Sugar: The Most Popular Sweetener

Up to the time of 320 BC in many parts of the world, honey was more commonly used as a sweetener. However, around 327 BC when the army of Alexander the Great incursion into the Indian subcontinent, they are amaze to see that there is an alternative to honey for sweetening the foods, Sugar. By which sugar became known to this world and now it is most popular sweetener.

In many places, festivals are really about sweets. For any occasion, we celebrate with the intake of sweet. Further, in many cultures it is mandatory to sweeten the mouth with any kinds of sweets or ice cream or chocolates, more than a food it becomes a way of life. Sugar is most often associated with sweets, candy, baked item, beverages and many foods. Sugar is a bigger part of your daily diet than you may realize.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the amount of added sugars in your daily dose is 12 grams and the maximum limit is around 25 grams. In contrast, many people consume far more than this limit.

USA consumes more sugar than any other countries in the world, followed by Germany, Netherlands, Ireland and Australia which are the top 5 sugar loving nations respectively. An average American consumes 22 teaspoons (126.40 gms) of sugar a day which is equal to around 100 pounds per year. Likewise, the top 5 sugar loving nations consumes:

Rank	Country	Average Individual Sugar Consumption (in grams)
1	United States	126.40
2	Germany	102.90
3	Netherlands	102.50
4	Ireland	96.70
5	Australia	95.60

Why everyone loves sugar?

Sugar activates the brain in a special way, which is similar to the drugs like cocaine. It has been scientifically proved that, when sugar is consumed, Dopamine (a chemical that controls the pleasure) is being released, just as it could response to alcohols and drugs. Hence, when you drink any beverages it makes you feel good.
We are not only talking about sugars in beverages, it is almost prevalent in everything that we eat. Such as biscuits, salad dressings, breads, cereals, ketchup and the list goes on.

How sugar came into most of the food products?

Until 1970’s many food manufactures in USA produce food stuff contains more of fat which causes many heart diseases. After which the government asked the food industries to reduce the fat content in their product. The fact is, if we take the fat out of food, it tastes worst. Hence, they replaced it with sugar. 

Diseases that are linked to sugar consumption

When a person consumes more sugar stuffs, the liver gets overloaded with fructose and converts some of it into fat. Some of these fats ends up in the bloodstream and produces a dangerous kind of cholesterol. This cholesterol is known to lodge in blood vessels, form plaque and are associated with heart attacks.

Excessive sugar consumption has been associated with tooth decay, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart diseases, certain types of cancers, etc. The good thing is more than 75% of these are preventable.

Regardless of whether sugar is terrible for you not, at least you should get to know how much it's being added to your food. Manufactures will never project or display the amount of sugar contains in their products at the front. However, the sweetener industries project their products only with their health benefits. But we as consumers do check the sugar content in the food labels carefully. I know we are not going to rid of these sugars but try to limit their consumption as much as possible.