Sugar + Protein = Fat

Do you know how much sugar is in beverages?

Starbucks Grande Caffe Mocha, Pepsi, Lipton Iced Tea, 7-Up, Coke, Mountain Dew, Vitamin Water, Minute Maid Lemonade, Sunkist Orange Soda, Tropicana Twister Orange Soda, McDonalds Frappe Mocha all have one thing in common.

They all have a lot of sugar.

For reference, 4 grams of sugar is equal to one teaspoon.

• Starbucks Grande Caffe Mocha (16 oz) 33 grams of sugar
• Pepsi (12 oz) 41 grams of sugar
• Lipton Iced Tea (20 oz) 53 grams
• 7-Up (12 oz) 37 grams of sugar
• Coke (12 oz) 39 grams
• Mountain Dew (20 oz) 77 grams
• Vitamin Water Acai Blueberry Pomegranate (20 oz) 32 grams of sugar
• Minute Maid Lemonade (20 oz) 67.5 grams of sugar
• Sunkist Orange Soda (12 oz) 52 grams of sugar
• Tropicana Twister Orange Soda (20 oz) 87.5 grams
• McDonalds Frappe Mocha (12oz) 62 grams of sugar
• Newman’s Own Limeade (16oz) 68 grams of sugar

The average American eats 5,000 teaspoons of sugar a year. Other high sugar sources of food in our diets aren’t cookies and cake. It is the hidden sources like low-fat peanut butter, granola bars, yogurt, salad dressings, fruit juice, barbecue and other sauces, white wine that are adding up.

We know that we should limit processed foods, like sugars, but a new study just might make you think about your choices a little more carefully.

Research published in BMC Nutrition found that calories consumed as sugar are not burned like other calories, but that they seemed to prime the body to store more fat.

The researchers found that sugar sweetened drinks reduced the breakdown of fat by 8% and when combined with a high protein meal, fat metabolism was reduced even more.

Dr. Shannon Casperson says,

“We were surprised by the impact that the sugar-sweetened drinks had on metabolism when they were paired with higher-protein meals. This combination also increased study subjects’ desire to eat savory and salty foods for four hours after eating.”

Having a sugary drink with a high protein meal reduces your fat metabolism. You don’t use as much energy to break down these meals and you store more energy as fat. Not only do you not feel as satisfied, but you store more fat when you add a high sugar drink to a high protein meal.

Change your mind, change your health,

Shayla