7 Reasons Eating Too Much Sugar Is Detrimental to Your Overall Health
7 REASONS EATING TOO MUCH SUGAR IS DETRIMENTAL TO YOUR OVERALL HEALTH
Imagine eating 152 pounds of sugar every year. You don't have to imagine too much because this is the average sugar intake of Americans.
Sugar is in everything from pasta sauce to soft drinks, so trying to limit your intake can be difficult. Despite its difficulty, it's worth developing healthy eating habits since too much sugar has detrimental effects on the body and mind.
Read on to find 7 reasons why you should cut your sugar intake to improve your health.
1. Obesity
There are two ways that eating candy and other high sugar foods cause weight gain.
First, sugar is a carbohydrate that eventually turns into fat. This particular fat is low in nutrients which are empty calories. They have no purpose in your body so they simply add to your body's mass instead of using them to function.
Second, refined sugar like fructose has an addictive quality. Since they have no nutritional value and don't curve your appetite they are consumed in large quantities.
When you eat a lot of sugar, your body forms a resistance to the hormone leptin, which regulates weight loss by controlling hunger. Another weight control hormone affected by sugar is insulin, which leads to high blood sugar and excess fat storage.
2. Bad Skin
Some common signs of too much sugar are oily and pimpled skin on your face. You may notice that teenagers have the worst acne. This is due to hormonal changes as well as the high intake of sugary foods.
Hormonally, a spike in insulin and blood sugar levels cause your body to release more of the hormone androgen as well as oil while causing inflammation.
All of these conditions lead to acne that is almost impossible to control unless your sugar intake is reduced.
Too much sugar is also linked to pre-mature aging as it affects your cells. This creates bad molecules that reduce the elastin and collagen that keeps your skin tight and young.
3. Heart Disease
The combination of weight gain, inflammation, and higher blood sugar levels puts a strain on your heart. Bad sugar that turns to fat causes a disease called atherosclerosis which is the build-up of plaque in your arteries.
Clogged arteries lead to less oxygen in your blood and in your heart. This can cause deadly consequences like heart attacks and strokes.
Arteries also become inflamed, resisting blood flow. Smaller arteries mean high blood pressure, putting more strain on your organs, especially your heart.
4. Type 2 Diabetes
You shouldn't have to ask can too much sugar cause diabetes? That is because all the consequences discussed so far contribute to diabetes.
Inflammation, obesity, high blood pressure, and insulin resistance are all components that lead to type 2 diabetes.
You need to have excess and prolonged exposure to high intakes of sugar to develop diabetes. That is why middle-aged people contract the disease more than any other age group.
However, young people are becoming prone to it as sugar intake increases.
5. Cancer
Inflammation of the cells, tissue, and arteries as well as a surplus of fat all lead to a higher chance of cancer.
We all have potentially cancerous cells in our bodies. They can be harmless if the natural life cycle of the cells operate normally. However, cancer cells feed on fat, particularly from sugar, to develop and grow.
When your body is inflamed and doesn't process insulin your cells' life-cycles are disrupted. Old cells don't die and flush out of the body. Instead, they form cancerous tissue.
6. Impotence
The lack of proper blood flow through the body caused by inflammation, high blood pressure, and excess fat can also affect your sex life. Too much sugar may make males unable to achieve an erection, leading to impotence.
Sugar also lowers your sex drive by reducing the leptin hormone. In men, testosterone is lowered which contributes to a decrease in libido.
Nerve damage and heart conditions can also lead to an inability to have sex. It can be dangerous to perform the act when the heart can't deliver blood to the body fast enough.
For women, high blood sugar means less stimulation and lubrication, making it difficult to get in the mood.
7. Depression
One of the most unknown facts about sugar is that it affects your mood by interacting and changing the neurotransmitters in your brain. An imbalance of chemicals and inflammation caused by high blood sugar affects your emotions.
Sugar triggers a dopamine response, leading to a feeling a euphoria. This makes you want more sugar to experience the high of dopamine. What this also means is that when you are low on sugar, you can become depressed.
More sugar in your blood acts similarly to caffeine, giving you a quick boost of energy. Combined with the dopamine, you feel active and happy.
When the sugar wears off this is called a crash. You might become lethargic and even regretful of eating the sugar. However, your body tells you to eat more to feel better again.
How to Stop Eating Too Much Sugar
The best way to stop eating too much sugar is to find healthy substitutes. Natural sweeteners like honey, dates, agave, and coconut sugar are a healthy way to get the sweet your body desires without sacrificing your health.
Gradually remove refined sugar from your diet to limit the side effects of withdrawal. You will notice drastic changes in your physical and mental demeanor.
For more ways to bring balance and health back into your life contact us about hormone treatment for weight loss.
