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Sugar truths

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Shocked by the amount of added sugar in their favorite snacks, BYU-Hawaii said they were going to be more mindful about what they are eating.Zachary Giles, a junior ICS major from England, said he unconsciously consumes at least twice the recommended amount of sugar when eating the candy Hi-Chews. Hi-Chews have 31 grams of added sugar for every 10 pieces. Giles admitted, “I had no idea. At the end of the day, I’ve probably eaten a 100 grams of sugar.”In the United States, the average consumption of added sugar per person is 90 grams in one day, reports Kitchen Daily. According to the American Heart Association, eating that much sugar daily is problematic. Added sugar, says AHA, is sugar put in foods in addition to any natural sugars present. Sucrose and high fructose corn syrup are common examples of added sugar.The AHA says men should consume 36 grams of added sugar daily and women should consume 24 grams -- not including natural sugars in fruits and vegetables. Like Giles, Alison Reece, a sophomore hospitality and tourism management major from Utah, also said she had no idea her favorite snack was saturated with so much added sugar. Packed with 15 grams of added sugar per ounce, the Zebra brand chocolate-covered popcorn is Reece’s favorite snack. Reece said, “Knowing that I should only eat 24 grams of added sugar daily, I am now going to have to be more aware of what I am eating.”BuzzFeed Life staff member Christine Byrne writes, “The problem with sugar is that it just makes you crave more sugar.” Byrne continues, “Sugar triggers your brain’s reward center . . .the problem is that constantly eating too much sugar dulls this feel-good response.” According to Byrnes, this means a person will likely eat more because it takes larger amounts of added sugars to meet those feel-good responses. Internationally, Brazil has the No. 1 highest consumption of sugar in the world at 152 grams per person per day, says Medical Daily. Russia falls right behind Brazil with 108 grams of added sugar per person per day, which adds up to one forth of a pound. By contrast, Indonesia and Pakistan each consume 62 grams, India follows with 58 grams, and China consumes about 33 grams per day. Juliana Dicenzo, an exercise and sports science major from Utah, said from her experience visiting family in Brazil, she was not surprised Brazil is No. 1 in the world for individual sugar consumption. Dicenzo said her favorite snack she gets when visiting Brazil is Brigadiero. “It’s a rich, carmely chocolate ball, and in Brazil they have a bunch of different toppings like sugar.”Uploaded Feb. 2, 2015
Writer: Jessica Tautfest