A sugar-heavy diet can have a dramatic impact on our health and well-being. So, swap food items of high sugar content with lower ones. To help reduce your sugar intake, Sally Norton, weight loss consultant at Spire The Glen Hospital Bristol and founder of Vavista.com, offers a list of lower sugar food swaps:
Fresh fruit: Fruit juice is very high on sugar and provides little nutritional value. A fresh apple contains around 2.6 teaspoons of sugar and around 50 calories whereas a 250 ml glass of apple juice contains around six teaspoons of sugar and 123 calories. The whole fruit contains fibre too which fills you up and is good for you in many other ways.
Homemade soup: A can of soup bought from a shop contains the equivalent of four teaspoons of sugar and 171 calories, whereas if you make it yourself using fresh vegetables it will be far lower in sugar and higher in nutrients. You can also avoid adding much salt which is a leading cause of heart disease.
Fruit flavoured yogurt: Fruit yoghurts can contain a huge amount of sugar so it’s important that you read the nutrition facts panel. Don’t be fooled into thinking that low-fat varieties are healthy either as they are often higher in sugar. You are best off with plain yoghurt and some lower sugar fruit such as raspberries and blueberries.
Hot chocolate: A hot chocolate contains around 4.5 teaspoons of sugar and 200 calories even before you add cream and marshmallows, whereas a cup of tea contains very little sugar and around 20 calories if you drink it with milk.
Ice cream: One scoop of ice cream contains around three teaspoons of sugar and around 180 calories, whereas a banana contains fewer calories and the sugar is bound up with fibre and nutrients.
Cherries: If you fancy something sweet, try swapping a milk chocolate for a bowl of cherries which contains just 50 calories and two teaspoons of sugar.