Topic 8 Salt and sugars

  • Salt
    • Your body needs approx. 1 gram of salt to properly function
  • Sugar is the number one public health enemy today
    • Sugary products such as pastries, confectionary, and sodas are the most dangerous sources due to high concentrations of added sugar
    • Added sugar carries risk of obesity and cardiovascular disease
  • Difference between naturally-occurring sugar and added sugar
    • Naturally occurring sugar in fruits and whole grains provides your cells with energy steadily
    • Added sugar is added to products to improve taste or preserve its shelf life

Choosing Less Added Sugar

  • Learning how to read labels is the most important to reducing added sugar intake as added sugar can be very sneakily added into products
    • For example, not only does candy contain added sugar, but products like ketchup, soups, bread, and cured meats
    • Look for ingredients like corn sweetener, fruit juice concentrate, honey, malt sugar, molasses, corn syrup, etc.