Sugar comes in many forms, but whatever its guise it ultimately ends up as blood glucose - the body's primary source of fuel. Eat too much of it, however, and you end up with more glucose than the body needs and the excess becomes stored as fat.
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There are ways to be clever with sugar so you get that sweet hit you might crave, without maxing your daily quotient (according to the World Health Organisation, sugar should only make up 5 per cent of your daily calorie intake).
Given the fact a lot of sugar is hidden in processed foods, fizzy drinks, fruit juices, tomato and pasta sauces and even bread, keeping track of your sugar intake can be tricky.
Here are five ways to limit your intake:
1. Make sure you are getting fibre at the same time.
A little sugar sprinkled on porridge will be absorbed more slowly into the blood than the sugar found in a soft drink. This is because the fibre in the porridge slows down the absorption of the sugar into the blood. Similarly, sugar in a high-fibre fruit muffin will be absorbed slowly whereas sugar found in most café style muffins (based on white flour, butter, sugar and not a lot else) will be absorbed rapidly and promote fat storage.
2. Sweeten food with fruit.
Dried fruit like dates are great for sweetening desserts and baked goods. Try the crumble recipe below if you are not convinced!
3. Say no to foods and drinks containing sugar and little else.
Sugary drinks, fruit juice, confectionary, most sweet biscuits, cakes, muffins and desserts fit into this category. Apart from their effect on blood sugar, they are often high in fat and kilojoules - even more reason to limit them.
4. Watch processed foods.
Look for less than 10 grams sugar and more than 7 grams fibre per 100 grams.
5. Cut your sugar back bit by bit.
Make gradual cut-backs so your food doesn't taste dramatically different. Eventually the less you have, the more sweetness your taste buds register and the less you'll need or want.
Try the following "no added sugar" crumble mix. Works a treat on any fruit:
OAT, ALMOND AND COCONUT CRUMBLE TOPPING
Ingredients
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almonds
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
5 large Medjool dates (or more if you like it sweeter)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons trim milk
Method
Process oats, almonds, coconut, dates and cinnamon to a coarse crumb. Add coconut oil and milk and process to mix. The crumb should clump together when pressed with the fingers. If still a little dry, add a little more milk.
-Stuff
