Who doesn’t love sugar? It’s sweet and delicious and gives us an instant boost of energy. Isn’t it amazing how even, newly weaned, babies will turn their noses up at their plain rice porridge in favour of their pot of fruit puree! We are almost wired to love this heavenly stuff. However, we now know that not all sugars are created equal. Some are fine to eat and others wreak havoc on our health. This is why it can be very confusing to be given an instruction to ‘avoid all sugar’.
Most sugars are simple carbohydrates, which means that they’re made up of one or two sugar molecules stuck together, making them easy to pull apart and digest. Complex carbohydrates, like those found in whole grains, legumes and many vegetables, are long chains of sugar molecules that must be broken apart during digestion. They offer a longer-lasting, more stable supple of energy. Naturally occurring fiber, protein and fat in many whole foods further slows the sugar-release process.
A rule of thumb is that the more processed and refined the carbohydrate, the faster it breaks down in the digestive system, and the bigger the sugar rush it delivers. That’s why refined flours, sugars and sugar syrups are such a hazard for our health.The body is beautifully designed to handle small amounts of sugar. However, refined sugars deliver a larger rush than our bodies were designed to handle.
In this post, I’d like to distinguish between the healthier sugars which are allowed on the MS diet and those that will cause a decline in our condition. Firstly, let’s take a brief look at the various types of sugars found in nature.
Types of Sugars
- Sucrose: disaccharide made up of glucose and fructose (table sugar)
- Glucose: monosaccharide which is found in every living cell on the planet. If we don’t get it from the diet, our bodies produce it.
- Fructose: monosaccharide that is very different to glucose. Our bodies do not produce it in any significant amount and there is no physiological need for it. It is interesting to note that, this type of sugar has the potential to do the most damage.
- Dextrose: monosaccharide that is essentially the same as glucose (food manufacturers usually use the term “dextrose” in their ingredient list)
- Maltose: disaccharide made up of two glucose molecules
- Lactose: disaccharide found in milk. It is a combination of galactose and glucose
The Ugly Side of Sugar
Sugar & Nutrition
Interestingly, sugar in itself is not a food group. Though sugar, in some form, is naturally present in many nutritious foods, by itself, it contains zero:
- nutritional value
- protein
- healthy fats
- enzymes
Sugar is just empty and quickly digested calories that actually pull minerals from the body during digestion. I know that I feel terrible after having eaten sugar. I feel tired, lethargic, spaced out and oh so irritable! I do almost feel like it is leaching the life from my body.
Dr. David Reuben, author of ‘Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Nutrition’ says, “white refined sugar-is not a food. It is a pure chemical extracted from plant sources, purer in fact than cocaine, which it resembles in many ways. Its true name is sucrose and its chemical formula is C12H22O11. It has 12 carbon atoms, 22 hydrogen atoms, 11 oxygen atoms, and absolutely nothing else to offer.” …The chemical formula for cocaine is C17H21NO4. Sugar’s formula again is C12H22O11. For all practical purposes, the difference is that sugar is missing the “N”, or nitrogen atom.”
The Addiction
Yes, refined sugar is addictive. Many of you will have experienced this. You start off eating a few pieces of chocolate and before you know it you have eaten the whole slab! Something compels you to keep eating long after your tummy has tried to tell you it has had enough. Why does sugar have such a strong addictive effect on our bodies?
The answer is simple. It causes a release of dopamine in the reward centre of the brain. The more you eat it, the more rewarded your brain gets which prompts you to eat more. Some people are more susceptible to this effect than others and can develop a strong addiction to junk food and sugar. They have to have their daily sugar fix otherwise all hell breaks loose! If they try to stop eating it, they experience major detox symptoms. Not a healthy place to be in!
Sugar & Fat
Sugar is obviously used for many biologically processes which give us energy. However, the body only needs so much for it’s metabolism requirements, especially if you are not an active person. So, what happens when you eat more than is required? The lovely hormone, insulin comes into play. It’s primary job is to make sure blood sugar levels don’t get too high. Too much sugar floating around in the blood is dangerous and will cause a host of health problems.
