Refined sugar and its substitutes are a real scourge on human existence, causing all sorts of illnesses and ailments. A packaged food may not explicitly mention "sugar" in its list of ingredients, but it may be hidden under other names, such as:
- Corn syrup or sweetener
- Dextrin
- Dextrose
- Diglycerides
- Disaccharides
- Evaporated cane juice
- Fructose
- Glucose
- High fructose corn syrup
- Hydrolyzed starch
- Malt syrup
- Maltodextrin
- Maltose
- Rice syrup
- Sorbitol
- Sucrose
Faced with all these sources of sugar, how do you determine the limit you shouldn't cross? If you experience the following symptoms, it's time to significantly reduce your sugar consumption:
Sugar is addictive, just like cocaine, and its effects are similar. It stimulates the production of dopamine, the pleasure hormone. Often, without even thinking about it, we can be tempted by sweets and simple carbohydrates to get our "fix." As with other addictions, our bodies develop a tolerance to sugar, meaning that the more we consume, the more we crave, even when we're not hungry.
