Category: Sugar Shockers

Salt, Sugar, Fat: Michael Moss Reveals How the Food Industry Addicted Us

Join the Conversation. What most surprised you from this fascinating interview with Michael Moss?
Salt, Sugar, FatLately, I’ve been planning the Sugar World Summit, which will feature some of the biggest names in sugar educationn, carb addiction, health, wellness, mindful eating, and personal empowerment.
For instance, in this virtual event, which will take place two weeks before Halloween, Dr. Mark Hyman, Dr. Robert Lustig, JJ Virgin, Dr. Richard Johnson, Colette Baron-Reid, Sarah Wilson and many others will join us to give you The Sour Scoop or Sweet Solutions.
Anyhow, while preparing for the event, I came across this fascinating NPR interview with Pulitzer-Prize winning investigative journalist Michael Moss, author of the extraordinary book, Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us..
In his fascinating book, Moss takes an insightful look at the $1 trillion processed food industry, which most health experts believe has triggered the obesity epidemic and put millions at risk for such chronic health conditions as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer.
Thanks to his many revealing interviews with leading food scientists and top food industry executives from companies such as Kraft and Coca-Cola, Moss explains how most Americans have become so dependent on processed food.
Get shocked now, thanks to this intriguing NPR interview.
Join the Conversation. What was your biggest A-hah?

Sugar Shocker! Can You Believe It? Under Lock and Key

Since 1998, while quitting sugar on doctor’s orders, the subject has astounded and enthralled me. In short, I’ve been absolutely astonished by a variety of Sugar Shockers! Today begins a new Sugar Shocker! feature, which I’ll post from time to time. As you may know, I included a variety of Sugar Shockers in my first book, Sugar Shock (2007). Here’s the first such entry.
SUGAR SHOCKER!It’s hard to believe, but as William Dufty recounts in his landmark book, Sugar Blues, refined white sugar was locked up back in the 16th and 17th centuries in Europe and America.
At the time, the substance was so expensive (the equivalent of about $30 a pound or a year’s salary for the average working man) that it was considered a delicacy reserved for the very wealthy, and the nobility certainly didn’t want their servants stealing such an exorbitantly expensive substance.
To this day, Unani healers or hakims in Afghanistan reportedly keep sugar under lock and key, believing it to be a narcotic.
Excerpted from my book, Sugar Shock! How Sweets and Simple Carbs Can Derail Your Life — And How You Can Get Back on Track (p. 133).
If you know of any Sugar Shockers, please let me know so I can feature it on this Sugar Shock Blog.
Join the convversation. What do you think about this Sugar Shocker? Tell us now.

Kids Get Sugar Savvy, Thanks to High Voltage (Kathie Dolgin)

On Friday, as I posted here, Katie Couric presented a fabulous episode, The Not-So-Sweet-Side of Sugar, which educated viewers about sugar’s dangers.
The epiisode began with some alarming information from pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig.
In the same episode, you can learn about One Woman’s Mission to Educate Kids About Hidden Sugars.
That groundbreaking health and fitness pioneer, Kathie Dolgin, aka High Voltage (seen to your left), has spent 12 years spearheading a program, Energy Up, which helps school children become what she dubs “sugar savvy,”
In the segment, Voltage then displays how much sugar is contained in a bottle of soda, a granola bar and a milk shake. (Like other health advocates, Voltage suggests that kids consume no more than 24 grams of sugar in 24 hours. That comes to 6 teaspoons.)
Watch the segment below to get Sugar Shocked.

A Look at Sugar Consumption over the Years

Special thanks to Online Nursing Programs for this special graphic, “Nursing Your Sweet Tooth,” which illustrates our massive increase in sugar consumption over the years.
By the way, the figure for today’s total is too low — the average American consumes more like 150 or even 170 pounds of sugar per year, according to my research — but this chart still gives you an idea of the massive upswing on sugar consumption from the early 1800s.
Nursing Your Sweet Tooth
Created by: www.OnlineNursingPrograms.com

Reformed Sugar Addict Alec Baldwin Interviews Dr. Robert Lustig on “Here’s the Thing”

Alecbaldwin560Did you know that the formerly overweight actor Alec Baldwin is now a reformed sugar and carb addict, who used to consume “a fish-tanked sized bowl of pasta” and other sweets but now is a sugar-free crusader?
Alec Baldwin also now has a fascinating podcast, Here’s the Thing.
Learn more about Here’s the Thing now.
Check out this intriguing interview Alec Baldwin had with Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist at UC San Francisco, about our country’s addiction to sugar.
You can watch Alec Baldwin talk about his journey here.

Is Sugar Toxic? “60 Minutes” Explores Issue: Hurrah!

