Not So Sweet News

Consuming added sugars can have adverse effects on levels of fat in the blood and may increase the risk of heart disease, according to a new study. Researchers at Emroy University in Atlanta found that people who consumed at least 25 percent of their calories from added sugars were more than three times as likely to have low levels of good cholesterol (HDL) in their blood than those who got less than 5 percent of their calories from added sweeteners.

The study also showed that people who consumed more than 17.5 percent from added sugars were likely to have higher levels of triglycerides. Low HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides both increase the risk of heart disease.

Last year American Heart Association recommended than men eat no more than 150 calories of added sugars per day and that women eat no more than 100 calories per day of added sugar. That's about 5 percent of the daily caloric intake. This new study, published in the Journal of American Medical Association, found that Americans eat an average of 21.4 teaspoons of added sugars per day!! That's about 359 calories of 16 percent of the daily caloric average.

SOURCES: "Caloric Sweetener Consumption and Dyslipidemia Among US Adults" by J.A. Walsh et al. JAMA 4/21/10

"Diets High in Added Sugar Raise Heart Disease Risk" by Karen Kaplan, Los Angeles Times 4/20/10

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