So, insulin carts off the excess sugar to the liver where it is turned into fat and stored. When large amounts of sugar are repeatedly eaten, this can lead to a fatty liver and other serious problems such as an increase in cholesterol levels and heart disease. Pretty scary stuff!
Interestingly, it is the fructose molecule that sets off this chain reaction. The oversupply of fructose is mainly from eating too much sucrose which is broken down in the body to form glucose and fructose. However, this harmful type of fructose can also be found in high fructose corn syrup (found in many refined foods) and agave nectar. The good news is that this does not apply to fruit and vegetables as it is almost impossible to over consume fructose by eating fruit.
Sugar Causes Inflammation
Inflammation underlies most modern illnesses, from heart disease to diabetes to MS. The normal function of inflammation is to help the body rebound from injury. For example, if you cut yourself whilst chopping vegetables, white blood cells race to the scene to mop up the wound, destroy bacteria and mend tissue. But when the injury is deep inside the body, such as inside the blood vessels of the heart, hidden inflammation can trigger chronic disease.
I’m sure you have realised by now, that sugar will worsen and even cause inflammation in the body. When blood sugar is high, the body generates more free radicals. Rogue molecules, that whizz through the body damaging cells, free radicals stimulate the immune response, which can inflame various tissues of the body including the nerves. For people with MS, eating refined sugar is a major health risk. Controlling your blood sugar is critical for maintaining an anti-inflammatory state which will help to reduce MS symptoms.
Sugary Foods to Avoid
Anything refined and unnatural should be avoided. These foods are not only laden with unhealthy sugars but most of them contain bad fats too. Here is a list of some examples:
- table sugar
- castor sugar
- icing sugar
- chocolate (try dark chocolate sweetened with xylitol)
- cakes
- cookies
- pastries
- breakfast cereals (try gluten free porridge)
- syrup (except maple syrup)
- agave nectar (promoted as a healthy sugar alternative but is mostly made of the bad kind of fructose)
- high fructose corn syrup
- Artificial Sweeteners: Sucralose (Splenda), aspartame and saccharin. These chlorinated artificial sweeteners are not sugars, they are man-made chemicals. Avoid them, like the plague, as they can cause far more severe effects than sugar.
Sugars to Embrace
Finally, some good news! These sugars are safe to consume in reasonable quantities but don’t overdo it and make sure you combine them with some good quality protein or complex carbs.
Fruit
Fruit does contain fructose but when eating whole fruit, it is almost impossible to consume enough fructose to cause harm. Fruits are jam-packed with fiber and water which aids in the slow release of sugars. It also takes a while to chew and digest fruit. This means that the fructose hits the liver slowly. Fruit is also exceptionally healthy because it contains many nutrients and anti-inflammatory compounds. It also leaves an alkaline residue on the blood which is vital because disease cannot thrive in an alkaline environment. So, a big thumbs-up for fruit sugars!
Honey
Honey is what I would call a super sugar. It has some wonderful health benefits including, antibacterial and anti fungal properties. And, get this, it has as many antioxidants in it as spinach! The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost, while the fructose is absorbed more slowly providing sustained energy. It has also been found to keep levels of blood sugar fairly constant. Be sure to choose 100% raw honey for maximum benefit. I use it in my herbal tea and often in my cooking and baking.
Maple Syrup
The main thing that sets maple syrup apart from refined sugar, is that it also contains some minerals and antioxidants. It contains calcium, iron, potassium, zinc and manganese. It also contains twenty-four different antioxidants. Make sure to get 100% pure maple syrup not just maple flavoured syrup which can contain refined sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Just remember though, that maple syrup still has sucrose and fructose in it even although it has many more health benefits. So, it needs to be eaten in moderation. Just a little – as a treat!
Palm Sugar
Palm sugar is a natural sugar made from the sap of the coconut plant. It has a lovely caramel flavour and contains some excellent nutrients: iron, zin, calcium and potassium. It has a lower glycemic index than regular sugar which means that it is absorbed more slowly and doesn’t have the same onslaught on the liver. It does, however, need to be eaten in small amounts as it is still a sugar.
