The “Mayo Clinic Proceedings” journal has recently published a new report with the advise that people should not consume processed foods but should eats more fruits and vegetables.
Presently the guidelines that have been put in place by the US Institute of Medicine allows for 25% of all daily calories to be derived from added sugars. Added sugars have now been shown through research to be closely associated with the onset of type 2 diabetes along with other metabolic conditions and have also been shown to increase the incidence of cardio vascular disease. These sugars include sucrose and high fructose corn syrup which is now used widely by the food industry.
Type 2 diabetes is now in epidemic propertions, as the amount of people diagnosed with the condition has doubled in recent years. It is now widely understood that in a country like the US approximately 40% of the population have a degree of insulin resistance. It is also thought that approximately the same number will develop fully blown type 2 diabetes.
Researches assessed a number of clinical trials and studies and they made the following conclusions:
- Excessive fructose consumption causes insulin resistance and disturbs the metabolic processes.
- A combination of fructose and sugar leads to increased fasting insulin levels and also fasting sugar levels.
- Replacing glucose-only starch with sucrose increases adverse metabolic effects such as increases in blood pressure and cholesterol.
- Currently with the amount of added sugars in food the diabetes epidemic is being accelerated drastically.
- Fructose is found in natural foods but is not as concentrated as it is in processed foods.
- 75% of all packaged foods in the US have added sugars.
- There is no biological need for any added sugars in diet.
- Removing added sugars from a diet could be one of the main ways of ensuring good future health.
To read the report in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings click this link
