Hidden Sugars

When I was first diagnosed with Hidradenitis Suppurativa, I found out quickly that added sugars was one of the most common trigger foods for HS sufferers.  This really comes as no surprise when you understand how detrimental sugar can be to our health.

To see if I could put my HS into remission, I literally stopped eating added sugars cold turkey!  There are a lot of hidden sugars in the foods we eat such as processed foods.  Identifying theses sugars can be challenging because sugar comes in so many different forms and with so many different names.   The FDA requires that the Nutrition Facts Panel (label) lists the total amount (grams) of sugar (naturally present and added sugars).  Unfortunately, the FDA does not require these labels to differentiate between naturally occurring sugars and added sugars.

Ultimately, it is best to read the list of ingredients to really know what you are consuming.  Here is the tricky part.  There are several names that are used in place of the word 'sugar'.  Here are a list of some that I completely avoid.

• High Fructose Corn Syrup!
• Corn Syrup
• Dextrose
• Brown Rice Syrup
• Maltotriose
• Maltose
• Sugar
• Sucrose
• Molasses
• Evaporated Cane Juice
• Cane Sugar
• Cane Juice
• Fructose
• Glucose
• Galactose
• Agave Nectar
• Brown Sugar
• Maltodextrin
• Fruit Juice Concentrate

Day 20: Hidden Sugars

Our daily sugar intake should come from natural sugars (vs. added) found in fruits and vegetables due to the amount of nutrients which offer many health benefits.  I recently read that the average woman should consume no more than 25 grams of sugar a day and the average man should consume no more than 37.5 grams a day.