Table sugar

[Violet]

Apologies if this has been asked a million times already - I looked through the archives but posts about sugar aren't thin on the ground

I'm confused about table sugar. Sucrose is a blend of glucose and fructose, right? But refined fructose is bad, right?! Are you guys using a special kind of sugar that is pure glucose? Or have I got it wrong about fructose?!

 

[j.]

I've never heard that refined fructose is bad. I read Ray Peat write positively about pure fructose to treat diabetes.

 

[jyb]

Pure fructose is not necessary... You get the benefits of fructose in fruit juice because the ratio to glucose is high enough and it has the nutrients needed to process the energy too.

 

[Violet]

I've never heard that refined fructose is bad. I read Ray Peat write positively about pure fructose to treat diabetes.

Fructose in the form of fruit?

There's the video that's gotten a billion hits on youtube that's contributing to the sugar phobia ("Sugar the bitter Truth"), but actually all his research is about fructose, not sucrose.

Also, HFCS?

 

[j.]

Also, HFCS?

I get awful reactions from it. I won't consume it no matter what anyone tells me. Table sugar is fine to me if I eat it according to appetite.

 

[Violet]

Pure fructose is not necessary... You get the benefits of fructose in fruit juice because the ratio to glucose is high enough and it has the nutrients needed to process the energy too.

Not quite the question I was asking

 

[j.]

I've never heard that refined fructose is bad. I read Ray Peat write positively about pure fructose to treat diabetes.

Fructose in the form of fruit?

There's the video that's gotten a billion hits on youtube that's contributing to the sugar phobia ("Sugar the bitter Truth"), but actually all his research is about fructose, not sucrose.

My guess is that Ray Peat thinks that youtube is a ton of garbage. Ray:

The Burrs' moribund doctrine of "essential fatty acids" was resurrected to graft onto a mistaken cholesterol-saturated fat doctrine of heart disease, then John Yudkin introduced the idea that it was sugar, not saturated fat, that caused heart disease, and finally people like Lustig and Mercola turn it into a cult.

More from Ray:

I checked a few of the references that were on the charts in his video, and didn't find any facts that would necessarily support what he was saying. Many people are publishing similar extreme interpretations. His ideas about alcohol, appetite, addiction, insulin, and leptin are stereotyped medical cliches, that aren't supported clearly by good evidence [SUGAR THE BITTER TRUTH - LUSTIG].

Source

 

[pboy]

Frustose has a lot of benefits, the only problem is that if in too high a free amount in the intestinal lumen at once the body might have a hard time absorbing it all (most fructose moves across the lumen membrane with the help of glucose, which is why sucrose is great, it has a perfect 1:1 ratio, as do most fruits). A little free fructose is no problem. Too much HFCS or plain fructose at once might give you gas and brainfog because of the malabsorbtion, but fructose it in of itself is not problematic.
Refined table sugar has slightly less minerals than unrefined sugar but the amount is pretty much negligible...more important is the quality, look for a good source preferably organic. (to minimize pesticide residue, refining agents).

 

[Violet]

Frustose has a lot of benefits, the only problem is that if in too high a free amount in the intestinal lumen at once the body might have a hard time absorbing it all (most fructose moves across the lumen membrane with the help of glucose, which is why sucrose is great, it has a perfect 1:1 ratio, as do most fruits). A little free fructose is no problem. Too much HFCS or plain fructose at once might give you gas and brainfog because of the malabsorbtion, but fructose it in of itself is not problematic.
Refined table sugar has slightly less minerals than unrefined sugar but the amount is pretty much negligible...more important is the quality, look for a good source preferably organic. (to minimize pesticide residue, refining agents).

Brilliant - thank you!

So if you were going for unrefined, would you favour brown or white?

 

[j.]

So if you were going for unrefined, would you favour brown or white?

No, although there are some nutrient minerals in it, the impurities can be slightly toxic and allergenic [BROWN SUGAR].

Source

 

[Violet]

So if you were going for unrefined, would you favour brown or white?

No, although there are some nutrient minerals in it, the impurities can be slightly toxic and allergenic [BROWN SUGAR].

Source

Thanks J! Great article.