It is truly shocking how much sugar we eat
Have you ever really looked at what you eat? If you have, you may notice one common ingredient present in everything from vegan sauces to certain ketogenic foods. Taking those specific diets into consideration, the widely accepted figure for keto is <100 grams, and similar in the vegan sphere as well(Often times you'll see a quoted 30 grams, but the kicker always comes in the comments where someone says fruit based sugars don't count towards this. They do, very much so, count towards it). This is far, far, far too much sugar for any one human to be taking in a day. The FDA has no recommended figure for their DV scale of food labels, but other groups certainly do. The World Health Organisation recommends no more than 5% of daily calories be from sugar of all types. This is equivalent to 25 grams for a 2000 calorie diet. The American Heart Association recommends the same figures.
Now, you may be asking yourself, why would the AHA bother themselves with sugar? Certainly that's more for a diabetes association to study than a heart disease one? Well, it's because sugar is heavily linked to heart disease. From the source:
participants who took in 25% or more of their daily calories as sugar were more than twice as likely to die from heart disease as those whose diets included less than 10% added sugar
So, not only are you at risk for heart disease, but there are new studies that suggest alzheimer's is nothing more than a 3rd form of diabetes.
I'm not hoping for much in posting this, except that someone somewhere looks at their diet and resists the stranglehold sugar has on our present society.
Most people should by now understand that consuming too much sugar is bad for their health. People shouldn't regularly be consuming soda, cakes, chocolate, juice, or other sugary foods. With that being said I'd like to clarify some things.
The WHO recommends Keeping calories from added sugar <10% not 5%, that was a conditional recommendation based on "very low quality evidence from ecological studies" and was primarily concerned with dental carries. If you haven't had a problem with cavities I don't think <5% can really be recommended. I would also like to mention the <10% figure also appears in the dietery guildines for americans.
I should also mention that the keto recommendations for those interested also includes complex carbohydrates not just free sugars. Meaning breads, nuts, and vegetables count towards the Keto's <30grams but not the free sugar definition the WHO recommends. To be specific Keto is concerned with the net carbs which is just (net carbs = total carbohydrates - fiber).
That free sugar definition is rather dangerous. I’d like to ask whoever wrote it at the WHO what the major difference is between the fructose in corn syrup and the fructose in fruits and honey. They’re literally the same molecule, treated as the same by your body, the only difference is HFCS has some glucose and fruits have fiber and some vitamins and minerals. The sugar is still the same.
I don't think it's dangerous. You might just be misinterpreting the recommendation. The WHO is not saying that sugar is dangerous. They are simply giving recommendations that are based on data showing that consumption of excess free sugars beyond 10% is linked to increased levels of obesity and dental carries.
Doesn't that imply it's dangerous, though? You kinda went "It doesn't say it's dangerous. It just says increased exposure to it increases your chances of getting incredibly hard to treat diseases linked to higher rates of death."
Yes, I realized that was a bit confusing after I posted it. But again the difference lies in the definition. It's increased exposure to free sugar that has been shown to be correlated with those diseases. Not necessarily general sugar consumption.
Ah, I understand. Yes, the WHO does say that, but again, that definition is dangerous. Fructose is fructose no matter how you cut it, it's treated the same way in the body whether it's in fruit juices, sodas, or fruits. I use the term "dangerous" because it leads to some people overdosing on sugar by drinking smoothies or eating far too much fruit in one sitting.
Edit: For example, their main distinction is the very circumstantial "it's almost impossible to eat too much sugar in fruit." It's not. One apple has 12 grams of sugar. To hit the limit of sugar, you'd only have to eat 3 apples. People will then say "who eats three apples at once?" Apparently, people haven't eaten multiple fruits over multiple hours.
What ketogenic foods contain sugar in significant quantities? I've been keto for almost 3 years and have successfully stayed under 25g net carbs per day without issue
Three years! You're an inspiration!
I'm 9 months in. Love it so far. It's given me my life back.
Haha, it's just something that is in the background now. I know all the foods I can eat, and it's automatic. Glad to hear it has helped you! I'm no longer using it to lose weight, it's just how I eat now. Might track things again and lose more weight in the future, but for now I am content with maintaining and getting stronger through lifting weights.
I'm at the automatic stage as well. For the first few months I tracked everything and tried out a bunch of new stuff. Now I know what works and am blessed with the ability to not get bored of the same stuff day in and day out, which seems to be so many people's downfall with the diet.
I'm still in the losing weight phase, but I'm hoping to hit my goal by the end of the year (though I might need a bit more time, which is fine). I'm debating whether to continue keto once I hit it or simply go back to low-carb (which was how I started). Low-carb would definitely make things easier, particularly for events and addressing the occasional craving, but I like how restrictive keto is because it keeps me fully in line.
Good luck hitting your goal weight! That was a big deal for me, and honestly when I got there I just maintained for about 6 months, something I had never done before. My weight was constantly increasing from birth until the start of keto, and then was in constant decline. The ability to maintain my weight boosted my confidence a lot, and made things feel a lot more permanent, if that makes any sense.
