Most people do not realize there is a real and serious connection between your cardiovascular health and dietary sugar. The kinds of sugar I am referring to are white sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, high fructose corn syrup and the sugars in pastries and candies. Processed and refined sugars offer little nutritional value and are absorbed into the blood stream very quickly due their lack of dietary fiber.
If you need to lose weight, have diabetes, cardiovascular or heart disease you really should avoid or limit your consumption of those foods that can raise you blood sugar quickly. The sugar in fruit juices are also absorbed into our blood stream very quickly.
This a partial list of negative health consequences from the excessive consumption of refined and processed sugars.
- Produce a significant rise in total cholesterol, triglycerides and bad cholesterol and a decrease in good cholesterol
- Cause atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease
- Cause diabetes
- Cause intestinal yeast overgrowth
- Cause hormonal irregularities
- Cause abdominal obesity
- Damage the heart, kidney, liver and other organs
- Suppress the immune system
- Feeds cancer cells
- Cause a rapid rise of adrenaline, hyperactivity, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and crankiness in children
- Interfere with your ability to concentrate
There are articles about sugar intake that use the term “carbohydrates” in relationship to a rise in cardiovascular risk. In my opinion that is too broad of a stroke of the pen. Not all carbohydrates have an adverse effect on our heart health. Foods rich in fiber also called “complex carbohydrates”, slow absorption of dietary sugar helping the body keep blood sugar at healthy levels.
To stay healthy, consume sugars from complex carbohydrates and avoid processed sugars and refined flours. Your cardiovascular system, heart and pancreas will love you for it.