As you may know, sugar is the biggest enemy that we have in our diet.
Many studies suggest that too much sugar can contribute to various diseases including Type 2 Diabetes, obesity and heart disease.
To start, I would like to mention that there are different types of sugar.
Foods such as vegetables and fruits do contain natural sugars
This natural sugar found in whole natural foods is fine to eat. Except maybe for people who are suffering from diseases such as diabetes and obesity, it is better for them to limit that type of sugar too.
I would like to clarify that when I refer to sugar in this article I mean the “regular kind.”
Table sugar, sucrose, high fructose corn syrup or whatever.
High fructose corn syrup is essentially the same as regular sugar.
For more info on the different types of sugar, then check out this article.
How Many Grams of Sugar To Eat Per Day?
It is a fact that sugar consumption has increased dramatically in the past few decades, and at the same time diseases like diabetes, obesity and others have advanced at an alarming rate.
That year, the average person consumed 152 pounds of sugar.
How is that even possible?
Sources claim that current daily sugar consumption in America is about 87 grams per day (350cal, 17.4tsp), and according to a USDA report in 2010, the average child consumes 365 calories of added sugar per day, or 91 gram (18.2 tsp). Update report here.
During this time, obesity rates in both children and adults have skyrocketed, and I think one of the main reasons for that is excess sugar consumption.
Also read: Sugar Addition […and How To Break It!]
How many grams of sugar per day are recommended?
- The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends: 37 grams for men (150 cal, 7.4tsp) and 25 grams for women (100 cal, 5tsp).
- The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommends: 32 grams (128cal, 6.4tsp) for a 2000 calorie diet.
- The American Diabetes Association (ADA) doesn’t provide specific guidelines but claims that it can be substituted for other carbohydrate sources, in moderation.
How Much Sugar Per Day I Suggest
Most nutrition and health authorities recommend limiting sugar.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, then you will know that I think sugar is addictive, much like other substances of abuse.
For people who have a hard time controlling sugar cravings, and are unable to clean up their diet, I recommend eliminating sugar.
If you’re not a junk food and sugar addict, then it’s okay to have some when the social circumstances call for it, for example on birthdays and Christmas.
There is no physical need for added sugar and when eaten in large amounts it makes people sick and unhealthy.
Sugar is addictive, leads to cravings and overeating, rots your teeth, makes your breath bad, increases body fat, may lead to disease, and the list goes on, and on, and on.
Personally, I think overweight people could lose a decent amount of weight simply by eliminating sugar, which includes ALL types of added sugar including those labeled as corn syrups.
Recommended Reading: Intermittent Fasting on the Keto Diet Plan – Is it Good?
Recently uber-healthy big wave surfer Laird Hamilton has been more and more vocal about his high-fat no-sugar diet. He’s even been called a radical evangelist of fitness. He has some extremely interesting ideas and I highly recommend you look more into his mantra.
So, my personal opinion on how much sugar per day is NONE.
And that doesn’t include pigging out on cheat days 1-2 times per week.
It’s like any other poison, nicotine for example.
A tiny little bit ain’t gonna kill you, but none at all is obviously the best choice.
You can find more of the basics of sugar, what it does to us when included in our daily diet and how we can break a sugar addiction and its associated cravings.
