Years ago, I Self- published a book called “The Journey; Take the Path to Health and Fitness”. in the chapter on diet, I wrote that “You should never eat anything white”. It’s obviously an oversimplification; but more often than not, it turns out to be the right way to eat.
Typically healthier foods are more colorful. Just think of colorful fruits and vegetables and fish and meat. Processed foods, in particular sugar, are more often white or colorless. The obvious exception, is if artificial colors have been added.
I was thinking about this again this weekend when I read an article in the Washington post by Linda Searing. It was titled “the Big Number: Americans consume 17 teaspoons of added sugar daily. That’s way too much”. The American Heart Association recommends a daily intake of no more than 6 teaspoons of added sugar for women or 9 teaspoons for men. Currently the average American is eating twice as much sugar as they should. Further, added sugar should be less than 10% of your overall caloric intake.
Unfortunately, sugars stimulate our limbic brains. Food manufacturers know this and they put added sugars into nearly everything. Often we don’t even think of these products as being sweetened. Among other things, these include ketchup, soups or breads. These foods are able to trigger the pleasure centers in our brain, giving us immediate short-term pleasure but ultimately causing long-term pain.
Ask Dr S. 