September 14, 2010

Oh Sugar.

Not a bad day over all but check out the spikes that are developing in the direction of sugar. Hmmm.  I'm using a RDA of 40 grams of sugar as our guideline and I'm beginning to see how quickly you can hit this even if you aren't consuming the white granular stuff.

ED
Breakfast            
Latte (12oz)
Granola with Vanilla yogurt and raspberries

Lunch   
Fried pork and Rice
2 apples
Coke zero

Dinner 
Spaghetti with Shrimp in olive oil and fresh basil
Salad greens with Sesame Vinaigrette

Total Expenditure for the Day: $11.64


JAMIE
Breakfast            
Apple
Large coffee (16 oz) with Half & half

Lunch
Medifast Shake
popcorn

Dinner 
Spaghetti with Shrimp in olive oil and fresh basil
Salad greens with Sesame Vinaigrette
Milk (2 cups)

There seems to be a hole in my whole grains.

Total Expenditure for the Day: $8.44

CELIA
Breakfast            
Yogurt Vanilla with 2 bananas

Lunch
Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
Apple
Popcorn

Dinner
Spaghetti with Shrimp in olive oil and fresh basil
Salad greens with Sesame Vinaigrette
Milk (1 cup)
Banana

Total Expenditure for the Day: $6.03



Lessons Learned and Observation

We ended the day with a total family expenditure of $26.15. Ed went over when he at the food provided at the office (we still rung up the expense as if he bought it). Takeout simply is not Eating in 3D friendly.

What’s the dealio with sugar? I understand that we aren’t supposed to suck down sodas, consume large amounts of high-fructose corn syrup or even swig natural fruit juices in high volumes. But what about the sugar that we get from eating fruits, vegetables, and drinking milk? Clearly, all fruits aren't the same. Some have more sugar than others. Does that mean that an apple may not, in fact, be quite as good for you as a strawberry? Or, do the other benefits of fruit – even the sugar ones - offset the amount of sugar they contain?

I consulted the Internet on this topic last night and I found an interesting array of experts and lay folks poo-pooing fruit juices but very few comment on the sugars in actual fruit.

One interesting study from a couple year back conducted across the pond suggests that fructose – the sugar found naturally in fruit  - might be more harmful than other types of sugar because it may contribute more heavily (punny) to the 'intra-abdominal fat'  weight around the stomach which is linked to diabetes and heart disease.

Researchers are toying with the idea that the number of calories in food might not be as important as the type of sugar it contains.

So?! Should I be concerned about blowing my 40 g of sugar per day to get my 2 servings of fruit and 3 servings of milk?  Three 8oz glasses of 2% milk + thee apples add up to 75 g – nearly twice the RDA before you’ve eaten any carbs or vegetables. That’s a pickle.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1029501/Can-fruit-make-fat-Natural-sugar-fruit-fuelling-nations-obesity-epidemic.html#ixzz0zTQkH7NB

2 comments:

  1. I am curious how the glycemic index plays into this. I have read that the following fruits have low GI scores - does that mean that we can eat more fruits from these foods?

    Fruits:
    -Plums
    -Grapefruit
    -Cherries
    -Peaches
    -Apples
    -Prunes
    -Dried apricots

    ReplyDelete
  2. I'm hungry just reading the minimal amount of food you're consuming. Unless by "mashed avocado on wheat toast" you mean three slices of bread and 2 avocados... I'll admit my diet is geekily healthy for an 'Mericun, but I may have to track this for a week or so just to see how many RDAs worth of food I actually eat! -- Becca

    ReplyDelete