Stevia
Stevia is technically not a sugar but a highly sweet herb derived from the leaf of the South American stevia plant, which is completely safe in its natural form. I often use stevia as a sugar substitute in baking and it works well. You don’t need a lot because it is super sweet. Much sweeter than regular sugar.
Date Sugar
Date sugar is made from dried dates. The fruit is dehydrated and then ground to produce the sugar. It retains many of the nutritional benefits of dates and has a rich sweet flavour that makes it an ideal alternative to brown sugar. The downside is that it doesn’t melt and is difficult to dissolve, making it unsuitable for use in drinks and some baking recipes. It’s still tasty in gluten-free bread recipes.
Xylitol
Xylitol looks and tastes like sugar, but contains zero fructose, fewer calories and doesn’t raise blood sugar levels. It can be classed as a sugar alcohol. Sugar alcohols are like hybrids of a sugar molecule and alcohol molecule. Their structure gives them the ability to stimulate the sweet taste receptors on the tongue. It is found in fruits, in small amounts which means it can be considered natural. Xylitol is generally well tolerated, but some people do get digestive side effects when they consume too much.
I often buy dark chocolate that has been sweetened with xylitol. It doesn’t quite taste the same as sugar-filled chocolate but it is great to be able to enjoy my guilty pleasure without feeling guilty!
Summing it up
Refined sugar is not ok, even in moderation. It is a highly addictive substance that can cause a variety of health issues. It is pro-inflammatory which means it increases inflammation and will certainly make your MS symptoms worse. It will also cause you to gain weight and increase your cholesterol levels. So, if you haven’t given your favourite chocolate or sugary drink the boot, then you need to seriously start the process. Luckily, there are some fabulous sugar alternatives which are natural and yummy. I have loved discovering them and experimenting with cooking and baking. Being active also goes a long way toward vanquishing excess sugar in the bloodstream. So, work hard on getting your blood sugar levels as stable as you can. It’s one of the keys to recovery!
As usual, I would love to hear your comments and feedback so drop me a line when you have a spare minute!
Chat to you soon!
References:
Experience Life:https://experiencelife.com
Live Strong:http://www.livestrong.com
Authority Nutrition:http://authoritynutrition.com
This article was extremely informative. Continued use of aspartame, in an attempt to get away from sugar, caused serious side effects so I went back to sugar. I’m extremely addicted and do experience withdraw when trying to avoid it. Would love to be able to give it up once and for all. If you have some really good recipes for cookies or breads using honey or coconut sugar, please share! I have tried stevia and have never enjoyed it in anything. It leaves an aftertaste, much like artificial sweetners. I chew gum with zylitol but have not seen it used in recipes. Again, if you have any recipes, please share. Thanks so much for your blog. It’s always a joy to read.
Hi Robin! Thanks for your feedback. I really appreciate it! Yes, sugar is definitely a no go zone! I recommend a week of raw food eating to get rid of the cravings. More naturally sweet recipes are needed! I do have one that you may like: http://www.msdietforwomen.com/recipe/chocolate-fudge-flaxseed-bites
Hope you enjoy and find a way to get rid of sugar for ever!
Hi Kim,
I am in South Africa, I have MS, I am looking for a good diet that I can use follow… I know now sugar is extremely bad for you. (loved the article, thank you for that.) what type of food is good and what must be avoided also for weight loss…. Please advise. Thank you so much. Warm Regards
Dorette
Hi Dorette! So lovely to hear from a fellow South African. Glad you liked the sugar article. Yes, sugar is one of the main inflammation culprits! It’s a real baddy and you need to find alternatives that work for you. I love dates, maple syrup, all fruit, coconut sugar and honey! To lose weight just start following the MS diet. Just cutting out gluten, dairy, sugar and meat will make a huge difference to how you feel. Another weight loss and healing trick is to eat your main meal early (5/6pm) and don’t eat anything after that. You could have herbal tea or raw juice in the evening. Have you had a look at the MS diet page?
