How Can You Cut Down on Sugar?

Rebecca Lewis July 09, 2014

Like some others, you probably don’t put sugar in your cup of coffee, or in your tea. But that doesn’t mean you are not getting more than the daily recommended intake of the sweet stuff. There are growing concerns about sugar and health, and experts agree that cutting down on sugar has huge benefits, especially in reducing obesity rate.

The current recommended limit is 10% of the total calorie intake. Sadly, every age group in the UK exceeds the current guidelines. Among the most common health effects of too much sugar is tooth decay, which affects more than a quarter of five-year olds. More serious health issues associated with it is heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

More alarmingly, many people are not aware of how much sugar they are taking in on a daily basis. When they talk about sugar, they think of the granulated table sugar they put in coffee or tea, or use in cooking. However, most food products these days, especially processed goods, contain plenty of sugar. They include pasta sauces, natural fruit drinks, fizzy drinks, biscuits, breads and pastries, and even the morning cereals we give to our children.

If you are fond of eating any of these foods, and other goods convenient stores offer, you are most probably getting more sugar than your body can tolerate.

Experts say cutting down on sugar can have a dramatic impact on public health. And reducing the limit to half (5%) is a very ambitious step. There are different proposals to achieve this, and one is to levy high taxes on sugar.

Whilst health experts and lawmakers are still on a long deliberation on how they can discourage the public from consuming too much sugar, there are small things you can do to reduce your intake of the sweet yet dangerous stuff. Here they are:

Consume more fibre.

Most of us have “sweet tooth” so it’s not easy to give up sugar completely. However, we can make smart food choices and healthier alternatives. For instance, instead of pigging on sugar coated dried fruits, you can choose to eat naturally sweet produce like oranges, banana, mango, etc. Adding more fibre-rich carbohydrates and whole grains in your regular meals can slash your appetite for sweets.

Get your 5-portion a day. Health experts recommend eating five portions of fruits and vegetables per day, plus whole grains. That’s a whole lot of food to keep you full for the entire day, compared with drinking one can of fizzy pop that lets you hit your sugar limit in just one gulp.

Choose savoury grains.

Sometimes, a lovely slice of warm bread and butter is satisfying as a sweet treat. Yes, it is made with grains which are still carbohydrates, but the effect on our body is so much better.

Explore other flavours.

You will find that eating is more exciting when you are able to combine complex flavours, than stick to plain sugar or honey. For example, if you’re used to adding sugar in yoghurt, try replacing it with dried coconut, fresh or frozen fruit (a mixture of sweet and sour fruits), ground nuts, cinnamon, etc.