Sugar in itself is not harmful, however, overconsumption is. Experts say that natural sugar, from dairy, vegetables, and fruit, is a millionth times better than additional sugar in foods like cakes and soft drinks.
According to HealthLine, dietary guidelines suggest limiting calories from added sugar to less than 10% per day.
What foods are shockingly high in sugar?
So many foods actually contain a shockingly high amount of sugar, you might not even realise that you are consuming too much.
Here are foods that contain a lot of sugar:
1. Low-fat yoghurt
I’m sure I’m not the only one who thought low-fat yoghurt is a healthy food choice. Well, apparently, it contains loads of sugar in it to add flavour.
HealthLine says that a single cup (245 grams) of low-fat yoghurt can contain over 45 grams of sugar, which is about 11 teaspoons of sugar. This is way more than the daily limit for men and women in just a single cup of yoghurt considered “healthy”.
Experts say that it is best to choose full fat, natural, or Greek yogurt. Furthermore, you should stay away from sweetened yoghurts.
2. Condiments have sugar
Believe it or not, condiments contain a lot of sugar too. Around 33 % of BBQ sauce may be pure sugar, HealthLine says.
It is advisable to check labels for condiments that contain less sugar if you are a fan and can’t help it.
3. Fruits juices
Fruit juices contain lots of sugar in them and this is because it takes a lot of fruit to produce a full glass of sugar. And guess what? Fruit already has sugar in it. Just eat actual fruit instead if you want to reduce your sugar intake.
In fact, there can be just as much sugar in fruit juice as there is in a sugary drink like Coke.
4. Breakfast cereal
Cereal has a lot of sugar in it too. You probably already know this because you don’t even add sugar when you eat them. But who adds sugar to cereal? You might be surprised how many people actually add sugar besides the fact that they already added milk, a dairy product that has sugar itself. We are just not aware of how much sugar we consume!
5. Protein bars
Protein bars are another form of snack considered to be a healthy food choice. People like eating them because they can make you feel full for quite some time before you have your next meal.
However, many contain around 20 grams of added sugar, making their nutritional content similar to that of a candy bar.