Sugar - What Are The Nutritional Benefits?

Refined sugar is completely depleted of nutrients and life-force, and all that remains is pure, refined carbohydrate. The body cannot use this refined carbohydrate and it disrupts the acid balance of the blood. Your body which has to mobilize reserves of sodium (from salt), potassium and magnesium (from vegetables), and calcium (from the bones) in order to return the blood to normal balance. So not only doesn't sugar provide any nutrients, it actually uses up essential nutrients, just so that the body can deal with it.

If you continue to take in refined sugar on a daily basis, the body will need to start getting its calcium from the teeth and bones, leading to weakening. The other problem is that sugar is stored in the liver as glycogen, and the liver can only hold a limited amount. When you continue to ingest refined sugar, eventually somewhere else has to be found to store it. The liver releases the glycogen to the blood-stream, in the form of fatty acids. The blood takes these fatty acids and stores them in various parts of the body - the belly, the buttocks, the breasts, and the thighs.

Now, when a woman hits the menopause, she is at increased risk of osteoporosis (bone thinning), and tends to put on weight. So you can see, too much sugar, which is bad at any time of life, is even worse for the menopausal woman.

As if that's not enough, sugar also depresses your immune system, so you won't fight off infections so easily, and affects your brain chemistry, leading to woolly thinking. Beginning to sound familiar? Here's a list of the effects of taking in too much sugar - see how many you recognise:

• Weight gain
• Loss of appetite control
• Confusion
• Forgetfulness
• Attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity
• Depression
• Muscle cramps
• Pre-menstrual syndrome
• Joint pain
• Fatigue
• Insulin resistance

You should remove refined sugar from your diet, although you are not advised to remove it all at once - that will simply make you feel dreadful. Instead, cut down gradually. Once your body has recovered from its sugar addiction, you will find that fresh fruit tastes superb and naturally sweet.

Don't be tempted to replace the sugar in your diet with artificial sweeteners. Instead, try Molasses or Stevia, both of which are natural sweeteners that have added health benefits.

Stevia comes either as a liquid or in crystals and has been shown to: lower blood pressure; treat diabetes; have no side effects; is well-tolerated; can be used by diabetics and those with Phenylketonuria (PKU). There is even a suggestion that it may heal skin tumours.

Molasses may protect against heart disease and contains: iron; copper; calcium; chromium; magnesium; potassium; selenium; vitamin B6; PABA (one of the B vitamins); and vitamin K. All of these vitamins and minerals are vital to the health of the human body.

Both of these natural sweeteners can be purchased from any high street health food store

About the author: Jason Paris, personal trainer and nutritionist, runs a website with business partner Lady Marie Stubbs - author of "Ahead of the Class." Their aim through the website http://www.female-fiftyplus-get-fit.com is to provide advice on weightloss, exercise and nutrition particularly for women.

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