This info is extremely timely (esp. with Halloween coming up soon!) I found myself slowly slipping back into using MANY forms of sugar lately ( esp in the form of bubble gum)–talk about a useless and short-lived sugar rush.. This article has definitely put me back on track. It is so easy to go back to bad habits–thanks f the info and inspiration.
Hi Karen! I’m overjoyed that it has helped you get back on track with your eating. I agree, the sugar rush is a bit useless. It lasts for a few minutes and then sends you down lower than you were before. Everyday is a new opportunity to build good habits. Keep persevering!
Dear Kim, as always THANK YOU for keeping us well informed about how to manage and ’embrace’ MS. Another very interesting article.You are an amazing example to follow
Thanks Carmen! I’m glad that you found it useful. Have a wonderful MS diet week!
Thanks Kim. Very useful reminder! I definately have a sweet tooth, but have been focusing on the healthy sugars. Curious to know what you mean by ‘in moderation’…. always so subjective so would appreciate your interpretation…
Thanks SO much for your inspiration and continued knowledge sharing. You continue to be one of my biggest supports throughout this journey!
Hi Dominique! Thank you for your kind words. Yes, in moderation is a bit vague 🙂
It depends how you eat them. For instance, a small skirt of honey in tea a few times a day is fine. A small sweet treat after a meal is also fine. Maybe a snack of apple with cinnamon and a bit of maple syrup is also fine. This is probably the maximum I would eat in a day but there are some days I eat no sugar and other days I may eat slightly more than usual. I think you know when you are overdoing it and then you just curb your natural sugar intake a bit. Does that help?
I am trying to find information for my husband. He’s not been diagnosed with anything (of course, he’d never let me get him to a doctor anyway) and it never crossed my mind that he may have MS before. However, in the past year, there are times he begins to have odd contractures, numbness, and tingling in his body under unique situations. The first time we noticed this was when snorkeling, and he swore he couldn’t get enough air, and his whole body locked up. Thankfully we could touch the bottom, but his arms and hands contracted tightly, and I had to massage him in the middle of the ocean till things loosened up and he could walk again. This happened on two different occasions, and – understandably – he has refused to snorkel since. Today, he is again having these problems, only he now says he feels his stomach is also having similar feelings. He is panting, sweating, and curling up. The reason I ask here: he has been a sugar addict for a long time, and we’ve joked that he likes coffee-flavored-sugar rather than coffee with sugar in it. Soda, candies, cereals, honey, you name it. He recently cut sugar out of his diet. I’d recommended weaning, but he insisted he could handle cold-turkey. That was yesterday. Today, it started iwth a rash (which he has gotten before when weaning off sugar), then he started to feel weak, numbness and tingling in the arms, then “shooting out through the hands.” Eventually, he complained about it in his feet, and then finally in the gut. After almost an hour of struggling, he finally threw up and now is resting and the muscles are no longer cramped and contracted.
Any idea if sugar withdrawal could trigger latent symptoms of MS? I’m wondering if I should get him checked out, but we don’t live in a place with good medical care.
Sorry, I know that’s a tough question, and you may not know or be able to say – but I thought maybe you’d heard of something similar, or would have knowledable people or resources available who may know if I need to fly him back to the states and find a doctor for him.
Your post was made over a year ago, and I hope your husband’s found the answer to his problems. Getting rid of the sugar, as he’s hopefully done by now, is the sensible place to start, as it can trigger so many problems. I just wanted to add a parallel possibility that’s been a problem for me: fungal (candida) overgrowth, which can cause a wide range of symptoms that seem like all sorts of other conditions. It’s essentially a side-effect of a high-sugar diet and/or frequent anti-biotic use. The rash is what made me wonder, as it’s often a first indicator for fungus, itchy or not, and I also have problems with muscle cramping. I remember the first time I tried cutting out all sugar, caffeine and alcohol: it was the hardest three days of my life! I couldn’t believe how difficult it was. Most people with candida overgrowth who try cutting out sugar will feel worse for as long as a couple of weeks before they feel better, some even experiencing flu-like symptoms. You’ve cut off its food source and it’s dying back, essentially poisoning your system. Not that it hasn’t already wreaked havoc on your metabolism– and it can continue to weaken the immune system if not dealt with, because your body is having to fight of fungal invasion constantly.
