Life is sweet for most Canadians: it has been noted they consume on average 22 teaspoons of sugar a day. A significant part of this comes from pop and other sweet drinks, but there are multiple other overt and not-so-obvious sources. What is this doing to the health of the nation’s citizens? Is white sugar the culprit, and are there alternatives that can satisfy the craving for sweet flavours that seems to haunt humankind?

It must be said at the outset that while white refined sugar often takes the rap for the ill effects “sugar” has on health, this is a broad term that includes corn syrup, honey, palm sugar, maple syrup, brown and dark brown sugars and molasses. These sweeteners may contain different forms of sugar (i.e. sucrose, glucose, fructose), but all are problematic and have similar effects on our bodies to a lesser or greater degree.

Eating too much sugar has the well-known consequence of adding calories to your diet, often from foods that contain few or zero nutrients. One soda drink, for example, has eight of teaspoons sugar and contains 150 so-called “empty calories.”  The bottom line is humans only need so many calories a day – excess is stored as fat.

Space allows for the discussion of only a few more of the many negative effects of sugar. The sweetener has a definite role in causing dental cavities, and has been noted to affect cholesterol levels in the blood, lowering “good” or HDL levels which has direct implications for heart disease. While sugar intake does not cause diabetes, it is certainly harmful for those who are dealing with the chronic disease since their body does not produce the insulin to cope with the simple sugar from candy, cake and pop and the like that enters the bloodstream very quickly. However, in a roundabout way sugar may be a factor in causing diabetes, since excess pounds are, indeed, a risk factor for the disease.

Excess consumption

Most nutritionists do not tell consumers to ban all sugars from their diets – rather to have a rational approach and be fully aware of what excess consumption can do to health. As well, some sweetening agents have a few positive facets that might give them an edge. Raw and brown sugars for example, have gone through less refining than white sugar and so retain trace minerals, and also leave a smaller carbon footprint than more highly processed goods do.

A redeeming quality of honey, maple syrup and molasses is they have a stronger taste than white sugar, and thus you can get by with using less, thus lowering calorie count. In addition, honey is known to have antibacterial properties which can help heal intestinal infections. A certain type of honey made by bees from the nectar of the manuka bush is thought to be especially effective as an antibacterial agent. Manuka honey has also been found to help in reducing dental plaque and bleeding when used as treatment for gingivitis.

What about sugar substitutes? Could they be the answer to eliminating sugar from our diets? Most health professionals agree that while sugar substitutes will likely never completely do away with sugar, they have the potential of playing an important role in a healthy diet, especially for those who deal with diabetes or are trying to prevent obesity or lose weight. Despite public worries that sugar substitutes may cause cancer, there are several that are considered to be perfectly safe.

One that has come on the scene recently is stevia, a sweetener produced from the leaves of a plant native to South America. Virtually calorie-free and shown to be several hundreds of times sweeter than table sugar – thus used sparingly as a substitute – it has been approved as a safe dietary supplement.

Xylitol – a natural substance found in fibrous fruits and vegetables and various hardwood trees – has been isolated as an acceptable sugar substitute. It has a minimal effect on blood sugar and inhibits dental cavities by 80 percent (look for it in sugar-free chewing gum). In crystalline form, Xylitol can replace sugar in baking.