zarrin77
Member
I’ve seen a lot of talk here about using refined table sugar and pop to help increase sugar intake. Not only does this advice go against repeated long term human RCTs, but it just doesn’t make sense when there are much better options such as fruit, fruit juice, and honey.
Adding sucrose to the diets of rodents (like humans) tends to get negative results. Their bodyweight doesn’t usually go up by much (it did in this study though), but the fat:protein ratio increases quite a bit, and their blood lipids get worse.
Here is a great study comparing sugar-free diet, 7.9% sucrose diet, and 10% honey diet (since honey isn’t 100% sugar, these %’s keep the sugar amount constant).
The Long-Term Effects of Feeding Honey Compared With Sucrose and a Sugar-Free Diet on Weight Gain, Lipid Profiles, and DEXA Measurements in Rats - PubMed
I say this phrase a lot here, but I just see it so often: Let’s not miss the forest for the trees.
Yes, sugar can definitely be useful to us, and getting a healthy supply of sugar from real foods isn’t going to cause any issues. Yet, this is not the same as adding extra table sugar to your milk, coffee, etc.
Personally, I use agave for my coffee as a natural sugar source:
Effects of Agave Nectar Versus Sucrose on Weight Gain, Adiposity, Blood Glucose, Insulin, and Lipid Responses in Mice - PubMed
“Weight gain (4.3±2.2 vs. 8.4±3.4 g), fat pad weights (0.95±0.54 vs. 1.75±0.66 g), plasma glucose (77.8±12.2 vs. 111.0±27.9 mg/dL), and insulin (0.61±0.29 vs. 1.46±0.81 ng/mL) were significantly lower (P≤.05) for agave nectar-fed mice compared to sucrose-fed mice respectively. No statistically significant differences in total cholesterol or triglycerides were detected. These results suggest that in comparison to sucrose, agave nectar may have a positive influence on weight gain and glucose control.”
Adding sucrose to the diets of rodents (like humans) tends to get negative results. Their bodyweight doesn’t usually go up by much (it did in this study though), but the fat:protein ratio increases quite a bit, and their blood lipids get worse.
Here is a great study comparing sugar-free diet, 7.9% sucrose diet, and 10% honey diet (since honey isn’t 100% sugar, these %’s keep the sugar amount constant).
The Long-Term Effects of Feeding Honey Compared With Sucrose and a Sugar-Free Diet on Weight Gain, Lipid Profiles, and DEXA Measurements in Rats - PubMed
I say this phrase a lot here, but I just see it so often: Let’s not miss the forest for the trees.
Yes, sugar can definitely be useful to us, and getting a healthy supply of sugar from real foods isn’t going to cause any issues. Yet, this is not the same as adding extra table sugar to your milk, coffee, etc.
Personally, I use agave for my coffee as a natural sugar source:
Effects of Agave Nectar Versus Sucrose on Weight Gain, Adiposity, Blood Glucose, Insulin, and Lipid Responses in Mice - PubMed
“Weight gain (4.3±2.2 vs. 8.4±3.4 g), fat pad weights (0.95±0.54 vs. 1.75±0.66 g), plasma glucose (77.8±12.2 vs. 111.0±27.9 mg/dL), and insulin (0.61±0.29 vs. 1.46±0.81 ng/mL) were significantly lower (P≤.05) for agave nectar-fed mice compared to sucrose-fed mice respectively. No statistically significant differences in total cholesterol or triglycerides were detected. These results suggest that in comparison to sucrose, agave nectar may have a positive influence on weight gain and glucose control.”