14 ‘Healthy’ Foods with surprisingly high sugar content

14 ‘Healthy’ Foods with high sugar content:

1. Muffins (up to 15 grams of sugar)
   
   Muffins are often loaded with as many as 15 grams of sugar per serving although they seem like a quick, healthy breakfast or snack, especially the ones with fruit.
2. Breakfast Bars/Granola Bars (up to 9 grams of sugar)
   What masquerades appearing as a healthy breakfast item is really a front for added sugar and high fructose corn syrup while granola bars can have up to 9 grams of sugar per bar, along with other unhealthy ingredients like enriched white flour.
3. Protein Bars (up to 20 grams of sugar)
   Most popular protein bars are no better than those breakfast bars.
4. Cereal (over 10 grams of sugar) - sugary cereals are practically nothing but sugar.
5. Store-Bought Spaghetti Sauce (up to 12 grams of sugar)
   When you buy a jar of spaghetti sauce, look for “no sugar added” or “no high fructose corn syrup” on the label.
6. Salad Dressing (up to 10 grams of sugar) - even “light” or "fat-free" varieties pose a problem, as they make up for a lack of fat flavor by boosting sugar content.
7. Condiments (over 10 grams of sugar)
   Ketchup. BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, ranch dips...are all loaded with sugar except regular yellow mustard.
8. Fruit Juice & Flavored Teas (up to 36 grams of sugar)
9. Energy Drinks (up to 54 grams of sugar) - also loaded up with sugar.
10. Milk (up to 12 grams of sugar)
    Processed milk is one of the leading sources of hidden sugar.
11. Bread (up to 3 grams of sugar per slice)
    Store-bought bread is loaded not only with added sugar, but unhealthy preservatives.
12. Yogurt (up to 20 grams of sugar)
    Plain Greek yogurt is a wonderful source of protein and calcium, but all those fruit-flavored options can feature as many as 20 extra grams of unnecessary sugar.
13. Canned Soup (up to 15 grams of sugar)
14. Anything labeled “Fat-Free” (sometimes 2x the sugar of regular version)- if it is labeled as “fat-free” or “light,” the taste is coming from added sugar instead of fat.

Then how much we would consume sugar for a day? Let us quote one example:

• Breakfast: Cereal with milk + glass of juice
• Snack: Yogurt
• Lunch: Chicken with BBQ sauce + salad with fat-free salad dressing
• Snack: Protein bar
• Dinner: Spaghetti + salad with fat-free salad dressing  

Result: 140 Grams of Sugar.

 

For an adult of a normal body mass index (BMI), the optimal level of sugar intake is about 6 teaspoons -- or 25 grams -- of sugar per day (from CBSnews).

Thus our day of "healthy eating" has more than 5x the recommended sugar intake. And sugar has been linked to increased risk of several health concerns.