One thing most people don’t realize is that we consume tons of sugar every single day! It’s not just sweets and desserts where this little beast is hiding, it’s in your yogurt, veggies, cereals and more!
Even when you think you are eating healthy you can still be consuming two or three times the recommended amount of sugar because it is added to almost every food we eat!
Just how much sugar is hiding in your food?
Lets take a look at what is hiding from you! Below we will take a look at some foods to beware of if you want to eat less sugar. If you take a close look at a nutrition label you will see sugar is measured in grams. That can be kind of hard to picture but 4 grams of sugar is equal to one teaspoon. The other thing to be sure to pay close attention to is the number of servings on the label. All nutrition info listed is for ONE serving. IF there are 4 servings in the container you must multiple the grams of sugar by 4 to see exactly how much sugar is actually in the package.
A good example would be a can of soda. We will us a typical 20oz bottle of soda you grab at a gas station. One bottle has 65 grams of sugar, or 16.25 teaspoons of sugar!
Of course, you already knew that soda has plenty of sugar in it, which is why we’re going to talking about sneaky foods high in sugar.
How Much is Too Much?
If you only pay attention to the added sugars in the food we eat. According to the AHA, below is the maximum of added sugar you should eat per day:
Women: 25 grams (or 6 teaspoons)
Men: 37.5 grams (or 9 teaspoons)
Taking a look at the foods below you will quickly see why you can easily consume way more sugar than you’re supposed to in a day without ever touching dessert or soda.
15 Sneaky Foods High in Sugar
The nutrition information for these foods can vary by brand, so you will always want to pay close attention.
1. Ketchup
I know I have never used only 1 Tablespoon of catch up more like 5 or 6 BUT ……ONE tablespoon of ketchup contains about 4 grams, or 1 teaspoon, of sugar!
2. BBQ Sauce
Barbecue sauces is also very close with ONE tablespoon of barbecue sauce contains just under 6 grams of sugar. That is 1½ teaspoons.
What a minute go back and read that again……….Do you realize that means that half of your barbecue sauce is just sugar! And who uses just a tablespoon??
3. Salad Dressing
I love salad dressing and that is really high too. Ranch and Italian dressings each contain about 1½ grams of sugar, about a third of a teaspoon. But I can tell you I use easily 1/4 cup or more on my salad. Than is No bueno!
You may not think this is huge but it does all add up. I would never have thought to check my salad dressing for added sugar. I am eating healthy it is salad after all!
4. Pasta Sauce
Pasta sauce is another big surprise. A 1/2 cup of sauce has around 6 1/2 grams of sugar. Once again that is 1 1/2 teaspons
A half cup serving of store bought pasta sauce has about 6½ grams of sugar, or over 1½ teaspoons. YOu would never think that this meal would be full of sugar but it is!!
So lets take a quick recap shall we…… our maximum added sugars per day are as follows.
Women: 25 grams (or 6 teaspoons)
Men: 37.5 grams (or 9 teaspoons)
SO if we have a BBQ Chicken and fries for dinner with 2 tablespoons BBQ sauce (12 grams of sugar) plus 4 tablespoons of Ketchup (16 grams of sugar) a woman has surpassed her added sugar for the entire day in one meal with a whopping 28 grams of sugar and a man has less than 10 grams left for the day.
Women: 25 grams (or 6 teaspoons)
Men: 37.5 grams (or 9 teaspoons)
5. Yogurt
Breakfast is supposed to be the healthiest meal of the day right! With Yogurt chock full of vitamins and so good for you. BUT……
A serving of strawberry Yoplait yogurt has 19 grams of sugar — almost 5 teaspoons!! Just about any flavored yogurt out there has a huge amount of sugar. Don’t be fooled by the sugar free versions either because artificial sweeteners are STILL SWEETENERS! Which by the way is being proven to be quite harmful to our systems.
TIP: For a great healthy low sugar option go for the plain varieties and add fresh fruit! Keep it whole or blend it together for store bought yogurt blend. The fresh fruit of course does have sugar but it is all natural not ADDED sugars and that makes a difference.
6. Raisin Bran Cereal
I don’t believe I have ever eaten just one cup of cereal BUT just one cup has 17 grams of sugar, which is just over 4 teaspoons. And you can’t forget the sugar that is in the milk…….AND we thought this was a low sugar option!
7. Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal
Coming in at 8 grams its not quite as bad as with 2 teaspoons. Though that is still a lot for breakfast.
8. Granola Bars
Granola bars and protein bars are marketed as healthy options. BUT they can have a TON of sugar in them. You really have to watch those labels.
Some Kind and PowerBar brand products have 10 to 20 grams of added sugar, which is 2½ to 5 teaspoons worth. Would you go to the cupboard and chow down on 5 teaspoons of sugar? Most likely not, but its added to our “healthy” Granola bars??
9. Oatmeal
A maple and brown sugar instant oatmeal packet has 12 grams of sugar, which is 3 teaspoons!
Out and about an need to stop for quick McDonalds breakfast? Don’t go for the Oatmeal! It has a whopping 33 grams of sugar! YIKES!!
10. Jam
One tablespoon of strawberry jam has just under 10 grams of sugar, or about 2½ teaspoons. We all know that jam has sugar but be sure to always take a look and use in moderation. 🙂
11. Almond Milk
Almond milk usually has 7 grams of added sugar in each cup, or a bit less than 2 teaspoons. Flavored milk (like vanilla) has more like 13 grams, or a bit over 3 teaspoons.
You have to look for almond milk that is specifically labeled as unsweetened if you don’t want any added sugar in it. We drink unsweetened Coconut Almond Milk and it tastes so good in cereal too!
12. Tomato Soup
This was one of my favorite soups until I found out that there are 12 grams of sugar in each serving of canned tomato soup, 3 whole teaspoons. YUCK!
13. White Bread
Each slice of white bread has about ½ a teaspoon of sugar in it (2 grams), so if you’re having a whole sandwich, you’re getting an extra teaspoon of sugar along with it.
14. Crackers
Almost all crackers have added sugar. A serving of wheat thins has 5 grams of sugar, more than 1 teaspoon.
15. Canned Tea
Going for a cold canned tea at the Gas Station to avoid the added sugar of soda? Think again! Those can have 14 to 22 grams of sugar in each serving, 3½ to 5½ teaspoons of sugar! The big cans are usually at least 2 servings so you could be drinking 10 teaspoons of sugar along with that ice tea.
Does any of this surprise you? I was certainly surprised when I started learning about added sugars and how it affects our health.
Let us know what you think! Have you found any foods that were high in added sugars that surprised you?? What have you learned to do in place of the high sugar foods?
Mind Body & Soul wellness 