Food all over the world has its own delectable variations, depending on the taste, and preference of food in that region. Actually, this differentiation has actually led to the preparation of delicious food that pulls at our taste buds and makes us moan in delight. But no matter where it is, the sweet tooth has always been retained. And we all loosen our belts (which we use to cover our love handles) when we see the lemon tart, rasgulla, gulab jamun, and chocolate cake coming out. Indian Recipes, however, have a significantly lesser amount of sugar compared to the typical western diet.
The fight against sugar:
- The sugar present in processed food exceeds the sugar present in less processed food like bread and cheese by eight times, and the sugar present in vegetables and fruits by five times.
- The number of people suffering from diabetes in India is 62 million. There have been 9.8 million obese men and 20 million obese women as of 2014, which has been a direct or indirect result of processed food.
- However, sugar is never completely absent from our diets-there is sugar in the form of fructose and glucose as a result of photosynthesis. Sucrose obtained from table sugar and lactose present in dairy products are all some forms of glucose, and end up being simplified to glucose which is then absorbed by the body to provide energy.
- When the tongue detects sweet, it sends a message to the brain to secrete the required amount of insulin through the pancreas to control the blood sugar levels.
Sugar-Free- artificial sweeteners:
- ‘Sugar-Free’ is a term used to describe artificially synthesized sugar which was created in laboratories. This term is used in process foods that use artificial sweeteners to make up for the loss of sugar in the product.
- Sucralose, Acesulfame Potassium, Aspartame, Saccharin, and Neotame are the names of some artificial sweeteners. However, instead of being a respite for sugar lovers who can’t consume it, it was known to increase acidity levels, the risk of excessive weight gain also increases, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. It also increases cravings which ultimately lead to poor health and obesity.
- Instead of aiding weight reduction, choosing diet soda over normal soda does nothing but include you in the vicious sugar cycle which leads to more craving for sweet food. It also increases blood pressure levels, diabetes, and risk of strokes.
- The laxative effect has been neglected over the reduction in calorific value due to sweeteners, with carcinogenic studies being associated with Aspartame. Saccharine is known to cause bladder cancer, and Acesulfame Potassium is known to increase cholesterol in lab rats. These studies indicate that a similar effect will occur in humans too.
This information shouldn’t be much of a surprise because after all, it is the game of chemicals, and contrary to popular belief, the intake of table sugar seems like a healthier option rather than these artificial sweeteners. Nobody wants a sweet road to death, and it’s high time that we stop relying on laboratory produced chemicals that harm health.
