Danger in consuming SUGAR

Chapter 15

                                                        SUGAR

People of all ages are fond of sweets. Most of the sweets available today are made of sugar. Sugar is a sweet crystalline substance. It has no fiber, protein or fat. It is made up of carbohydrates and traces of vitamin B. 100 gm of sugar has 390 kilocalorie of energy. Other sweet crystals are sucrose, lactose and fructose. It is a basic food carbohydrate and made mainly from sugarcane and sugar beet. But sugar can also be obtained from honey and fruits. Due to the high amount of calorie in sugar, the high intake leads to diabetes, obesity and tooth decay. Nowadays both natural and artificial substitute is available for people who want to avoid natural sugar. An herb called stevia and a substance produced through chemical reaction called saccharin are being used as substitutes for natural sugar.

Sugar was discovered by Indians during the Gupta dynasty in AD 350. Arabs learnt the technique and set up industries to produce sugar in a large scale. Today sugar forms a major element in different types of sweets. It is also used as a preservative.

So many researches have been done on sugar and it has been proved that processed sugar is very dangerous to health. Let us see how this processed sugar can harm us.

Tooth decay: The sweet we eat remains in the teeth and is attacked by the oral bacteria. These bacteria convert the sugar into lactic acid.  The teeth decay due to the high amount of lactic acid on the surface. This tooth decay can be reduced or even avoided by keeping the teeth always clean. Brushing your teeth twice a day (morning and night) is a good habit.

Diabetes:  There are cells in our body that produce insulin which is a chemical that allows mobilization of sugar. Diabetes occurs when these cells are attacked or when the body’s cells ignore the insulin. Due to this sugar or glucose in blood increases. The cells of our body do not get enough energy since they are not able to use the glucose in the blood. The increase in glucose in blood stream leads to acidity of blood damaging the many of our body parts like eyes, kidneys, nerves and even heart. That is why diabetic patients are advised to avoid sugar.

Obesity: If a person eats too much of oily food rich in fats and sugar and devoid of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients, and does not do any physical exercise, his body weight increases leading to obesity.

Gout: A person who eats sugary drinks high in fructose experiences painful joints. This is called gout.

       Chocolates, chips, soft drinks, soups, ice creams, peanut butter, jellies, jams, and even some bread have sugar in them.

       Use jaggery instead of sugar when every possible because sugar is refined and not good for health. To digest sugar our body has to use a lot of energy and it acts as a stimulant. It makes you crave for more just ½ hour after eating. You keep eating sweets. Jaggery is natural and proves you will lot of energy. It is not addictive like sugar either.  

Preparation of sugar: sugarcane juice is treated with lime (calcium oxide) to remove impurities and neutralize it. This liquid is boiled. The scum which comes to the top and the sediment which settles at the bottom is removed. The remaining liquid crystallises to produce sugar. This sugar is refined as much as needed.

Brown Sugar: The sugar produced is refined to get fine crystals with significant molasses content to get brown sugar. It is also made by coating sugar with cane molasses syrup. Brown sugar has stronger taste and colour due to the molasses content. Its moisture retaining property is also more. It hardens when exposed directly to the atmosphere.