I love sugar and can't imagine it's even half as bad as high fructose corn syrup. What would you rather have the government putting in our sodas as sweeteners? Sugar? HFCS? Aspartame? I'll choose sugar.

Originally posted by hazey
I love sugar and can't imagine it's even half as bad as high fructose corn syrup. What would you rather have the government putting in our sodas as sweeteners? Sugar? HFCS? Aspartame? I'll choose sugar.

Well you should try to imagine a little harder because it is a deadly chemical and it just takes a long time before it kills you but you will be just as dead from an overworked adrenal system as anything else that might take your life.

You are absolutely correct. Now I have no issue with sugar, if you wanna go slam a coke be my guest, but I feel way better without it.

After feeling terrible for some time, I gave up all foods that have white flour/sugar. I feel better, and have gone back to using some regular sugar in tea or some desserts. No HFCS or aspartame, splenda, etc.

A thread I completely agree with SF on,

Seriously though, this is an important topic, but many don't seem to care all too much.

I'm pretty sure most people within the U.S. have already heard more than a few times that excess sugar consumption leads to a wide range of health issues...but few are truly doing what it takes to break the addiction.

I stopped drinking soda and consuming HFCS about a decade ago. The thing is that I switched to fruit juices which really isn't all too much better.

I finally spent a full year on an unsweet tea, and chicken/turkey diet. That slimmed me down from 170lbs to 145lbs, and I became a lot more healthy.

Now my diet is much more balanced, and includes some fruit, lots of veggies, lean meats, whole grains, legumes, and nuts.

People just don't care, for the most part. It seems to be too much effort to get off the junk.....food. Let them be. They'll just die out early. Score for our species, sad to say.

Oh I forgot to mention. I truly think because of my dietary habits, my teeth are in excellent condition. I've NEVER had a cavity, and NEVER floss, and ONLY brush once a day. All natural toothpaste, and mouthwash. Dentist said my teeth puts me in about the top .01%...and that's with a ton of funky smokage.

I agree with you OP, i use to drink about 2/3Litres of Dr Pepper PER DAY (lol an outrageous amount) Ive completely given up fizzy drinks recently and stick to water and squash and Ive definetly noticed a difference in how i feel and my diets alot better in general, although i eat a fair amount of sweets which is quite bad still but i love those new rowntree sour gums I also had to get my first 2 fillings at age 18 (which by todays standards is considered GOOD, what a disgrace) which was undoutedbly caused by all the dr pepper i use to drink, now adays whenever i see someone drinking coca-cola or any fizzy drink it disgusts me.

I am a chocoholic and I will agree with this though. I do know when I go periods of time without I have something like a sugar withdrawl. I do feel much better when I am not eating lots of sugary things. I am more partial to dark chocolate, the darker the better.

I use to drink a lot of soda years ago and that was the best thing I ever gave up. Now I have one here and there and when I go out to eat I get water and soda because I usually only crave a sip or two of it not the entire glass.


I actually wake up in the middle of the night and in my half asleep phase go to the kitchen and attack the M&M bowl that is always there. Many times I don't even remember doing it but i wake up and there is a handful of M&M's next to my bed on a paper towel. Chocolate is the only thing I tend to do this with. I have always wondered why I do this...Honestly it does bother me. It's like I get a craving for it in my sleep and will stumble to the kitchen for it. I have literally woken up with M&Ms in my hand and wondered when I got up to get them..


S&F!

I'm Type II diabetic. Haven't had sugar in over a year. You can avoid sugar entirely if you're careful about what you eat and read labels.

However, those who say "we're being lied to about how bad it is" are delusional. Sugar isn't bad in moderation. However, the amount of sugar and sucrose derivatives that are in EVERYTHING that most people eat is frightening. The average person eats way more sugar and caffeine that people used to. High Fructose Corn Syrup is in just about every processed food.

Have you noticed that nearly every food out there has a "recommended daily limit", set by the FDA? Not sugar. No limits are set, because the FDA claim that it is "impossible to set limits for Sugar".

