is sugar toxic?
In his 1925 book, Food, Health, Vitamins, the pioneer English biochemist, R. H. A. Plimmer made a foreboding but prophetic comment about sugar in America:
“The Americans, with their love of candy, are the largest sugar eaters in the world. Incidentally, cancer and diabetes, two scourges of civilization, have increased proportionately to the sugar consumption.”
We did not heed Plimmer’s warning—our sugar intake continued to increase, as did the incidence of diabetes and cancer. Add to that list the illness that has since grown to be the #1 cause of death: heart disease. Everyone knows excessive sugar is unhealthy, but we accept it, we’re much like the air traffic controllers who fall asleep at their station.
Now a true crusader has taken on the task of awakening slumbering Americans. Gary Taubes, author of the definitive exposition of the sugar-related diseases, Good Calories, Bad Calories, has fired another blast in the New York Times Magazine, under the title “Is Sugar Toxic?”
Taubes invokes the work of Robert Lustig whose YouTube video lecture, “Sugar: The Bitter Truth” has gone viral and is approaching one million viewings. Lustig is a respected professor at a respected medical school (UCSF), and he addresses the common sugars—glucose and fructose—like a revival preacher, calling them “poison”, “toxic”, and “evil”. Lustig gives a brief summary of the chemistry that supports his views about sugar, particularly fructose and its role in fat generation, and links them to the rise in obesity, diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and the common cancers. He closes with a benediction, however, on the natural sugars found in fruits: “When God makes a poison, He wraps it in the antidote.”
Taubes also reviews the work of Dr. John Yudkin who in the '70s warned of sugar's toxicity with his book, "Sweet and Dangerous" (the U.S. version of "Pure White and Deadly," published in England). Yudkin made the link between sugar intake and heart disease when the loudest experts were (wrongly, it turns out) touting the “lipid theory” of heart disease that claimed dietary saturated fat and cholesterol were the cause. A generation was wasted as thousands of “low-fat” foods and sugary drinks were added to our dietary. This campaign not only failed to reduce the incidence of heart disease, it introduced two new epidemics: overweight and type 2 diabetes. Yudkin was so effectively ridiculed by the lipid theory camp—yeah, scientists do that kind of stuff too—that it became politically incorrect to criticize sugar or mention Yudkin’s work. Well, the times have changed—Yudkin, now deceased, is getting new respect and his books have become collector’s items.
Finally, Taubes returns to the subject of sugar and cancer, introduced by Plimmer in 1925. Though the mechanism is not fully understood, there is no question that cancer increases with sugar intake and with diabetes. Studies have shown cancer to be nonexistent in primitive societies who don’t consume refined sugars. Taubes closes by quoting two cancer experts:
Dr. Craig Thompson (head of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in N.Y.): I have eliminated refined sugar from my diet and eat as little as I possibly can.
Dr. Lewis Cantley (director of Harvard Medical Schools cancer center): Sugar scares me.
Taubes’ closing paragraph:
“Sugar scares me too, obviously. I’d like to eat it in moderation . . . but I don’t actually know what that means, and I’ve been reporting on this subject and studying it for more than a decade. If sugar just makes us fatter, that’s one thing. We start gaining weight, we eat less of it. But we are also talking about things we can’t see — fatty liver, insulin resistance and all that follows. Officially I’m not supposed to worry because the evidence isn’t conclusive, but I do.”
Friday, April 15, 2011 at 2:09PM | by Skip Hellewell | 31 Comments | Share Article | in news articles, sugar | Email Article
Reader Comments (31)
i applaud your effort to get this information out. i am a sugar addict and i am attempting to be rid it. ccc
I, too, am a sugar addict. I love it, crave it, think about it, etc. I'm trying so hard to live sugar free. (I've been off and on for about two years now.) It is SO hard. I watched Lustig's video quite a while ago, before it went viral. Something that stood out to me is he said the damage sugar does to the liver is the same as what alcohol does.
Thank you, also, for addressing heart disease. I loved your post about breast cancer, but I think most women think breast cancer is the #1 cause of death among women. It is not. Heart disease is. Where is the race for the cure of heart disease?!
