{"id":959,"date":"2022-10-24T13:03:10","date_gmt":"2022-10-24T13:03:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simplestartnutrition.com\/?p=959"},"modified":"2022-10-24T13:09:04","modified_gmt":"2022-10-24T13:09:04","slug":"why-should-you-ditch-the-sugary-drink","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplestartnutrition.com\/?p=959","title":{"rendered":"Why Should You Ditch the Sugary Drink?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Why Should You Ditch the Sugary Drink?<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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According to the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, sugary drinks are the leading source of added sugar in the American diet.\u00a0 For some, this fact might be surprising, especially with candy and treats being on our mind with Halloween right around the corner, but dessert items like cookies, cakes, ice cream and candy come in a close second for leading source of add sugar in our diets.\u00a0 For today, we\u2019re going to focus on why we should limit our consumption of sugary beverages like sports drinks, regular soda, energy drinks, flavored coffees, fruit drinks and sweetened teas, what is considered too much added sugar, and alternative beverage options. \u00a0<\/p>

What is considered too much added sugar? \u00a0<\/b><\/p>

The American Heart Association has a recommended limit for added sugar intake.\u00a0 For women and children (older than two years old), it is recommended to limit added sugar intake to six teaspoons or twenty-five grams and for men limit to nine teaspoons or thirty-six grams.\u00a0 This might not sound too bad, but most Americans are consuming nearly 20 teaspoons of added sugar each day!\u00a0 On top of that, the average American consumes 39 pounds of sugar per year from soda and other sweetened drinks.\u00a0 To give you a visual, this is comparable to about four gallons of paint! Yikes! \u00a0<\/p>

Why do we want to keep added sugar from beverages under control?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>

Individuals who often drink sugary drinks are more likely to face health problems like weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, non-alcoholic liver disease, cavities, and gout.\u00a0 Added sugar provides no nutrients to our body, so we want to focus on eating more nutrient rich foods and moving more to live long happy lives. \u00a0<\/p>

How do we know if a product has too much added sugar?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>

When looking at our nutrition label we want to first look for \u201ctotal sugars.\u201d\u00a0 Total sugars refer to both added sugar and natural sugars.\u00a0 Natural sugars, which are not listed on the label, might be coming from fructose in fruit and lactose in milk, which are both good food sources and provide our body with proper nutrients.\u00a0 Now under \u201ctotal sugars\u201d we will find a category named \u201cadded sugars.\u201d\u00a0 The added sugars are those we want to limit and keep as low as we possibly can, not only in our beverages, but all items we consume. This chart displays some popular beverages and the amount of added sugar in them.\u00a0 As you can see added sugar can add up fast!!\u00a0<\/p>

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How do we cut back on these added sugars?\u00a0<\/b><\/p>

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The best way to cut back on sugary beverages is to try to make substitutions.\u00a0 Items like water<\/a>, seltzer (if you\u2019re a fan of bubbles), unsweetened tea or iced tea, low fat milk, diet soda, black coffee<\/a> or with sugar substitute and 100% fruit juice are good alternatives to try to add into your daily routine.\u00a0 If these options seem too challenging, maybe try to decrease your portion, or dilute your sugary beverage with water.\u00a0 For example, pour half a glass of Snapple and add water to the rest. \u00a0<\/p>

Small changes can go a long way and help us continue to bring our sugary beverage intake down a notch! \u00a0<\/p>

Cheers,\u00a0<\/p>

\"Amanda's<\/p>

This blog was written by Amanda J. Stahl RD, LDN, co-founder of Simple Start Nutrition.\u00a0 For more blog posts and nutrition information follow @simplestartnutrition on Instagram and Facebook.\u00a0 Also feel free to contact us, by visiting our website (simplestartnutrition.com) to schedule an appointment to discuss your nutrition related needs.\u00a0 We\u2019re here to help.<\/p>

References:\u00a0<\/p>