A Spoonful of Sugar

When it comes to the nutritional quality of sugar there has always been a cloud of negativity. Today I’m going to create a clearer view for those of you who are confused with the dos & don’ts of sugar.  

Is Sugar the Cause of Obesity?

The biggest myth linked to sugar is its contribution to obesity. This link to obesity is no longer considered true as proven by the WHO MONCA study in 1994 & CARMEN study in 2000. These studies revealed that low sugar intake was associated with higher rates of obesity. Correspondingly higher sugar intake was associated with lower rates of obesity.

To paint a clearer picture my favourite lecturer, Jennie Brand-Miller, describes this relationship as the ‘sugar-fat seesaw’, i.e. lower sugar intake results in higher fat intake & visa versa. However don’t go downing sugar cubes as your new snack, sugar is ok when eaten in moderation within healthy foods.

Sugar in Drinks

I always wondered why sugar in drinks was of more concern than sugar in foods, sugar is sugar right? Well, not exactly!

A study in 2001 links sugar in soft drinks and fruit juices to increased body fat in children. This could be described by the satiety bypass mechanism. In simple terms the sugar, thus kilojoules in drinks are invisible to our psyche. So the next time you have a coke, vitamin water or fruit juice remember it isn’t invisible, it is just like food but in liquid form!

The NO Sugar Dietary Dogma

A common myth of consuming sugar is that it produces high energy, quickly followed by a bout of low energy. This is scientifically known as a high GI response. However this response has been proven otherwise!

With the advent of glycemic index (GI) the effect of blood glucose levels from foods could finally be measured. You must be thinking what is GI, well; a high GI produces a higher, quicker peak in energy & low GI produces lower, sustained energy. Making a long story short sugary food produces a low-mod GI contrary to previous beliefs.

In the past recommendations of ‘complex’ carbohydrates (starch) were preferred over ‘simple’ carbohydrates (sugar). However starchy foods have been found to have a higher GI than sugary foods. Yes that’s right, potatoes, bread & rice! Don’t you all go to your kitchens now and throw away those starchy foods. This comparison is for arguments sake showing that starchy foods increase our blood glucose levels higher than sugar, previously thought otherwise.

The take home message is that you no longer have to worry about counting your intake of sugar down to the nearest milligram. When it comes down to it a moderate intake of sugar allows food to be more palatable. You know that cereal or wholegrain bread you have every morning? It contains sugar. If that sugar were not present there is no way you would eat it, as it would not be palatable. We gain benefit to adding sugar to foods, as we are encouraged to eat foods more nutritious foods.  

Evolution of Eating

In my first year of studying nutrition my lecturer Jennie Brand-Miller presented the class with the idea of the Palaeolithic diet. This is not a fad diet you’ll find in WHO or Woman’s Weekly it‘s simply the diet of our ancestors, more commonly known as cavemen or hunter-gatherers.

Palaeolithic vs. Modern

The Palaeolithic diet was composed of 68% animal foods, i.e. ~50% fat, 30% protein & 20% carbohydrates. These numbers probably mean nothing to you so let’s compare them to a modern, western diet; composed of 38% animal food, i.e. 35% fat, 15% protein, 50% carbohydrates.

	Palaeolithic	Modern
Fat (%)	50	35
Protein (%)	30	15
Carbohydrates (%)	20	50

           

Paradox of the Palaeolithic Diet

Now you are probably thinking our diet seems the better of the two because there is lower fat, however this is not the case. Studies have observed diets of indigenous populations that have similar diets to hunter-gatherers. Results showed a high intake of animal food was linked to a low incidence of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Now here is the paradox you were waiting for… in a western diet a high intake of animal food is linked to increasing the risk of CVD.

So why is this the case? Remember learning quantity vs. quality all those years back in science class, well this is where we apply it. If you don’t already know we have bad (saturated) fats, promoting CVD & good (unsaturated) fats protective against CVD. Therefore by having a high fat intake it could either be a high GOOD fat intake, as our ancestors preached, in comparison to the western high BAD fat diet.

As a side note we are lucky in Australia because our meat is produced from grazing animals in contrast to grain fed animals in the USA. The difference is that grazing animals are more active thus have leaner muscles, more good fats and less bad fats. 

What about the Carbs?

The intake of carbohydrates again comes down to quality. To make a long story short the rise of the industrial revolution where grains started to be highly processed and refined. Why, well let’s be honest it tastes better and we can cook delicious croissants & cupcakes. However foods consisting of refined grains are quickly digested and absorbed causing a high blood glucose response, which can over time lead to insulin insensitivity (type 2 diabetes). If we learnt our eating habits from cavemen we would not consume refined grains and food would be higher in fibre eliciting a low blood glucose response and better insulin control.

Lifestyle difference

Let’s also remember cavemen were hunters. Hunting is an activity expending lots of energy thus creating an energy balance with their high-fat intake. However times have changed we no longer have to hunt all day to find our dinner we rather drive to the shops from work buy a chicken and voila. This change of lifestyle results in a lower energy expenditure so we need to ensure we meet an energy balance. If this energy balance is not met we have a positive energy i.e. energy in is more than energy out. So as you can see there is not only a difference in food intake but energy levels too that affect the onset of CVD.

A healthy diet based on evolutionary principles in which the quality of food is preferred to quantity or energy. I finish with the words of my lecturer “the Palaeolithic nutrition is likely to influence future dietary guidelines around the world.” 

Welcome to Nutritilicious

Welcome to Nutritilicious
For all of you out there that feel the world of nutrition is confusing, contradictory & overwhelming this is the place to come. Nutritilicious is where the science of nutrition will be made easy to understand. It's about providing evidence-based information in a language anyone and everyone can follow and practice.
Nutrition will finally be made delicious; you will be left wanting more food for thought, literally!