Sugar is certainly one of my biggest health concerns. It seems to be hidden in almost everything. Thank you for giving me a little boost in my efforts to remove as much sugar from my families diet. Your shopping list really helped with that today.
I am very much addicted to sugar. If I haven't had a sugary treat by mid afternoon I'm a monster. I get a headache, I'm cranky, and all I need is a cadbury creme egg, or just a cookie to make it all go away. So I make a batch of chocolate chip cookies just so I can have a little one and go back to normal, and I eat 6. Then I have 3 for dessert. Then 2 for breakfast and the rest for 2nd breakfast.
I'd love a post on how to break the addiction...in the real life terms you always put so eloquently. Cold turkey just doesn't cut it.
Cally, thanks for the suggestion. There's a post on addiction coming up. Best.
I second what Cally said: I've read the studies about sugar being more addictive than heroin to lab rats. To me, cutting it out isn't really as simple as self-control. Sugar is hardwired into my ideology about being a mom, about having happy kids, and about enjoying life.
What I mean is that having a batch of warm cookies waiting for my kids when they get home from school feels as loving and Americana-esque as apple pie at Thanksgiving and ice cream at summer bbqs. Quitting sugar feels like cutting out the "joy" in life - is that hyperbole or does anyone else relate?
A day without something sweet or chocolaty seems unfathomable, so I'm also interested in quitting the addiction, but also quitting the lie that sugar = happiness.
For those having trouble eliminating high amounts of sugar, fat, and salt from their diet I recommend the book "The End of Overeating". It goes into detail regarding how your brain reacts to high amounts of the above-named substances and helped me realize how addicted I am, and gave some suggestions regarding how to break the cycle.
It's not a diet book but I think it has played a crucial role in the 20 lbs I have lost so far this year.
Sugar is a hard thing for me to give up, but I watched the whole hour and a half Lustig video hoping it would help-and it did! I'm astonished, and want to go throw out all the Easter candy I just bought! Thank you for sharing.
I found the article and you tube video very thought provoking. I felt like Lustig was mostly focused on sugar in liquid form (soda and juice) and Taubes on the dangers of all sugar. What I found to be the most enlightening was the explanation of what sugar actually does to the body. I felt Taubes explained the link sugar has to tumor growth very well.
I would love some suggestions of how to realistically reduce sugar intake in normal daily life with school age children. I know how to help my children understand how important healthy bodies are and how to create a healthy home life, but how do I teach them to navigate the food world in a healthy way when processed food and treats are offered at every school, church and social activity?
Sugar is so hard to avoid. I live in the UK and it's bad enough here but on a recent visit to the States I was amazed. In one apparently 'healthy' restaurant I visited the corn bread we were served alongside our soup had sugar in it which was bad enough but it was served with sweetened butter which was unbelievable. I asked if there were non-sugared butters available as it was so strange eating sweet butter with a savoury soup, and was told that "everyone likes the sweetened one".
I think that the deal with getting kids to cut out sugar is to just talk to them about it naturally. After I read the NYTimes article I couldn't help exclaiming and when my daughter asked me what I was reading I started talking to her about the article. She has since been telling everyone she meets that sugar is bad for you (which was a bit embarrassing when we had a guest over who brought us cookies as a gift!). I have been a sugar junkie most of my life with periods of abstinence, but I notice that mostly what it does is make me feel gross and tired, which has helped me to cut back considerably. I don't necessarily think that we need to cut out all sweets completely - I'm still going to sweeten some things with maple syrup, for instance - but reading labels and making more foods from scratch so you can see where the sugar is and where you can cut it out is probably pretty important.
GULP!
Thank you for this post. I think this is just what I needed to bump up my sugar-free efforts. Knowledge is power, right?
thanks, also for the post. I need to stop eating sugar. And after reading the article that you linked, I'm beginning to think I may need to give up sugar completely.
