1-medium baked potato + 1/4 cup of sugar
1-cup of pasta = over 3/4 cup of sugar
2-seven inch waffles = 1/4 cup of sugar (without syrup)
1-ear of corn = 1/3 cup of sugar
1-dinner roll = 3/4 cup of sugar
1-plain bagel = over 1/4 cup of sugar
1-12 oz. orange juice = 3/4 cup of sugar
1-plate of baked beans = 3/4 cup of sugar
1-slice of apple pie = 1 cup of sugar
How much sugar do you consume?
The average American eats the equivalent of 2 cups of sugar per day! According to James Scalar, M.D., at the end of the 1700’s sugar consumption was less than 20 pounds per person per year. By the end of the 1800’s, sugar consumption had risen to 63 pounds annually. Now, 100 years later, the average American eats 152 pounds of sugar each year.
To process all this sugar, the body releases just enough insulin in response to carbohydrates to keep blood sugar levels stable. However, many people (it is estimated 75% of the public) become insulin resistant” when they overwhelm their body with several daily insulin “spikes” over time. The body must produce higher levels of insulin to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. This condition is referred in medical terms as hyperinsulinemia.
Unfortunately insulin resistance causes fat to be stored to a greater degree. That’s why so many people can actually gain weight on a high carbohydrate diet, even when they are following it “by the book”.
A few more serious problems resulting from an excess of insulin: The U.S. Surgeon General recently reported that overweight/obesity is a very serious problem in U.S., particularly since it is associated with increased risk of high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Other threats to good health include stroke, gall bladder disease, and arthritis. A new study estimates that the annual number of deaths in the U.S. that are attributable to overweight/obesity is about 280,000.
In addition, sugar functions as an immunosuppressant in a number of ways:
- Lessens the germ killing ability of white blood cells for up to five hours
- Interferes with the production of antibodies, which attack invaders in the bloodstream
- Disrupts the distribution of vitamin C, one of the body’s most important antioxidants.
- Causes mineral imbalances that weaken the immune system and are sometimes responsible for allergic reactions.
- Makes cell walls more permeable and therefore easier for invaders to penetrate by neutralizing the action of essential fatty acids.
