There are some very strong held notions in the realm of nutrition and one of the most firmly held beliefs is that sugar is bad for us. More than just being bad for us, is the notion that sugars (and carbohydrates) are a dietary evil and are at the root cause of almost every modern-day chronic disease. The reality is that these claims about sugars and carbohydrates are exaggerated and they are not as harmful for us as they are made out to be.

 

 

The terms sugar and carbohydrate deserve to be used interchangeably because they are much more similar than they are different. Even if you are eating the most complex carbohydrates, they will ultimately break down into simple sugars when they enter the body. The difference between simple sugars and complex carbohydrates are the rate at which they are digested, but make no mistake that sugar is sugar.

 

Why Do We Need Sugars and Carbohydrates?

• They are our primary source of energy and particularly important for brain function.
• Muscles use glucose for energy, especially high intensity physical work.
• They help to regulate our blood sugar levels or, more specifically, increase blood glucose levels when we need them to.

 

Who Can Benefit from More Sugars and Carbohydrates?

• Those who are physically active and practice high intensity exercise. Anaerobic activities such as sprinting, weight lifting, and competitive sports rely heavily on sugars for energy. If you have those available to you, you are simply going to perform better.
• Those who find themselves in a hypoglycemic state (low blood sugar), perhaps as a reaction to medication or a rare condition. In any case, simple sugars will bring low blood sugar back to a normal range very quickly, and that can save someone’s life.

 

The Other Side

There is another side to this, which is that if we eat too many sugars and carbohydrates too often, we can develop diabetes, a serious condition that can lead to life threatening complications. Diabetes does not happen because sugars and carbohydrates are bad for us, it happens because people misuse them. If you misuse them long enough, there are severe consequences attached to that.

 

Take-Home Points

Demonizing or fixating on a single nutrient or source of calories is not as helpful as some would have you believe. and this is certainly the case with sugars and carbohydrates. You are better off learning about how sugars and carbohydrates interact with the body and how you can use them for your benefit, and do not believe that all sugars and all carbohydrates are bad all the time, because it simply is not true. They have the potential to be abused, but they can also be helpful when used appropriately.