One of the contributors towards food shortages is that a huge portion of American arable land is allocated to corn being grown for High Fructose Corn Syrup. This corn is different from regular corn and can't be consumed by humans in its natural state. Whoever heard of a vegetable that had to be processed before it could be consumed safely?

The amount of sugar that our kids and that we as adults consume is absolutely staggering. With the proliferation of sugar and junk food in general since the 1950's, we don't need the Government to tell us that massive amounts of sugar and fat are the biggest problem behind America's ridiculous obesity problem.

The sugar lobbyists will tell you that sugar is not a contributor. However, try cutting out sugar from your diet for a month. Make no other changes. I guarantee that you will lose weight.

Originally posted by mblahnikluver
I am a chocoholic and I will agree with this though. I do know when I go periods of time without I have something like a sugar withdrawl. I do feel much better when I am not eating lots of sugary things. I am more partial to dark chocolate, the darker the better.

I use to drink a lot of soda years ago and that was the best thing I ever gave up. Now I have one here and there and when I go out to eat I get water and soda because I usually only crave a sip or two of it not the entire glass.


I actually wake up in the middle of the night and in my half asleep phase go to the kitchen and attack the M&M bowl that is always there. Many times I don't even remember doing it but i wake up and there is a handful of M&M's next to my bed on a paper towel. Chocolate is the only thing I tend to do this with. I have always wondered why I do this...Honestly it does bother me. It's like I get a craving for it in my sleep and will stumble to the kitchen for it. I have literally woken up with M&Ms in my hand and wondered when I got up to get them..


S&F!

There's several white powdery substances which cause withdrawals when you don't get them anymore. Many people are addicted to sugar.

Try cutting it out of your diet completely for a month. If you need help, check out a diabetic's diet and stick to that for a month.

I guarantee it will cure you of your sweet tooth.

I used to be a chocoholic too before I was diagnosed diabetic. It's been over a year. The other day, just before Easter, I was in the store, and looking at all the chocolate eggs everywhere. I realized that I don't even miss it now, at all.

I'd rather have a carrot or a stick of celery. Now I crave vegetables.

Your body absolutely needs sugar to survive. However, your body can break down carbohydrates to attain simple sugar for fuel and eating excessive refined sugar is associated with many problems.

The true evil is high fructose corn syrup. In Canada they even get away with labeling it glucose-fructose. You would think they should at least have to put fructose before glucose in the ingredients, it's misleading.

You're on to something calling it a drug though. The definition of what a drug is depends on the intention of the user, and is not otherwise definitive. For example, a drug is usually considered a substance that alters physiology of the body but is not a food or nutrient, but this is incomplete because the distinction between a drug and a nutrient is not clear. Vitamin C alters physiology. When it is taken in the form of a citrus fruit it is a food, but when taken in a tablet to remedy a cold, it could be considered a drug. Other substances that alter physiology that are not nutritious are thought of as toxins or poisons rather than drugs. Gasoline and solvent vapors are examples. If they are consumed to get high, they might be drugs, but when inhaled unintentionally in the workplace, they may be called environmental toxins. The distinction between toxin and drug is not clear.

Generally, if something is consumed because of its taste, it is not considered a drug. I can take opposition to this claim in the case of refined sugar when it is consumed in excess because of its rewarding taste. This is because of the toxic effects excessive and prolonged consumption of refined sugar (especially HFCS, which is not truly considered sugar). Since most people consume sugar for its taste, and not its nutrition, it is certainly a borderline drug, at least in the gray area of classification when it is consumed solely with the intent to feel good.

Good read folks. Im also glad to see Im not alone in thinking this might be bigger than it seems.

_______________________________

Originally posted by hazey
I love sugar and can't imagine it's even half as bad as high fructose corn syrup.

I thought fructose corn syrup and sugar are pretty much the same thing...

Originally posted by yyyyyyyyyy
There would be a shift of mood after a couple of days and I would not like to be around to see it - over-eating often has an emotional aspect.

Over-eating certainly covers up emotions, which is why psychological work probably works better than any diet...

Originally posted by unityemissions

many don't seem to care all too much.

...and their overstuffed stomachs dont help in that matter. Im amazed at how lethargic people on a really, really bad diet become.