Natural Sugar vs Refined Sugar
Why do we care about natural sugars versus refined sugars? Most of our foods contain sugar. One of the big problems for the body is processing the sugar without the other components that naturally come in whole foods with the sugar to dampen its effect. Understand though that the same amount of natural sugar and refined sugar impact the body in the same way once absorbed.
Natural Sugars
Whole foods like fruits, vegetables, milk, grains come with carbohydrates that include sugar or get broken into simple sugar like glucose and fructose. Go here to learn how the Body Processes Sugar.
These natural sugars enter the body through the mouth into the stomach. Then they are broken into components until reaching the intestine for further digestion and absorption. With the natural sugars come the other parts of the whole food such as fats, fiber, and proteins that are also going through similar digestion which slows down the absorption of the sugar. These other components of whole foods are what delay or decrease blood sugar spikes resulting in insulin spikes and fat production.
Your Friend Refined Sugar
Miss Refined Sugar comes in with processe
d foods that are typical in boxes, bags, and packaging in our stores. Refined sugar is already broken down into simple sugars that the body quickly and easily absorbs causing large spikes in insulin and storing fat on your body including on your organs. Miss Refined Sugar often comes attached to her friend Processed Carbohydrate.
Mr. Processed Carbohydrate is made from processed flour. Flour on our shelves removes the bran and germ containing the oils and fiber and just gives you the endosperm that easily gets broken into glucose and pushed onto your hips and thighs if it can’t be used as energy in the brain or muscles.
Why Should you Care?
It is important to understand what foods do in your body. Then you can make informed choices about what you eat. When you understand that having a sweet treat that is a whole food with its naturally occurring fibers and oils helps you to digest it in a slower way helps you make a better choice. When you understand a product containing Miss Refined Sugar will cause up spikes in insulin that tell your body to store fat and over time with excess sugar start to harm your cells and their ability to take in glucose properly from the Insulin causing you to gain more fat and become insulin resistant.
What Should You Do?
Kick Miss Refined Sugar to the curb and don’t let her friend Mr. Processed Carbohydrate in much either. Like all friendships, it is important to keep those friends around you that bring you life and see friends that drain you less often.
The amazing thing is you get to decide how often you let Miss Refined Sugar and Mr. Processed Carbs into your life. You have a choice and no one gets to say if it is a good or bad choice for you.
Some days Miss Refined Sugar may be exactly what you need. Could be at a birthday party or a vacation. Sometimes because you just need to see her. Often times seeing her reminds you how good you got it when she’s not around
I don’t want you to stop eating sugar. Many people in the health industry would say just never have sugar again. Are they right? Yes they are, it is best to just not eat sugar.
But, I don’t want you on a legalistic diet that you won’t stick with and then go back to the feeling like you can’t ever have better health.
I want you and your body to decide what is right for you. With this choice then you can love and enjoy every bite you take. Each step you take toward making choices for better health the more you won’t need or want sugar.
Next week look for information on the benefits of eating less sugar.
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