Hidden Sugars- beware!

We all know the less sugar we consume, the better our diet is and the fewer calories we take in overall. Although many of us tryto use low calories sweeteners like Splenda, Equal, Sweet N Low, etc., to sweeten our drinks, we still as a nation rely on sugar. Today, the average American consumes one hundred and fifty-six pounds of sugar per year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, only about 29 pounds of it comes as traditional sugar, or sucrose, according to The Sugar Association, a trade group of sugar manufacturers. The rest comes from the foods we consume daily, however, they are hidden. Of course, those foods include things like candy, soda, and other junk food. But plenty of sugar is hiding in places where you might not expect it. Some types of crackers, yogurt, ketchup, and peanut butter, for instance, are loaded with sugar and carbs. This sugar hides in the form of high-fructose corn syrup, or HFCS.

In the U.S. diet, the major source of "added sugar" -- not including naturally occurring sugars, like the fructose in fruit is also in soft drinks. According to the USDA, sweetened fruit drinks account for 10% of the total added sugars we consume. Candy and cake come in at 5% each. Ready-to-eat cereal comprises 4% of the total. The biggest chunk, making up 26% of added sugars, comes from a variety of prepared foods like ketchup, canned vegetables and fruits, and peanut butter.

Another high-sugar trap can be low-fat products, which may not be as good for your diet as you think. Some contain plenty of sugar to make up for the lack of tasty fat. For instance, Reduced Fat peanut butter has less fat than the regular, but what you may not know is this Reduced Fat brand actually has more Sugar and more carbohydrates. Food marketers find ways to trick the consumer to think some products are healthier than others, by using health-conscious terms. Is this case, the regular peanut butter would be the better choice; calories are the same as the Reduced Fat brand, however, sugar and carbohydrate amount is lower. This proves how when fat is removed, it is replaced with much higher levels of sugar and carbohydrates.

According to the USDA between 1987 and 1997, consumption of added sugar in the United States grew 20%. This trend is also being seen in the developing world, according to the WHO. That's one reason both the United Nations and the World Health Organization released guidelines in 2003 that say sugar should account for no more than 10% of daily calories. In a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet, that's just 200 calories. So the best thing to do is to be mindful of the calories and total carbs of your food choices. Read the nutritional labels and compare regular versus low fat versions of products.

To keep you on track here is a list of ingredients that are considered an added sugar and can increase the total carb content:
Beet sugar
Brown sugar
Cane sugar
Confectioner's sugar
Crystallized cane juice
Dextrose
Fructose
Evaporated cane juice
High-fructose corn syrup
Honey
Invert sugar
Maltodextrin (or dextrin)
Maple syrup
Molasses
Raw sugar
Sucrose (table sugar or white sugar)
Turbinado sugar