Mince pies, pudding and brandy butter, chocolates, – Christmas truly is the season of sugar.
And sugar does more than rot your teeth: in recent months many experts have argued that it’s sugar, not fat, that’s to blame for our obesity epidemic.
Yet sugar is not just full of calories. Some scientists are claiming that, calorific content aside, a sugary diet is harmful because it alters crucial processes and hormone levels in the body. So can we safely indulge our sweet tooth over the Christmas period?
Dr Mark Vanderpump, an endocrinologist at the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust in London, says that while most healthy people can get away with the odd sugar binge, there are others who are on the borderline of diabetes, and if they put enough pressure on the system, it may just tip them over the edge’.
To make matters worse, some experts believe sugar may be addictive. In a 2007 French study, rats allowed to choose between sugar and cocaine overwhelmingly chose sugar. This was even true among rats already given so much cocaine they were showing signs of addiction.
So read on before you go in for that second helping of Christmas pudding. Read on as the experts explain the latest thinking about what sugar may do to the body.
It can trigger heart attacks
Sugar is bad news for the heart, even in seemingly healthy individuals, says cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra.
‘Studies suggest that sugar causes the liver to produce more uric acid, and this leads to high blood pressure – the leading cause of death globally because it raises the risk of heart disease and stroke. Sugar also seems to raise cholesterol.
You’ll need the loo more often
One sign of high blood sugar levels is needing to urinate more, says Muhammad Shamim Khan, consultant urologist at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital.
‘If a patient consumes more sugar than the body can handle, it will be passed out in the urine and it may affect their frequency.
‘That’s a precursor to diabetes in itself because it puts stress on the pancreas.’
Sugar is as bad as booze for livers
Next time you’re trying to resist the biscuit tin, it’s worth bearing in mind what sugar does to your liver – some experts believe it’s on a par with alcohol.
Any calories that aren’t burned off in the body are stored in the liver in the form of fat, and over time this can lead to a condition called non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
It will make your gurgling tummy worse
Fructose, the sugar found in fruit and fruit juices, and increasingly added to processed foods, can also cause digestive problems and make conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome worse, says Professor Peter Whorwell, a consultant gastroenterologist at Wythenshawe Hospital, Manchester.
‘Fructose is considered a healthy option because it’s not absorbed very well, so it’s effectively lower in calories and won’t cause you to put weight on.
‘But that means it ends up in the gut where it’s fermented by the bacteria there, causing symptoms such as wind, a gurgling tummy, and diarrhoea.
