To Your Health
November, 2025 (Vol. 19, Issue 11) |
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Sugar Ups Chronic Disease
By Editorial Staff
Sugar – particularly added sugar, the kind so prevalent in our Standard American Diet – is bad news when it comes to our health, pure and simple. It's fair to say added sugar plays a significant role in the skyrocketing rates of type 2 diabetes, obesity and disease in our society. The seeds for that unfortunate reality appear to be planted early in life – as early as the first 1,000 days.
Researchers "examined the impact of sugar exposure within 1000 days since conception on diabetes and hypertension." To do so, they analyzed the variance between the United Kingdom's sugar rationing (1940) vs. the time frame immediately after the end of sugar rationing (1953-). (The U.K. rationed sugar and other foods during World War II.) Researchers found that type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure (hypertension) nearly doubled once rationing ended.
In other words, restricting sugar had a beneficial effect on health, while unrestricted access to it negatively impacted health. Children conceived and born during the rationing period were less likely to develop these health conditions as adults; children born outside of the rationing period were more likely to develop them.
So, what was the limit on sugar intake during the rationing period? Approximately 40 grams per day. Currently, the U.S. government recommends no more than 50 grams of added sugar per day as part of a 2,000-calorie diet. The lower, the better according to just about everyone who understands what sugar can do to the human body.
What's the best way to limit your intake of added sugar? Start by reviewing nutritional labels when purchasing food at the grocery store. Nutritional labels list both sugar and added sugar. And keep in mind that even though fruit has no added sugar, it still has plenty of sugar, so you can't eat fruit all day, either, if you're looking to reduce your sugar intake. Talk to your doctor for more information.
