REFINED SUGARS: WHY THEY ARE HARMFUL AND WHAT TO DO
Sugar or no sugar? This dilemma is continually under discussion! Not sure if consuming sugar is good or bad? We will help you better understand the concept of refined sugars and which sugars are "good" and which ones should be avoided.
What are refined sugars and what types are there?
Refined sugars are called this because they undergo processing, refining, at an industrial level to be more palatable and easier to use.
Two types of refined sugars can be distinguished: simple or complex .
Simple refined sugars are table sugar, sucrose, and sugars contained in packaged sweets, snacks, snacks, carbonated drinks, alcohol, sweets, packaged cured meats, fruit juices with added sugars, sauces.
Complex refined sugars include sugars present in non-wholemeal pasta, white bread, processed cereals, 00 flour and white rice.
Which ones should be avoided and why?
Complex refined sugars are defined as "good", even if the best are whole sugars, because they provide energy to the body for a prolonged time, promote a sense of satiety and help the body to balance glycemia, i.e. cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood.
Simple refined sugars, on the other hand, are defined as "bad" and should be avoided because they are absorbed by the body but without nourishing it, which is why they are defined as empty calories , because they do not provide energy, causing a sense of advanced hunger and the accumulation of fat. The intake of simple sugars causes the process of reactive hypoglycemia : after having consumed a certain amount of sugars, there is a wave of energy followed by the desire to consume more sugars, creating a real addiction in our body like a drug.
Summing up its negative effects, simple refined sugar causes:
- It is the main cause of serious diseases such as diabetes and obesity : sugar creates addiction to binge eating resulting in problems related to obesity, therefore your sugar consumption should be reduced by at least up to 30%.
- It is harmful to your health : it increases blood pressure, creates liver problems and changes your metabolism. It is bad for the heart, increasing the chances of suffering from cardiovascular diseases. It damages “good” cholesterol, making it unable to fight “bad” cholesterol, and can cause permanent damage to memory.
- It's like an addictive drug .
- Affects life expectancy : according to a study conducted at a University of California , constant and uncontrolled intake of refined sugar reduces life expectancy by 20%.
What can you do to reduce your consumption of refined sugar?
The best thing you can do to reduce your consumption of refined sugars is to start eating natural foods and abandon packaged products and soft drinks as much as possible. Some tips for reducing consumption are:
- Avoid the use of artificial sweeteners : just like refined sugars, artificial sweeteners are also harmful to your health
- Start a low-sugar diet , in order to detoxify the body from the consumption of refined sugars.
- Take complex carbohydrates and fibre , in the right quantities, which allow you to better absorb refined sugars
- Choose natural foods , without refined sugars: to reduce your dependence on sugars, it is time to switch to natural alternatives to the usual packaged products such as snacks, without refined sugars and which use only natural (not artificial) sweeteners.
Why choose Clemi's Market products?
Clemi's Market products are perfect for reducing and moderating sugar consumption because they are without refined sugars and 100% natural.
- Original Granola contains only 4% natural sugars, the only sugar used is dehydrated blueberry in apple juice;
- Chocolate Lover Granola has only 7% natural sugars , meaning the only sugar is maple syrup;
- In Femme Fatale there are only 3.4% sugars , and the only natural sweetener used is yacon powder, a tuber from South America that does not cause glycemic peaks and does not provide calories
- Protein Power contains yacon powder as the only sweetener
- In Skinny Dipped Almonds the only sweetener used is date sugar.
Breakfast , especially, is one of the meals in which we tend to consume more refined sugars due to snacks and sweets full of sugars. These products without refined sugars not only bring benefits to the body, but are also delicious and allow to make a nutritious and balanced meal, offering a tasty and healthy way to satisfy the usual craving for sweetness.
We don't recommend giving up sugar completely overnight, but doing so gradually due to the dependency you may have. After uncontrolled and constant consumption, stopping sugar can cause typical detox symptoms, such as tiredness, irritability and headaches. However, within a week your body will feel much better.
Once detoxified from sugar, the best solution to reduce consumption and not return to being dependent on it, while preserving our health, is to choose to eat natural alternatives that do not contain refined sugars, but only natural sweeteners.
