Eating healthy is a wealthy choice too!
Most of us eat a lot of refined carbohydrates, and white sugar. White bread, white rice, sugar etc. are all processed foods and the processing is a process of removing all the nutrients in the food!
God gave us potatoes, we made fries. God gave us sugarcane, we created white sugar. Cane and other fruits are good for you, but High Fructose Corn Syrup and white sugar are not good for you.
Unfortunately the human body has not evolved as much as we think it has. The simplest way to eat healthy is to think ‘did this food exist 10000 years ago?’. If the answer is yes, your body knows how to deal with it. If the answer is no, it is likely to contain too much of sugar and other preservatives. In India there is not enough research to find out how much of sugar we have been consuming over the past say 100 years. However even to the untrained eye the consumption of packaged foods is visible, is it not?
Artificial sweeteners are worse than sugar, and is completely avoidable.
You can reduce the cravings for sugar by increasing your intake of proteins…and by avoiding white rice, maida, and by watching labels carefully. When in a shop LOOK for words like Maida, refined wheat, sugar, …and avoid them.
What is an anti sugar post doing in a finance blog?
Eating sensibly and healthy can save you tons of money later on. The impact of sugar on your wealth is just as bad as the impact on your health! We will soon be the diabetes capital of the world, and it is an expensive ‘disease’ to treat. Apart from this the impact of sugar is so bad that the world is going away from sugar. A few Indians are, but the speed at which we should be running away leaves a lot to be desired!
Jsan
Hi Subra Sir, I am not a Medical expert but what I have read tells that eating to much fat causes heart blockages but not necessary that if you eat too much sugar will cause Diabetes. Yes, eating too much sugar causes increase in weight and in turn may cause many health problem. One of reading from internet:
Myth: Eating too much sugar causes diabetes.
Fact: No, it does not. Type 1 diabetes is caused by genetics and unknown factors that trigger the onset of the disease; type 2 diabetes is caused by genetics and lifestyle factors. Being overweight does increase your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, and a diet high in calories, whether from sugar or from fat, can contribute to weight gain. If you have a history of diabetes in your family, eating a healthy meal plan and regular exercise are recommended to manage your weight.
sujatha
Hi
Yes Jsan. Per se eating sugar does not cause diabetes. But we should look at our eating system as a whole. But comsuming sugar is consumption of “empty calories” devoid of any nutrients. And it does put a strain on the pancreas. Our body needs whole foods, that which give us calories and nutrients. Having sweets occasionaly is fine
subra
Jsan – nowhere have i said eating sugar causes diabetes! Sugar (especially the white sugar) causes ENOUGH trouble – and is worth avoiding. Honey, dates, kismis, all are sources of sweetness – and are healthier options. Go to Google (preferably consult a dietician) and check out the ill effects of sugar – you will be stunned.
I am saying using non sugar NATURAL sweeteners is a wealthier option too in terms of good health and a lower medical bill.
pravin
the biggest myth is that all fat is bad.malayalis gorge on coconut oil -the fattiest oil on earth and they still have low heart trouble and live well past 75.
the problem is hydrogenated fats. saturated fats are good.even highly essential.
the fat used by many manufacturers for improving shelflife is of that categoy -hydrogenated fat.avoid it like like the plague.
has anyone noticed how many ‘vegetarian’ jains are obese? well that is not because they gorge on fat.it is because they eat all sorts of carbs all the times.and many avoid beneficial onions and garlic.
more than sugar ,it is hi-fructose corn syrup which is used as industrial sweetner (and is the favorite moneyspinner of corn lobbies) that is the problem.obesity is directly linked to simple sugars.
bharat shah
i found the article and comments too informative.the article reminds me the advice of our saints during my UPADHAN TAP that when you need any dilemma in daily life , you should ask yourself what our grand parents were doing some 100 yrs. ago living in villages.i noted following from the article and the comments:
1.white sugar. White bread, white rice, sugar etc. are all processed foods and the processing is a process of removing all the nutrients in the food!Cane and other fruits are good for you, but High Fructose Corn Syrup and white sugar are not good for you.Honey, dates, kismis, all are sources of sweetness – and are healthier options.
2.Artificial sweeteners are worse than sugar, and is completely avoidable.
3.You can reduce the cravings for sugar by increasing your intake of proteins…and by avoiding white rice, maida, and by watching labels carefully. When in a shop LOOK for words like Maida, refined wheat, sugar, …and avoid them.
4.more than sugar ,it is hi-fructose corn syrup which is used as industrial sweetner (and is the favorite moneyspinner of corn lobbies) that is the problem.obesity is directly linked to simple sugars.
anon
I’m caught genetically, and am dealing with it.But tough to stop at just two slices of an apple, and eat one mango the entire season.
Anyway.
Praveen
The white rice which we eat is ‘double polished’ rice. It means it’s been polished (how an marble had been polished) two times. The more silky the rice looks & the more you pay it had been polished that much. The actual nutrients will be on husk on rice which will be removed in this double polish. So go for ‘Single Polish’ rice., but when you cook that the boiled rice won’t look as ‘white’ as you want.
jagbir
More scary facts about sugar : http://www.rheumatic.org/sugar.htm
Suresh
There is a generic thought that coconut oil is bad. Recently researched in US (yes those charlatans again) admitted that the sample they took of coconut oil for testing was that which was sold in stores and ADDED preservatives which caused hydrogenation. Fresh coconut oil or as the olive oil fanclub would say ‘cold press’ (which is how all oil was ‘pressed’ in India) is perfectly healthy- in moderate quantities. No natural food can be harmful in moderation so we should go back to our traditional food habit – modified for each region. The proviso is we should also burn calories as of old – so perhaps its time to pick up the mop and do some labour?!! As Taleb said it is amusing to find a person use a porter to pick his luggage to the room and then change into track shoes for exercise!
p.s : Subra – pls DONT respond.