question regarding diet/food stuff

[scuba steve]

so i remember hearing back in the day that "high fructose corn syrup" is what is the main culprit when it comes to high calorie, high fat, etc. basically bad for you. but i also know that natural sugars like in fruit are not great but are ok.

so if you get food or drink that has regular sugar in it, is it better than the high fructose equivalent or stay away from entirely?

i can't find a clear answer online, thanks

[Grapesoda]

the general consensus is stay away from high fructose corn syrup. the stuff supposedly causes hunger, hence the reason it's in soda crackers for instance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-fructose_corn_syrup

I use golden sryup when I need/want sugar

[Elli]

Why not try to avoid added sugar entirely? If you must eat something processed, then make sure it has real ingredients, not scientists' concoctions. If you can't pronounce an ingredient or can't say what it is, you probably shouldn't eat it. That's the rule I go by, anyway.

[scuba steve]

Yeah I'm with you but if it says "sugar" on the label is it sort of ok? I mean I like fruit a lot for snacks, we all know there is natural sugar in it but should I stay away from fruit too?

[WarChild]

Fruit does have a high sugar content, but it also usually has quite a lot of fibre. Pick fiberous fruits like melons. Fibre has the effect of slowing the rate at which the body metabolizes the sugar.

The problem with sugar, aside from the fact that it's a simple carb that very quickly turns to sugar and then must be stored as fat if not burned off, is that it causes your blood sugar levels to spike. When your blood sugar spikes your body has an insulin response to bring your blood sugar down. Insulin is the most anabolic substance in the body and inhibits the burning of fat almost entirely.

Aim to have a constant blood sugar level. Look for foods with a low gylcemic value. This is a measure of how quickly they turn in to sugar in your bloood. You don't want to have the large insulin responses.

Another good stratedgy is to have your simple carbs in the morning with some complex carb as well, then complex carbs for lunch and very few or no carbs at all for dinner. This will give you the energy you need in the day and then force your body to burn fat at night when there's no more sugar readily available for fuel.

Good luck!

[dyna mo]

it seems to me that you are confusing natural sugar with processed sugar. there's nothing wrong/bad with eating fruit. i've been a diabetic for 26 years and eat bananas, apples, strawberries, blueberries, melons all day every day, no joke. and i don't have to shoot insulin when i do, like i have to when i consume starchy sugars or a product with added refined sugar.


warchild's comment is accurate. also, there's several different types of natural sugars, fructose, galactose, maltose, glucose, etc.
each of those have unique glycemic ratings. so a banana will have a slightly higher glycemic value than an apple. difference being the amount of fiber and the type of naturally occurring sugar.

it's all pretty easy though: foods with hfcs and/or processed sugar are bad. whole foods with naturally occurring sugars are good.

[jabula]

Originally Posted by scuba steve

so i remember hearing back in the day that "high fructose corn syrup" is what is the main culprit when it comes to high calorie, high fat, etc. basically bad for you. but i also know that natural sugars like in fruit are not great but are ok.

so if you get food or drink that has regular sugar in it, is it better than the high fructose equivalent or stay away from entirely?

i can't find a clear answer online, thanks

Avoid simple sugars entirely ...
Here's an article to read about sugars.
http://www.womenfitness.net/deit_sugar.htm

[dyna mo]

Originally Posted by jabula

Avoid simple sugars entirely ...

that's bad advice.

from the article you linked

Choose fresh fruits for snacks and desserts instead of processed, high-sugar foods- Natural sugars in foods are part of a complex carbohydrate package that provides fuel and energy for your body. Eating natural-occurring sugars in fruits, vegetables, and grains is a healthier way to get your sweets. Sugar combined with fiber and other solid foods metabolizes more slowly and keeps your blood sugar more stable.

[garce]

[scuba steve]

Originally Posted by dyna mo

it's all pretty easy though: foods with hfcs and/or processed sugar are bad. whole foods with naturally occurring sugars are good.

whats the easiest way to tell if its a hfc or processed one? basically they all are unless its a organic fruit or vegetable?

[dyna mo]

Originally Posted by scuba steve

basically they all are unless its a organic fruit or vegetable?

correct. except for a few zero glycemic natural sweeteners such as stevia and erythritol.

[woj]

best bet is to avoid sugars entirely, even fruits aren't that great for you, they are good in moderation, but too much of it will fuck you up just like any other sugar...

[dyna mo]

Originally Posted by woj

best bet is to avoid sugars entirely, even fruits aren't that great for you, they are good in moderation, but too much of it will fuck you up just like any other sugar...

i hope by *moderation* you mean eating 5-9 pieces of fruit per day minimum

[woj]

Originally Posted by dyna mo

i hope by *moderation* you mean eating 5-9 pieces of fruit per day minimum

where to draw the line is debatable, it depends on your activity level, health, etc, but 10+ is pushing it for sure...

10 apples per day for example = close to 1000 calories and 150 grams of sugar per day...

[dyna mo]

Originally Posted by woj

where to draw the line is debatable, it depends on your activity level, heath, etc, but 10+ is pushing it for sure...

10 apples per day for example = close to 1000 calories and 150 grams of sugar per day...

no question. just as the other side of the spectrum, avoiding fruit, is pushing it.

but it would be pretty difficult to overeat fruit. hell, i have to work to get ~7 pieces of fruit per day. while it's easy to under eat fruit, which i guess is my point. i think it's a way overlooked food group, which is sometimes due to fruit being thought of as bad sugar.

[scuba steve]

Originally Posted by dyna mo

correct. except for a few zero glycemic natural sweeteners such as stevia and erythritol.

Thanks

[candyflip]

If a product has a real sugar version in addition to the HFCS version, I prefer the taste of the real sugar. The corn sugar (yes...the HFCS people are trying to rebrand it now that people are seeing HFCS in a negative light) stuff is too sweet for me.

[gmr324]

but it would be pretty difficult to overeat fruit. hell, i have to work to get ~7 pieces of fruit per day. while it's easy to under eat fruit, which i guess is my point. i think it's a way overlooked food group, which is sometimes due to fruit being thought of as bad sugar.

Totally agree. You have to work at it to eat the proper daily amount of fruit.

I once heard a simple rule that make a lot of sense for what to eat: if it's a food that your great grandmother wouldn't recognize, avoid it.

[Ethersync]

I think it's all been said already, but...

Avoid HFCS.

Avoid food that uses fructose as a sweetener (yes, this includes normal table sugar).

Some fruit is OK, but make sure you are getting the fiber with it...

Eat a lot of fiber. No one gets enough in modern diets.