According to popular science China, do you usually have the habit of drinking milk tea or other beverages? If the answer is "yes", you should pay attention to this hot search today -
article shows: In July 2022, a study published by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention Zhou Maigeng and others in the European Journal of Public Health found that from 1990 to 2019, the number of deaths among Chinese residents due to excessive intake of sugary beverages has almost doubled in the past 30 years, and the mortality rate caused by excessive intake of sugary beverages has also increased by 35%.
The burden of cardiovascular disease and diabetes and death caused by excessive intake of sugary beverages is particularly prominent. In the past 30 years, the number of deaths from ischemic heart disease and diabetes has increased by 95% and 94%, respectively.
Seeing this, are your hands trembling slightly when ordering milk tea? Can you still drink milk tea or other sugary drinks?
01
What is sugar and what is its function?
Don’t beat the candy to death with one stick, we have to see what the sugar does. Sugars are a type of organic compounds that are widely present in nature, also known as carbohydrate , which includes sucrose, glucose , fructose , galactose, lactose , maltose , starch, etc. Among these sugars, except for glucose, fructose and galactose that can be directly absorbed by the human body, the other sugars must be converted into basic monosaccharides in the body before they can be absorbed and utilized.
For example, steamed buns contain a lot of starch. When starch is chewed in our mouth, it will stimulate the salivary glands of the mouth to produce salivary amylase . Under the action of saliva amylase, starch is hydrolyzed into maltose, so we taste the sweetness when eating steamed buns. Then maltose enters the small intestine and is further decomposed into glucose by the maltase secreted by the small intestinal glands, which is absorbed by the body.
sugar is the main function of providing energy to the human body. Each gram of glucose oxidation and decomposition in the human body can produce 4 kcal of energy, and about 70% of the energy required by the human body is also provided by sugar. In addition, sugar is also an important component that constitutes cells and tissues, and is an indispensable substance for maintaining the body's metabolism and immune function.
02
Why is excessive sugar "harmful"?
As mentioned above, sugar is necessary for our life activities, so we cannot do without it. However, once we consume too much sugar, it will have a significant negative impact on the body. The specific details are as follows: 1) If you consume too much sugar and cannot be consumed in time, the excess calories will be converted into fat. Simply put, it means you will gain weight. 2) Eating too much sugar will make people feel full, which will affect normal eating and lead to a deficiency of multiple nutrients. If a child has a long-term high-sugar diet, it will directly affect the growth and development of children's bones, leading to rickets and other diseases. Moreover, if you eat too much sugary food or drinks and do not pay attention to oral hygiene, it will provide good conditions for bacteria in the oral cavity to grow and reproduce, which can easily cause tooth decay and oral ulcers.
3) Increases the burden on the liver. The liver is the main organ that regulates blood sugar concentration. If you consume excessive sugar, in order to maintain the stable blood sugar concentration, the liver will convert sugar into fat, which can easily induce fatty liver.
4) Too much sugar ingestion can cause a series of metabolic dysfunction. Sugar, fat, protein are the three basic substances of human metabolism. hyperglycemia causes sugar metabolism disorder , breaking the system's metabolic balance, and often leading to lipid and protein metabolism disorders, causing problems in the entire metabolic system.
Increased blood sugar will also increase blood viscosity and slow down the blood flow speed, which will make blood vessels thinner, brittle, and less elastic, resulting in poor blood flow and blocked blood vessels, which will greatly increase the risk of diseases such as coronary heart disease , cerebral infarction , stroke , stroke and other diseases.
In addition, it is particularly important to mention that milk tea shops of all sizes are now everywhere in major cities, but numerous surveys have shown that even milk teas that claim to be completely sugar-free often have a high sugar content.
03
How to avoid excessive sugar intake?
The "Diet Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2022)" proposes that adults need to control the intake of added sugar, no more than 50 grams per day, and it is best to control it below 25 grams.
In life, if you want to avoid excessive sugar intake, you can pay attention to the following points:
1) Do not take the initiative to drink sugary drinks. Drink less juice and try to eat fresh fruits.
2) Eat less dried fruits such as plums and reduce the intake of " Invisible Sugar ". In order to prevent spoilage, many processed snacks will add a lot of sugar to inhibit bacterial growth.
3) Eat less puffed food. Although they don't necessarily taste sweet, they contain a lot of starch, but they do not contain dietary fiber that inhibits the rise of sugar.
4) Use less seasoning sauces such as tomato sauce, barbecue sauce, , etc. when cooking. These seasonings contain about 15 grams of sugar per 100 grams.
5) " low-sugar " and "sugar-free" foods are not recommended to eat too much. " sugar-free " does not mean that there is no sugar at all. In fact, it means that it does not contain added sugars, such as sucrose, maltose, fructose, etc., and is replaced by sugar substitutes such as xylitol . Although the calories are low, studies have shown that sugar-supplemented beverages may also increase the risk of first new cardiovascular disease, and excessive intake of sugar alcohols may cause diarrhea.
Expert in this article｜Huang Jia Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine Doctor of Medicine This article comprehensive
