Sugar a Four-Letter Word?

Angie Szumlinski
|
February 15, 2024
Image

“Sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) are a major source of non-nutritional calories and are associated with serious adverse health outcomes, including type 2 diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease, gum disease, cavities, and others that contribute to morbidity and mortality.” Just today I heard a discussion on a morning news show about children drinking juice and how it can contribute to children being overweight.

There are several cities across the country including Boulder, Colorado, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Oakland, California, San Francisco, California, and Seattle, Washington where sugar sweetened (SSB) taxes were implemented. The results suggest substantial, consistent declines in SSB purchases across several U.S. cities! I must ask myself, was it the increase in taxes that made people stop purchasing SSBs or is it that we have become a more health/weight conscious country? The chicken or the egg?

All of that said, we all know that sugars are not healthy and shouldn’t be an alternative to naturally sweetened foods but honestly, neither are artificial sweeteners. The study did not look at whether there was an increase in sales of products using artificial sweeteners, which is interesting because several months ago, the results of a study indicated that artificial sweeteners were not healthy either. I am again on my moderation soap box. Eat sensibly, avoid over-processed foods but don’t deprive yourself of life’s simple pleasures, in moderation of course! Stay well and stay informed!


Related Posts

Medical professional injecting medicine into a patient's back.
Angie Szumlinski
|
February 13, 2025

New Treatment for Chronic Back Pain

Image of a microscopic COVID virus
Angie Szumlinski
|
February 11, 2025

Flu Vaccines and Avian Influenza Protection