Dad,
I think it's a little mean to put this up right before Easter! I've noticed more and more how every major holiday has a major candy/sugar push attached. I picked up a few things for the kids Easter baskets, but was kind of grossed out by the 5 aisles of holiday treats. Valentine's Day, Christmas, Halloween, Easter.. It's all about the candy.
A friend of mine inspired me to give up eating treats/sweets for Lent. The only sugar I've eaten in the last 5 weeks is a little honey and molasses, with a teaspoon of sugar occasionally in some homemade sauces. It really makes a difference! I have no more mid-afternoon crashes after eating sugary cereal or handfuls of chocolate chips.
The first week was hard. I had headaches every day and tons of cravings. Not to say that I don't miss treats still, but it definitely got easier over time for me. Combing this with exercise, I've lost several inches of belly fat, a few pounds, and have had an almost completely clear complexion, which I haven't since I was a kid.
Fruits taste sweeter than they ever have. When I do allow myself treats again (starting on Easter) they will definitely be much more limited! I'm definitely not going to gorge on candy, because I know that it will make me feel ill.
No Kidding--I just caught my 3 year old chugging down a cup of white sugar from the pantry! I threw it away and then sat down to my computer and found this post! HA!
Obviously, I'm not the only addict in the house. Although, I prefer my sugar in chocolate form. I recently tried going without sugar for a week. By the end of it I was so grumpy, irritable, and mad at the world. Life was NO FUN! My husband said I reminded him of his alcoholic clients (he's a substance abuse counselor:)
Here's something he says about addiction: If you can have 1/4 cup of alcohol and that's all, no reaction, then you are not an addict. In other terms, if you can't stop at one cookie than you are addicted (that's me)
Many of us are hard-wired or genetically prone to have an addiction; alcohol, drugs, overeating, SUGAR. Pick your poison.
I am appalled at how many treats my kids get at school. If it's somebody's birthday? donuts. If they bring their homework: tootsie rolls! Rewards are all about sugar, all day.
What really gets me though, is sporting events. Hey kids good job on that soccer game, here's a Twinkie and Capri Sun?!!! Good grief.
Thank you for this post. Can't wait to read those articles. I need help!
Brooke, you're right, it is "a little mean" to post this just before Easter. But it was the N.Y. Times that triggered the timing.
Sacha, what an incredible Lent experience. Thanks for sharing this.
Jenne, thanks for noting David Kessler's book, "The End of Overeating". Kessler—a doctor and past head of the FDA, mind you—confesses to owning suits in all the sizes because of his roller-coaster diet. He was speaking from his heart.
Cristie, Kiasa, Cally, Jenna. Amanda, and LC: Thanks for putting the word "addiction" right out there. It's a big issue and there's the theory that a basic addiction like sugar leads to the other forms of pernicious addictions that have increased in our society (with the consumption of sugar).
Back in the early 1800s before sugar and the chronic diseases became common, people ate about three teaspoons of sweeteners a day, often in more natural forms like honey, etc. Maybe we can get back to that level.
I didn't even need to read this to know I'm a sugar addict! It's taking every ounce of willpower not to rip open the Easter candy we carefully picked out yesterday (only the "good" stuff of course!), then head to the store later on in the week to replace it.
I appreciate the efforts you've made in researching and helping to educate the general population who, unless willing to do the research ourselves, would continue on in our sugar-coma bliss. The way you present your information is not pushy or judgmental of those of us who may not be making the best culinary decisions---yet. Thank you.
I do have a question about the difference between refined white sugar and "raw" sugar. Is there evidence that the raw stuff affects us the same way as white? Is there any benefit to replacing white with raw?
I have a similar question to Jonesy's. The labeling is all so confusing. What about other sweeteners? I have been using stevia for a while now because it is natural and herbal. But, even then, there are so many forms. As stevia becomes more mainstream, I get worried. I used to buy it in liquid form at a health food store. Now, I can buy it in a foil package at Wal-Mart. Is it really all the same? Is "Stevia In The Raw" powder just as healthy for my family as a bottle of liquid I get at the health food store?
What about using sugar to brew Kombucha? I understand that very little of the sugar remains after fermentation...but is that ok? What did they use to brew the tea before we had refined sugar?