Atkins devotes a whole chapter to it in one of his diet books, saying about 1/3 of his patients had this problem–which is why I turned to his diet. The first time I tried Atkins’ diet (20g of carb/day) I didn’t lose an ounce. I went back and read that chapter and went through a month of anti-fungal regime before going back on the diet, and the weight fell off. So it’s one way to find out if this is a problem. It’s notoriously difficult to diagnose, and many doctors won’t acknowledge it as a problem. Mine scoffed at me, but a stool analysis proved I was right. Here’s more info:
https://www.thecandidadiet.com/testingforcandida.htm
http://www.camnutri.com/candida-p-33.html?detail=7
I was just looking at another website that triggered my thinking on MS. They said the nerves require a constant supply of energy. Unstable blood sugar due to a high sugar diet might effect or cause MS ? A low carbohydrate diet will cause the body to move to fat metabolism and that avoids the blood sugar swings.
Also the brain does not need sugar as it can use the fat metabolism (ketone bodies)
Food for thought
Hi Vince! That totally makes sense! Yes, I’ve also heard that too much insulin in the blood can bring on relapses because it promotes inflammation. Thanks for sharing!
Hi there,
I have a doctor’s apt in March 2017. I was having muscle spasms in my arms, my vision would go blurry off and on all day every day, I would wake up twenty times a night with my arms going numb, then my legs started to spasm. I gave up gluten prior to my symptoms getting really bad but it wasn’t enough. Once they started to get really bad I gave up diet pop, then coffee, and dairy except for cheese. It all helped but then my breathing started to get affected and I had a squeezing pain in my chest. I went to my gp who said it could be reflux and prescribed me meds for that. I don’t like taking meds so my husband suggested low carb. I went on a meat, cheese and egg diet and started to take B12 1200 mcg once daily and those two things made a huge impact for me. Now I drink tea with raw honey or water and the occasional glass of red wine but never to access. I don’t crave sweets anylonger and i am taking weight off. I will stay on this diet for life. Still waiting to see the neurologist as I can still feel a bit of spasm in my legs but my arms are much better now and although I’m not 100%, I do feel a lot better. I am sure if I hadn’t done this I would have ended up in a wheelchair in a few months, now I’m pretty hopeful that I won’t I asked my doctor if it was ok to take the b12 and he told me it was fine but I would think it smart to always check with a doctor before starting a diet or taking any vitamins. I understand i haven’t been diagnosed yet but i can’t just sit around waiting for months and do nothing. I hope this might help someone.
Kim, thanks for a really good article on sugar! I have several friends with MS and have my own issues with sugar (candida overgrowth), so this subject has often come up when discussing dietary changes that can be helpful. I hope you won’t mind if I share it on Facebook, as I think it could be helpful for anyone wanting a healthier diet.
Another trick for tackling sugar cravings I recently discovered from “The De-Stress Diet” (Magee/Watts): cinnamon. “It contains a bioflavinoid called MHCP that mimics insulin, actively moving sugar into cells for energy and sensitizing insulin receptors. 1tsp/day helps balance blood-sugar levels….It is highly effective at telling the brain that you have eaten something sweet with positive rather than negative consequences.”
I was diagnosed with MS when I was only 19. I didn’t realize how much of an effect it does to someone till a couple of years ago. I am now 34 and trying to stay alive for my three beautiful kids that I am raising on my own. I started really learning about M.S. and found out that the paleo diet works wonders for me at least. I went running (so to speak) for it and it was working really well until I lost some of my family members, and that yanked me down real hard. I lost my momentum with paleo diet and I can’t seem to get back on track with the diet. Let me know what your thoughts are about that please Kim. I would be extremely grateful. I have no friends that are going through M.S. like myself.