Tonight, on “60 Minutes,” multiple Emmy-award winning chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta will tell the show’s viewers about new studies, which suggest that sugar is toxic.
Specifically, on “60 Minutes,” Dr. Gupta will tell viewers:
“New research coming out of some of America’s most respected institutions is starting to find that sugar could be a driving force behind some of this country’s leading killers.”
Of course, this sugar-is-toxic conclusion — which has been gaining momentum for years — is nothing new to those of you, who are regular visitors to this Sugar Shock Blog and to readers of my first book, Sugar Shock, which was first published in 2007.
Sanjay_GuptaFor my part, I’m thrilled that “60 Minutes” is devoting time to explore the question of whether or not sugar is toxic. I’ve been hoping for such a segment for years.
What I find especially exciting is that Dr. Gupta will spotlight the close cancer-sugar connection, which I also explored in my book, Sugar Shock.
I also examine recent sugar-can-cause-cancer research in my upcoming book, Beyond Sugar Shock, which is being published in June by Hay House. (In the book, I guide readers to eaily break free of their sugar addiction by joining me in a fun, six-week Mind-Body-Spirit adventure.)
Anyhow, in the “60 Minutes” segment about sugar, you’ll watch Dr. Gupta interview respected pediatric endocrinologist Dr. Robert H. Lustig, whose YouTube video, Sugar: The Bitter Truth, has gone viral, attracting 2,159,456 viewers (as of today).
Dr. Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist at the University of California, is not alone in his sugar-is-toxic view.
Amazon Sug Sh 51RDZ7DBVAL._SL110_Indeed, many cutting-edge physicians, including Dr. Stephen T. Sinatra, medical consultant for my book Sugar Shock, contend that the high amount of sugar in the American diet is killing us. (By the way, I disagree with the low figures usually cited — most Americans consume far more than the 130 or 150 pounds a year that’s often mentioned in news reports.)
While I applaud “60 Minutes” for telling the nation that sugar can be toxic, I also need to congratulate Dr. Mehmet Oz for his important work drawing attention to sugar’s dangers in several episodes of the top-rated “The Doctor Oz Show.”
In one episode, Dr. Mehmet Oz even called sugar “The # 1 food Dr. Oz Wants Out of Your House.” Hurrah!
By the way, I’m honored that Dr. Oz praised my book, Sugar Shock.
Again, congratulations to “60 Minutes” for devoting a segment to this important sugar subject.
Join us on my Facebook fan page during and after “60 Minutes” airs to share your thoughts and feelings about the is-sugar-toxic segment.
[“data”:”http://cnettv.cnet.com/av/video/cbsnews/atlantis2/cbsnews_player_embed.swf”,”flashvars”:”si=254&&content_mce_value=50122411&shareUrl=http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7403782n”,”src”:”http://cnettv.cnet.com/av/video/cbsnews/atlantis2/cbsnews_player_embed.swf”,”allowfullscreen”:”true”]
Make sure to tell your friends and family members to watch this important “60 Minutes” episode.

Kick Your Sweet Tooth to the Curb: Thanks to Vital Juice

Do you have a sweet tooth?
Feeling a prisoner to your sugar habit?
Get some help now, thanks to Vital Juice, whose talented editor Maridel Reyes, interviewed me.
Read this package of articles now:
Vital Juice
Sweets Surpise
Kick your sweet tooth to the curb.
How have these sugar articles have helped you?
What’s your biggest Ahah!?
Let Vital Juice know on their Facebook fan page.
Then make sure to share your thoughts on our Facebook fan page, too.

Food Addiction Program Featuring Dr. Robert Lustig, Michael Prager, Etc. Planned

Robert H. Lustig, M.D., whose YouTube video, Sugar: The Bitter Truth, hit viral, and Michael Prager, author of the exciting book, Fat Boy, Thin Man, are among the fascinating experts I’ll have the pleasure of meeting and listening to in an exciting program about food addiction at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco next week.
Stay tuned for some compelling points that you’ll get from these amazing speakers.
These are the experts lined up.
Michael Prager, Author, Fat Boy Thin Man
Nicole Avena, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, University of Florida
Eric Stice, Ph.D., Senior Research Scientist, Oregon Research Institute
Dr. Vera Ingrid Tarman, MD., MSc., FCEP, CASAM, Medical Director, Renascent
Elissa Epel, Ph.D., Associate Professor, UCSF Department of Psychiatry
Robert H. Lustig, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics, in the Division of Endocrinology at UCSF
Now read the enticing description:
Addiction is about brains, not just about behaviors. We all have the brain reward circuitry that makes food rewarding; it’s a survival mechanism. In a healthy brain, these rewards have feedback mechanisms for satiety or “‘enough.” For some, the circuitry becomes dysfunctional such that the message becomes “more.”
Michael Prager, author of Fat Boy Thin Man, will begin the discussion telling his very personal story of recognizing and then seeking treatment for his food addiction. Leading researchers and clinicians will discuss many aspects of this important topic.

Is Sugar as Toxic as Alcohol? Researchers Say Yes

In recent years, scientists have theorized that sugar can be as addictive as alcohol or tobacco.
You, of course, know how easy it is to get hooked on sweets — and how incredibly challenging and difficult it can be to break free of your sugar addiction.
(In fact, because breaking free from sugar is so tough, I’ve devoted an entire book to take you on a fun, empowering journey so you can easily let go of your addiction. Beyond Sugar Shock — which will be published in June and which you can pre-order now — is designed to hold you by the hand and guide you to what I call Sugar Freedom.)
So since sugar is addictive, should this commonplace but potentially harmful (even deadly) substance be regulated?
Acclaimed researcher Robert Lustig, M.D. and a team of UCSF researchers say yes.
They argue that sugar should be controlled like alcohol and tobacco to protect public health.
Indeed, Dr. Lustig, along with Laura Schmidt, Ph.D., Claire Brindis, D.P.H. and colleagues at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), contend that sugar’s potential for abuse, coupled with its toxicity and pervasiveness in the Western diet, make it a primary culprit of this worldwide health crisis.
They maintain that sugar is fueling a global obesity pandemic, contributing to 35 million deaths annually worldwide from non-communicable diseases like diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
The authors then advocate taxing sugary foods and controlling sales to children under 17.
According to their statistics, reported on CBS New’s HealthPop, worldwide sugar intake has tripled in the last 50 years, and the average person is taking in a whopping 500 calories from added sugar in processed foods alone.
So what do you think? Should sugar be regulated?
A special thank you: Photo credit is due here (flickr) and here (DailyBurn).
Post your ideas here on this Sugar Shock Blog and/or on my Facebook Smart Habits Fans page.