Sugar, sugar, it’s everywhere!!

In a Chicago Sun-Times article in February, 2012, titled ‘Report:  Sugar is toxic, addictive’ a team of scientists insists that like alcohol and tobacco, sugar should be regulated with taxes, laws on where and to whom it can be advertised, and even age-restricted sales.

The University of California-San Francisco researchers state that sugar is so heavily entrenched in the food culture in the U.S. and other countries that getting people to kick the habit will require much more than simple education and awareness campaigns.

Dr. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist at UCSF, talks about personal responsibility, and “that won’t work here, as it won’t for any addictive substance”, he said.  ‘These are things that have to be done at a governmental level.”

Lustig believes sugar has played a significant role in driving up rates of chronic illness.  Excessive sugar alters people’s biochemistry, making them more vulnerable to metabolic conditions that lead to illness, while at the same time increasing people’s craving for sweets.

To listen to a 15 minute video, Dr. Lustig and other researchers discuss how sugar causes cancer, heart disease, diabetes and how addictive it is.  Please visit:

 www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7403942n

In addition to the sodas and juices, where are these sugars sneaking into our diets?  What should we look for on the labels?  Please leave comments below.