Did you know that a 500ml bottle of Coca-Cola contains the equivalent of 13.25 sugar cubes? But not only carbonated drinks contain sugar levels above those recommended; also sweets, fast food… or even a simple yogurt.
Everything we love has much more sugar than we can imagine, which is why the WHO (World Health Organization) recommends that the consumption of free sugars be limited to less than 10% of total caloric intake.
Excessive consumption of sugar can seriously affect our health and favor the appearance of diseases such as obesity or diabetes, but how do you know where your limit is? In this article we have compiled 6 signs that tell you that you are eating more sugar than you should. Do not risk it, reduce the glucose level of your daily diet and take care of your health.
Signs that show you should reduce sugar from your daily diet
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You are tired all day
Surely you have ever had a few drinks too many and you have noticed how at first it gave you a rush of energy that after a few hours turned into just the opposite: a feeling of letdown and apathy. Well, that effect caused by stimulant drugs is exactly the same as that produced by the consumption of sugar.
When we eat a lot of sugar, there is an initial spike in insulin that gives the body a feeling of enormous energy. But that feeling only lasts a few minutes and then your body returns to a state of general fatigue.
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You have pimples
Excess sugar is also reflected in the skin. When our body detects an increase in blood glucose levels, it begins to secrete a powerful molecule called insulin.
Many people are highly sensitive to this molecule and the consequences for the skin can be irreparable. The epidermis may begin to dry out or flake and other problems may appear, such as terrible acne or even rosacea.
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You need to eat sweet
As we mentioned before, sugar has an effect similar to that of a drug, it is addictive: the more you eat, the more you need. If throughout the day, on several occasions, you feel like eating sweet foods, we regret to tell you that by consuming it so much, you have created a relationship of dependency towards it.
This is precisely the reason why sugar is usually added to all kinds of products (appetizers, meat, sliced bread…) with the simple objective of becoming truly addicted to these products and not being able to stop eating them. consume them.
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You’re grumpy
Have you noticed very frequent mood swings lately? The origin may be precisely in a high sugar consumption in your daily diet. As we have already explained to you, the more sugar you consume in your day to day, the more you will want. And what will happen if you don’t have it? What happens if your brain doesn’t get its daily high dose of glucose? Indeed, you have succeeded: you will notice much more irascible, irritable and angry.
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You have cavities
Excess sugar can alter the pH of our mouth, thus favoring bacteria to grow and multiply, giving rise to painful cavities.
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You can’t think straight
The intake of sugars is a potential risk of poor functioning of cognitive abilities and intellectual development in general. That is why you can feel “slow” mentally.
Your body tells you that you are consuming a LOT of sugar
The ones we have mentioned above are the most obvious signs that you are eating too much sugar in your day to day, however there are other less clear signs that your body sends you directly but to which you should also pay close attention:
- Frequent infections: do you suffer from recurrent candidiasis? Did you know that sugar consumption enhances vaginal infections? Candida is a yeast, and as such, it feeds on sugar.
- Colds very often: sugar consumption also weakens the immune system since glucose decreases the mobility of white blood cells (which are precisely responsible for destroying different viruses).
- Insensitive taste buds – If you consume too much sugar, your tongue will get so used to the taste that it will eventually be very difficult for you to distinguish it clearly.
- Headache: have you noticed that your head hurts a lot lately and you have no apparent reason for it? You should be aware that sudden spikes in blood glucose can trigger migraines.
- Hormonal imbalances: did you know that a diet high in sugars could be related to different hormonal problems, such as polycystic ovarian syndrome?