Sugar Consumption

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNdYzcAN0YLsBk-zXY7HAlI8aGSYxvrTkpx94vOYzE-CBY9R8B8ZaYX2twAfCJrLGCIsMbS5T-6VVzPnfUZOwwvcMbTAWp76FPAWprTdO06abkFhUJk4kOUzkC9xNkUm_RGiQMOiZvAk/s1600/sugar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNdYzcAN0YLsBk-zXY7HAlI8aGSYxvrTkpx94vOYzE-CBY9R8B8ZaYX2twAfCJrLGCIsMbS5T-6VVzPnfUZOwwvcMbTAWp76FPAWprTdO06abkFhUJk4kOUzkC9xNkUm_RGiQMOiZvAk/s1600/sugar.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyDietGoals/Sugars-and-Carbohydrates_UCM_303296_Article.jsp#.TsLDYVZWXRd">Source</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table>In a recent WW meeting, we talked about the recommended daily amount of sugar (this was also included in the weekly pamphlets).  According to the <a href="http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter/HealthyDietGoals/Sugars-and-Carbohydrates_UCM_303296_Article.jsp#.TsLDYVZWXRd">American Heart Association</a>, the recommended daily amount of sugar intake for women is 6 teaspoons.  However, from 2001 to 2004, the <a href="http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/120/11/1011.full.pdf">average daily intake for Americans</a> was 22 teaspoons!  <br /><br />I have an <b>enormous </b>sweet tooth.  I figured that the 22 tsp estimate was very close to my day to day consumption of sugar.  So, after reading the pamphlet<i> (last night while on the elliptical - I'm a little behind on them!)</i>, I decided that today I would monitor my sugar intake, just to see how it goes. So far today (at the time of writing this post, it's just after 2 PM), I've already had almost 3.6 teaspoons of sugar.  It's probably slightly higher than that because there was one dish where I couldn't calculate the total sugar, since it was a recipe I made.  <br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #999999;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/%20http://nutrition.about.com/od/askyournutritionist/f/gramconversion.htm">Here's some assistance</a> in calculating teaspoons of sugar from the given units of "grams" on the nutrition label.  </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #999999;">1 tsp of white sugar = 4 grams.  </span></div><br /><span style="color: #999999;">I've had 40.1 grams of total sugar today.  40.1 g / 4 grams per tsp = 3.6 tsp</span><br /><br />I found this to be rather interesting.  Plus, this calculation also helped me realize that I will be forgoing the Cherry Coke "break" I have mid-afternoon from now on.  This is what I've had so far today:<br /><br /><ul><li>Eggs (0.1 g)</li><li>Sausage (1 g)</li><li>Toast (4 g)</li><li>Jelly (6 g)</li><li>1/2 Pizza Potatoes serving (recipe - no clue on the sugar content)</li><li>Chick Fil A Nuggets (1 g)</li><li>Chick Fil A Fries (0 g)</li><li>1 c. Cherry Coke (28 g)</li></ul><br />As a side note, I'm not happy with myself that I've eaten Chick Fil A two days in a row.  I had good intentions of eating my lunch today, but it didn't taste good, and I no longer waste calories on food that tastes just mediocre or all together crappy.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_HmTYJHDyxv5b1_Frj7S0iERSSfeWC9nzf0sZbZFl1SB3O28IxFs9XHw6KzN1ndEv_Du_4N07FBbMt2w3pO4aJeeo5HPTGP1B5mj3cd20soWkGdLJryu6nHzSH982bBE5ssEax3nN1I/s1600/Arlington-20111115-00614.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_HmTYJHDyxv5b1_Frj7S0iERSSfeWC9nzf0sZbZFl1SB3O28IxFs9XHw6KzN1ndEv_Du_4N07FBbMt2w3pO4aJeeo5HPTGP1B5mj3cd20soWkGdLJryu6nHzSH982bBE5ssEax3nN1I/s320/Arlington-20111115-00614.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />So, while tracking sugar intake specifically is not apart of WW (yes, total carbs are, but sugar is a piece of that), it did really help me gain a new perspective on my eating habits.  In other words, that Cherry Coke is not worth the calories/Points+/sugar! <br /><br />If you follow WW, do you track any of elements of your food besides just the Points+?  What do you think of these stats from the AHA?  Is this surprising to you?  Do you think you exceed the daily recommendation for your gender? <br />

Random Weight Loss Thoughts Weight Watchers Sugar Consumption

Source . In a recent WW meeting, we talked about the recommended daily amount of sugar (this was also included in the weekly pamphlets).  Ac...

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