As I sit down to write this blog, it is great to see that today the local news is reporting about a group of scientists in the United States who are calling for sugar to be regulated like alcohol. Whilst I am not promoting the regulation of sugar I think it is great that mainstream science has now proven some of the effects of sugar on the body.
Part of their conclusions included:
“Sugar, they argue, is far from just “empty calories” that make people fat. At the levels consumed by most Americans, sugar changes metabolism, raises blood pressure, critically alters the signaling of hormones and causes significant damage to the liver — the least understood of sugar’s damages. These health hazards largely mirror the effects of drinking too much alcohol, which they point out in their commentary is the distillation of sugar.”
Are these the type of effects we want our children’s growing and developing body’s to be experiencing on a regular basis? As a society we are already seeing children developing Type 2 Diabetes (used to be called Late Onset Diabetes) and having heart attacks due to obesity.
It is interesting, that time and time again researchers and the medical profession have said that there is no evidence to show that sugar causes a problem with children’s behaviour, now it is being shown that sugar is causing a series of adverse effects on the body and the effects are similar to alcohol intake. How many parents have seen this reaction in their child after them eating sugar, especially when it is laced with toxic additives as well? I know I have seen it in my children.
More and more I am seeing children in clinic with an overgrowth of bad bacteria and candida in their digestive systems which causes inflammation and results in a high level of toxins circulating through the body. If, as concluded in the above study, sugar is also causing damage to the liver it will not be able to cope with the removal of these additional toxins caused by the bad bacteria and candida. This means your child’s body starts to become toxic and they experience a variety of symptoms. Some of these symptoms include eczema, bad breath, poor concentration, behavioural issues and digestive complaints.
As parents we have the control over what our children eat but I know that it is very hard sometimes. I of my ‘pet peeves’ is other people offering my children lollies and putting me in the position that I have to say no. Whilst these other people say “it’s only one lolly, what’s the harm”, what they don’t seem to realise that if my children receive one lolly from every shop, sports coach, relative etc. they meet, they will be eating a lot of sugar! So it is up to me to say no, which then upsets my children because they feel they are missing out. What would be better all-around would be for everyone else to stop offering food as a reward to my children!
Allowing your child to eat small amounts of sugar on occasions, is generally not an issue UNLESS they have an overgrowth of bad bacteria or candida in their digestive system which is causing them symptoms.
So what’s good, bad or half way in between?
- Fruit is okay in moderate amounts, but if your child craves fruit all day long – it is likely that they have an overgrowth of candida in their gut. A maximum of 2-3 pieces/serves of fruit a day would be considered okay, anything more than that may require further investigation especially if they have other symptoms.
- Fruit juice – is whole fruit with the fibre removed, which leaves the sugar and water. To make a glass of orange juice it takes 4-6 oranges, your child couldn’t eat that many oranges in a sitting. If you must give them juice, then dilute it at least 25% in water.
- Dried fruit – once again is the whole fruit, this time with the water removed. Your child will eat more dried fruit than they would whole fruit, so they are getting a lot of sugar. Be very careful of how much dried fruit your child eats, only small amounts.
- Fruit straps/bars – unless you are making them yourself, they are generally high in sugar. Avoid them
- Honey – does have sugar in it, but natural honey (not the processed stuff in the plastic bottles) actually has an anti-bacterial effect so it does help to kill off some of the bad bacteria. Honey is okay in small amounts on occasions
- Stevia – is a sweet herb, it isn’t sugar, it has no sugar in it, it is not an artificial sweetener and it is 70 times sweeter than sugar so you don’t need to use very much of it at all. Excellent sugar substitute for the sweet tooth.
- Xylitol – is a sugar alcohol, too much can cause liver damage, but used to sweeten cooking on occasions is fine. A good side effect of xylitol is that it actually helps to get rid of candida in the digestive system. Sold under the name of Perfect Sweet.
- Agave Syrup – is a form of sugar (from Agave plant) but doesn’t have all of the negative effects of processed sugars. Is okay to use as a sweetener, once again in moderation.
- Rapadura Sugar – is a form of sugar (raw cane juice) but it is unprocessed and doesn’t have the same negative effects of processed sugar. Use in moderation.
It is possible for your child to have a low sugar diet; it just takes a bit of effort and planning. If you think that maybe your child may have a health issue with sugar please contact us at the clinic as we now have an excellent Optimal Health Program designed especially for children.