It would be easier to allow some carbs, but I could totally see myself going down some slippery slope if I were to allow myself the occasional cheat, so I just stay strict. I still remember the mental gymnastics I would do to justify to myself that I deserved that particular food item. I personally do much better if I cut things out entirely, rather than try to force myself to have them in moderation.
As someone looking to give keto a try (not for weight loss but for general health), I'd love some advice on how to get started! Do you have any tips or links you could share?
The /r/keto wiki is very good and will get you started. The main thing is tracking net carbs essentially (total carbs - fiber), and making sure you have adequate electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium). That's really all there is to it. I also really like keto chow, it's a ketogenic meal replacement shake that helps me get through those times where I just can't be bothered to cook anything. A shake or two a day was a staple of my diet when I was being strict to lose weight, but I've tapered that down as I wanted to learn how to eat "real foods" as I felt that was more sustainable long term.
A little over a year here. It is insane how much sugar is in friggin' everything. The hardest part about keto is finding anything acceptable to eat.
I have a really obnoxious coworker (obnoxious for reasons other than this) who keeps filling the office kitchen with all kind of junk food (the annoying bit is that it's flavors that I really like).
Something that has helped me, particularly with workplace food, is to reframe my cravings. I tell myself I have a "food superpower" to decline any high interest carbs. That way, when someone brings in donuts or cake, instead of sitting there fretting over how much I want to eat some but can't, I instead celebrate my awesome ability to walk away from them without having even a bite.
It sounds silly, but it's made a huge difference for me. Each time I pass up something I want it now feels like a win instead of a loss, which is great for reinforcement.
My office kitchen is permanently stocked with all kinds of snacks and sweets, and people are always bringing in leftover cakes and sweets. I just don't eat that stuff, i bring my own snacks that I know are keto friendly. I requested peanuts be stocked so that I can at least eat something from the office :)
Early on in keto, many are given difficult choices as to what foods they can actually eat. Many assume the sauces they eat, or the few carbs they have, are low in simple sugars and exceed the daily recommended amount.
I did Keto for about a year, ultimately giving it up because I couldn't get over the impact I took on my ability to play sports (Squash - explosive energy just wasn't there, Running - always felt like I was running the last km of a half marathon when I was on Keto!) but the main takeaway that I had from it was just how obvious the sugar in foods is.
When I went back to a more traditional diet the first thing I noticed was that normal, sliced white bread actually tasted like cake! The meat in places like Subway tasted like it was candied.
I maintain a low sugar diet generally (following reading Gary Taubes' The Case Against Sugar) but I don't think most of the population are even at the beginning of a journey towards understanding that they're well above where they should be.
Exactly. If people actually looked at anything they ate, they’d be horrified by their diet. I’m American, and even the breads advertised as “homestyle” and “traditional” will have 2 grams of sugar or more in each slice. Eating just one sandwich and a tablespoon of ketchup will already get you a quarter of your way to your limit if you’re a woman and a litlle less than that if you’re a man
Look into CKD and TKD if you ever want to try keto again but get some carbs around your workouts. I don't do it personally but I have heard good things from others.
Cheers! I had spotted reference to these on /r/keto but it's a big commitment (at least to begin with) to make the change to keto and I'm suffering a bit of a willpower deficit right now :)
Plus...ya know, Christmas...mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes, Yorkshire puddings...
I think one of the most important parts is that while it seems intuitive and something everyone should know - "Too much sugar is not good for you" - most people fail to realize just how much sugar is in everything we eat. Sugar has been cranked up to 11 in almost everything that we usually consume in far greater quantities than are advertised. Things that people don't even think of as sweet are loaded with sugar.
It's also an issue of forced addiction. Sugar is incredibly addictive, and the people selling food know how to use it. There's a really good doc called Fed Up that discusses this very issue.
Came here to say this! It's slipped into everything. I did a no-sugar challenge and was shocked by how many of our foods have sugar added in. And it's absolutely a deliberate addiction - adding sugar (and fat) makes our bodies crave it more, which means we consume more. Hooray! (For corporations, at least.)
You can't enter ketosis with 100 grams of SUGAR, let alone carbs per day. You might enter it with less than 50 g total net CARBS per day, but many people struggle with this and won't enter ketosis unless the total number is less.
You're absolutely correct that sugar is terrible for humans, especially refined sugar. Completely (or close to) eliminating added sugar from a diet and pairing sources of carbohydrates (especially if the carbs are simple or have quick absorption rates) with fiber and fats to slow digestion are both good ways to promote health and energy.
My point isn't that the actually "true" keto diet has more sugar than normal, but that the keto diets recommended to people who haven't actually gone to a doctor yet recommend shocking amounts of sugar. Much the same, there are vegan diets which can be extremely healthy, but filling your loss of meats with smoothies and oreos is extremely dangerous.
Gotcha. Completely agreed. Then again, most "recommended" diets are pretty garbage.