I grew up with a mother who really limited sugar.
Luckily, my best friend’s parents did not. I have clear memories of the excitement of waking up to a cupboard full of Lucky Charms, Honey Combs, Captain Crunch, pouring myself a bowl and watching cartoons or playing Nintendo (other things that were restricted in my household).
In high school, my friends and I would walk to 7-11 every lunch hour to buy Slurpees. We strolled back carefree, drinking our Slurpees through a licorice straw, contemplating our latest crushes.
And then I became a dietitian.
As a culture, we need to change our relationship to sugar.
Sugar is a problem because it replaces more nutritionally beneficial calories in our diet, and is associated with cavities, weight gain and increased risk of certain cancers and chronic disease.
These problems can start in childhood; therefore, we want to teach our children moderation.
Achieving this goal is the challenge.
Good strategies include positive role modelling (i.e. eating fruit for dessert most of the time, treats on special occasions), keeping mostly healthy foods in your house and having a relaxed attitude around food (as soon as it is “forbidden” then it is appealing).
How much sugar is appropriate?
While no Canadian body has made any detailed recommendation on sugar consumption, the World Health Organization posted draft guidelines this year stating sugar should contribute no more than 5 to 10 per cent of your daily energy.
This means for someone eating 2,000 calories per day, only 100 to 200 of those calories should come from sugar. That is equivalent to 25 to 50 grams of sugar or six to 12 teaspoons.
These guidelines apply to all sugars added to food during manufacturing or cooking, as well as those present naturally in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit concentrates.
Unfortunately, sugar, like salt, is “hidden” in many processed foods including flavoured yogurts, sauces, dressings, marinades and it would be very easy to exceed that recommendation without stirring any into your morning coffee.
– Serena Caner is a registered dietician who works at Shuswap Lake General Hospital.