Sugar on CBS NEWS!

One of the reasons I often discuss the ill effects of sugar on this blog is that Sugar is known to be strongly linked to worsening or even causing depression, severe PMS, arthritis, ADD, autism, asperger's, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, yeast infections and much much more.  All of which have a very serious affect on your ability to focus and get organized.

Personally - quitting sugar made dramatic improvements in my health and in my life overall.  Whenever I backslide and eat more than a teaspoon or 2 of sugar - within days I become moody and irritable, have difficulty focusing, feel overwhelmingly sad, have difficulty sleeping and feel overall joint pain. After a year and a half off sugar, I'm still amazed at the harmful effects it has.

Connie Bennett, C.H.H.C., author of Sugar Shock, and my inspiration for letting go of sugar, was recently featured on CBS News Sunday Morning during a segment in which they spent a whole 8 minutes on our skyrocketing sugar consumption and related health problems.  If you missed the CBS News Sunday Morning segment it's not too late!
You can view it online here

http://cbs2.com/health/health_story_168113516.html

According to Connie's newsletter, there was:

"one major glaring error in the piece regarding sugar consumption figures. Americans consume 142 pounds per year (or possibly as high as 170 pounds) per person of caloric sweeteners such as sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, etc. That figure does not include artificial sweeteners as was reported in the CBS News Sunday Morning piece.

Actually, according to the Calorie Control Council 180 million American adults (as of 2004) consume low-calorie and sugar-free sodas, other beverages and foods using five different sugar substitutes approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration--saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose and neotame.

Which, of course, begs the question: Are these sugar substitutes safe to consume? This is one of the most Frequently Asked Questions I answer in SUGAR SHOCK! (I had to cover this, because while researching my book, thousands of people kept asking me if they cut out or reduced their sugar intake, was it OK to drink or eat foods with these sugar substitutes.)

Frankly, I was shocked at what I learned! Health experts urged me to warn my readers that questions have been raised about the safety of every single artificial sweetener on the market!! - despite repeated claims of safety from the FDA and the companies creating them...

By the way, in SUGAR SHOCK!, you also can learn about what some experts call a "paradoxical weight gain" that some people experience when ingesting foods with artificial sweeteners. Yeah, consuming artificial sweeteners can actually PACK ON THE POUNDS instead of peel them off!

Shocking, eh? Anyhow, you can learn about artificial sweeteners and a whole lot more by getting SUGAR SHOCK! here now."

You can get Connie's newsletter on her blog here.

Comments

[zunnur]

good info,didn't know that sugar can cause that much of harm to our bodies.
impressed with all the nice info in this blog especially those related to organizing.

[Cynthia Friedlob, The Thoughtful Consumer]

The "classic" book about the negative impact of sugar on our poor, unsuspecting bodies is "Sugar Blues," written by William Dufty in 1975 (still available in a snappy newer edition). I read it then, and a couple more times over the years. I gave it as a gift to diet-conscious friends. I'm convinced it's full of valuable, motivating information.

So, you'd think I would have eliminated all sugar from my diet during the ensuing thirty-two years, but, sad to say, I haven't been able to stick with the plan without backsliding frequently.

Dufty says the introduction of sugar to society can be compared to that of cocaine, i.e., it was considered a substance that got you "high." Interesting, isn't it?

[Ariane Benefit]

@ Zunnur - I was pretty stunned too. I had no idea it lowered your immune system and caused inflammation.

@ Cynthia - Sugar Blues was the inspiration for Sugar Shock! Connie, the author of Sugar Shock is a journalist turned nutritionist. It's really hard to let go of sugar, harder than alchohol and cigarettes now, because it is EVERYWHERE. I didn't know that Dufty's analogy to cocaine, but I believe it is just as addictive as cocaine if you ask me. I used it to self-medicate and relieve stress, the trouble is you feel awful a day or 2 later! It took me 2 months to withraw and stop craving it like a madwoman! Same thing happened with Gluten. But after beating those 2 I feel like I can do anything! : )