October 21, 2022
Chemically, there are many different types of sugar. But for dietary purposes, there are only two kinds of sugars you need to concern yourself with: naturally occurring sugars and added sugars.
Naturally occurring sugars are found in foods such as fruits, vegetables, grains, and dairy products. The most common natural sugars found in the food we eat are glucose, fructose, galactose, sucrose, lactose, and maltose.
Glucose, fructose, and galactose are the simplest forms of sugar and are called monosaccharides. Sucrose, lactose, and maltose are called disaccharides and are made by combining two monosaccharides. Here’s what you need to know about each of these sugars:
• Glucose: Fruits and vegetables are sources of glucose. It can also be found in everything from candy to energy drinks. Because glucose is a simple carbohydrate, your body can absorb it quickly without breaking it down further, making it a fast source of energy.
• Fructose: This type of sugar is also a simple carbohydrate, and is primarily found in fruit. This type of sugar is harder to absorb because your body needs to break it down into glucose before it can be used as energy.
• Galactose: The elements in this type of sugar are the same ones found in glucose, but they are arranged differently.
• Sucrose: This is the type of sugar you’ll find on the table at a restaurant or in your pantry. It’s a combination of fructose and glucose and is produced from sugarcane and sugar beets.
• Lactose: This sugar is found in dairy products, including milk, cheese, and yogurt. Many people lack the enzyme to process lactose, leading to lactose intolerance.
• Maltose: Formed when two glucose molecules bond, this type of sugar is found in sprouted grains.
Added sugars often have little to no nutritional value, which is why their calories are called empty calories. Refined sugars have been processed to contain nothing but sugar. The most widely used types of refined sugar are cane sugars and high-fructose corn syrup.
Other added sugars include brown rice syrup, evaporated cane juice, honey, maple syrup, and fruit concentrate. Some, most notably honey and maple syrup, are less refined than others and may be better for you than traditional sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. But all are added sugars, and you should limit them in your diet.
When you consume a lot of sugar, it causes a high sugar level in your blood. Your pancreas responds by producing insulin, which forces the sugar to go into certain cells so they can use it as energy. If the sugar doesn’t need to be used as energy, it gets stored in fat cells, which is why too much sugar consumption can lead to obesity. Being overweight increases the likelihood of getting diabetes, some forms of cancer, and heart disease.
Too much sugar also has been linked to tooth decay and chronic inflammation, which can increase your risk for heart disease. And while a high-sugar diet can’t directly cause diabetes, it can lead to insulin resistance. And this, combined with obesity, can result in prediabetes and, if that is left untreated, diabetes.
To make it easier to see how much sugar is in manufactured foods, the Food and Drug Administration recently required “Nutrition Facts” labels to include an “Added Sugars” line that lists the amount of added sugars in grams. The maximum amount you should eat daily is 50 grams based on a 2,000 calorie diet. (A 12-ounce can of cola contains 39 grams of sugar, so that limit is easy to exceed.)
As a rule of thumb, saying “no” to processed foods and eating mostly whole foods (like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and lean meat) will help you avoid the sugars that are bad for you. More information on added sugars and maintaining a healthy diet can be found in the latest edition of the FDA’s “Dietary Guidelines.”
