But hey, it's your life. Wouldn't want any "health nuts" interfering with your bizarre appetites.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xxblue100
You’re a health nut clearly, and a rude one at that. You’re calling my appetites “bizarre” when I’d say it’s pretty darn normal. If it’s “bizarre” to enjoy an ice cream on a hot summer night or an ice cold soda once in a while, yeah, I guess myself and many other Americans are “bizarre” too. What a joke.
My husband was recently diagnosed with NASH, non alcoholic fatty liver disease stage 2. We only discovered it when he was trying to get life insurance. He cant. He take lipitor for it because there are no FDA approved NASH treatments though there are some in testing.
His liver has scar tissue in it from fat deposits. You dont have to be fat to have fatty liver disease. Im not saying you are or arent going to develop this but it is one more thing that can happen when eating poorly. 30% of people have some degree of NASH and dont know it.
I dont find your diet to be bizarre, I do find your sugar consumption to be excessive. You are tall, slim and active but you will probably only be tall in a few years, the slim and the active will change. As you age your body will put on weight and it will be harder and harder to get rid of. You are probably ok but honestly, the easiest way to clean up your diet to be healthier is to stop drinking your calories. Stop having soda and sugary coffee. I drink 2 or 3 cups of coffee a day. I use stevia and cream, a cup is 25 calories. Its important to me and has replaced a lot of snacking. I drink no soda at all. No juice either. Its very easy to overconsume sugar, carbs and calories by drinking them. Even if you kept everything else the same, you would save yourself tons of sugar a week by eliminating just drinking calories.
I agree with this response. Sugar is not a toxic poison. It is, however, a good idea to figure out ways to lower how much sugar and fat you consume. As I've gotten older, I have made major cutbacks in things like soft drinks, fruit juice, doughnuts, cookies, ice cream, potato chips, candy, fast food, etc. But at 66, I don't count calories and have never been on a diet.
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