Do you like to consume food and drinks with sweet taste? One of the causes of sweetness is a sweetener derived from sugar.
When you consume foods and drinks with high sugar levels, you have the potential to experience a condition called sugar rush . This condition makes you become active and want more sweet foods . If only experience occasionally, of course it’s okay. However, it will be dangerous if you experience sugar rush too often because it can cause many health problems.
Actually, how much sugar is still safe to consume? Here is some information that the Cigna Team has outlined specifically for you regarding sugar consumption limits.
1. Daily Sugar Consumption Limit
Based on research conducted by the American Heart Association (AHA) , the following are safe limits for daily consumption of sugar:
- For men: 150 calories per day, equivalent to 37.5 grams or 9 teaspoons of sugar
- For women: 100 calories per day, equivalent to 25 grams or 6 teaspoons of sugar
As a shadow, a regular size Snicker chocolate bar has 120 calories of sugar. Consumption of one bar is almost fulfilling the daily sugar requirements for men, while for women has exceeded the safe threshold.
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2. Health Disorders
If you consume too much sugar in excessive amounts, you have the potential to experience various health problems. Some common health problems include:
- Diabetes or diabetes is the most common disease that occurs due to excessive sugar content in the blood. This disease can cause death if not handled properly.
- Heart disease. Consumption of excessive sugar regularly can make fat accumulate in the liver in high amounts (called fatty liver ), thereby increasing the risk of heart disease.
- Alzheimer’s disease. This disease is a decrease in brain function such as decreased memory and thinking ability.
- Tooth decay. This can occur because the excess sugar that is between the teeth is converted to acid or dental plaque by bacteria in the mouth.
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3. How to Reduce Sugar Consumption
So you can consume sugar in general, here are some tips you can do:
- Consumption of fruit to replace sweet foods, especially if you feel addicted to sweet foods. The natural sweetener in fruit contains a lot of macronutrients so it is safe for consumption.
- Switch to safer natural sweeteners. For example, orange juice to make mineral water sweeter.
- Avoid the liquid sugar that is often found in fruit juices and soft drinks. Liquid sugar is more easily absorbed into the blood, so an increase in blood sugar levels occurs more quickly.