Placing Our Mental View of Sugar in the Right Perspective

How many times have you uttered the words "please pass the sugar" to the one sitting next to you as you make your morning coffee? Or perhaps heard someone ask you "how much sugar do you need for your coffee?" Countless times, I bet. For in our day-to-day life, we think of sugar as that white stuff that puts the sweet taste in our coffee. And if challenged to define what sugar really is, we probably would go further by describing it as the sweet ingredient that we read on the labels of many food products, such as cookies, candies, and canned fruits. Our definition of sugar, in this case, will surely not be opposed by anyone. But if our understanding of sugar is confined within that definition, then it certainly is wanting as it misses out on the other more important facts.

Sugar is certainly much more than the tiny, white grains that we stir into our coffee to make it sweet. It may come in the form of dextrose, fructose, glucose, lactose, sorbitol, and sorghum - refined, highly concentrated substances that show up as ingredients indicated on the labels of different food products. Sugar may also mean the natural sweet elements present in milk, fruits, and even in some vegetables.

Sugar, in whatever form it may appear, or from whichever source it may come, is used by our body in much the same way. In fact, the more appropriate definition for sugar is that it belongs to the class of nutrients which we know as carbohydrates. And we also know that carbohydrates are our body's principal source of fuel that provides us with the energy we need to perform our daily physical activities. All carbohydrates are converted by the body into glucose, which is accumulated in muscles and the liver, and circulates in the body as blood sugar. Therefore, if your regular diet consists of fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains - foods that are rich in complex carbohydrates - then adding sugar to your diet is not necessary.