Do I eat too much sugar?

If you look at the nutritional value table of many foods, you will very often find various names for sugar. Every day we unconsciously consume more sugar than we actually want and need. Excessive consumption of sugar can have long-term effects on our health and body, and this can promote various diseases such as type 2 diabetes. In this article, you will learn how much sugar you should consume each day, how to recognise that you are consuming too much sugar and what you can do about excessive sugar consumption.

Why is too much sugar harmful for our body?

The intake of sugar, especially in the form of conventional household sugar, causes our blood sugar level to rise rapidly and if consumed in high amounts, this can lead to our pancreas no longer being able to secrete enough insulin. The task of insulin is to regulate our blood sugar level. If we consume too much sugar, type 2 diabetes can develop. Read about how harmful sugar really is.

Are there different types of sugar?

Of course, not every type of sugar is processed by our body in the same way. Simple sugars such as dextrose or household sugar, which consists of the two simple sugars fructose and glucose, make our blood sugar level rise quickly. Multiple sugars, which can be found in potatoes, bread or legumes, for example, on the other hand do not cause our blood sugar level to rise so quickly because the starch contained in them must first be processed by our body.

Nevertheless, regardless of the type of sugar, you should watch out not to consume too much sugar. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a daily sugar consumption of about 25g of sugar per day. But how do you know that your sugar intake is too high?

Your body’s first warning signs of an excessive sugar consumption

If you give your body too much sugar in the short or long term, your body will send you various warning signs and various symptoms may occur. Do you feel tired all the time? You could eat literally all the time? You are ill often? Your skin is dry, and you are thirsty often? If you can answer these questions with “yes”, you should take a closer look at your sugar intake. Here you will find an overview of the 7 different warning signs of your body that indicate that you are consuming too much sugar:

1. You are constantly hungry
2. You have cavities
3. You are often thirsty
4. You have skin problems and impure skin
5. You often have headaches or migraines
6. You have a weak immune system and are often sick
7. You often have digestive problems

Constant hunger

If you eat a lot of foods that contain a lot of sugar, this leads to a constantly elevated blood sugar level. If the blood sugar level is constantly elevated, the glucose cannot get to the cells. Since the glucose does not enter the cells, the brain does not receive a signal from the cells that they have been supplied with food. Therefore, our brain continues to send the signal that we still need energy, and this leads us continuing to feel hungry.

Caries

Even as a child, we often learn that too much sweets are bad for our teeth and promote caries. Caries can therefore also be a sign of a high sugar consumption, as the sugar is converted into acid, which attacks the dental enamel.

You are thirsty often

If you consume too much sugar, your body tries to get rid of the excess sugar. One way of our body to restore balance is that you have to pee often. This causes a lack of fluid in your body and your body therefore sends you a signal that you are thirsty so need to be hydrated.

Various skin problems and impure skin

As already mentioned, too much sugar leads to a lack of fluid in your body. Another consequence of this deficiency can not only be a frequent thirst, but also dry skin. Furthermore, excessive sugar consumption can also lead to skin impurities, pimples and inflammation. This is because the sugar that the body can no longer process binds itself to the proteins collagen and elastin. These two proteins are responsible for keeping our skin healthy and firm. However, when the sugar binds to the proteins, it stops them from doing their job and this can then lead to the formation of blemishes, pimples or inflammation under the skin.

Frequent headaches

Various case reports and studies show that people suffering from migraines in particular benefit from a low-sugar diet. The number of migraine attacks can be reduced by a lower sugar intake. The reduction of sugar is also said to have a positive effect on other types of headaches.

Weak immune system

If you are ill often, it may also be because you are eating too much sugar. This is because sugar can affect and weaken our immune system. Furthermore, our diet and the nutrients, vitamins and minerals it contains are an important building block for a strong immune system. Foods with a high sugar content are also not very nutritious for our body, which means that they do not have a positive effect on our immune system.

Digestive problems

Your digestion can also suffer from excessive sugar consumption. Among other things, excessive consumption can lead to changes in the intestinal flora, which can have a significant effect on digestion. This can therefore also lead to a feeling of fullness, flatulence, constipation or diarrhea.

If you have now recognized one or more symptoms, you should take a closer look at your diet, your food and your food plan. We now give you 5 helpful tips which you can quickly and easily implement into your life in order to reduce your sugar consumption.

What can I do if I eat too much sugar? Helpful measures against high sugar consumption

Regular meals

If you suspect or know that you are taking in too much sugar, you should first of all work on your diet. Make sure to eat regularly to strengthen your digestion.

Low sugar and nutritious diet

You should also make sure that your diet contains a low amount of sugar and that you consume foods with many vital substances. A lot of vegetables and small amounts of fruit play a particularly important role in a healthy diet. Furthermore, you should pay attention to complex carbohydrates with a high fibre content in your diet. Especially oat flakes, potatoes or wholemeal bread are a good choice because the blood sugar level rises slower. For breakfast, you can integrate complex carbohydrates in the form of oatmeal simply by eating a filling porridge. The delicious Verival Porridges without added sugar are a healthy warm breakfast.

Drink more water

Especially sugared drinks, lemonades and soft drinks often contain large amounts of sugar and are hidden calorie traps and sugar bombs. If you often drink sugared drinks, you can easily reduce your daily sugar intake by replacing them with water or unsweetened tea.

Create a weekly schedule and meal prep

A weekly schedule can also help you reduce your sugar consumption, as you can plan your meals and avoid unnecessary sugary snacks. You can also prepare your meals in advance. For example, you can prepare your meals for the whole week on Sunday and you can store the prepared meals in the refrigerator. This way you have your food ready during the week and you only need to take them to work, school or university and enjoy them. Our porridges are also available in convenient single portions so you can take your healthy warm breakfast with you wherever you go.

Natural sugar alternatives – the solution for high sugar consumption?

Even if sugar alternatives are supposed to be better than conventional household sugar, natural sugar alternatives should also be used sparingly. However, various natural sugar alternatives can be a good alternative to conventional household sugar. You can find out more about the different ways of replacing sugar here.

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