Posted on March 5th, 2018

This would have to be a question I get asked a lot by people and a common mistake I see a lot of people making. The media promotes it and a lot of doctors also advocate for it.

What everyone forgets to communicate is how they managed to make a product low fat, low sugar, fat free or sugar free in the first place. For example how is it that you can get sugar free soft drink or sugar free lollies that still taste sweet? How come low fat and fat free products still taste nice?

Low Fat/Fat Free – this came about in the 1950’s when it was determined fat was the leading cause of heart disease and associated conditions. By reducing the fat in products such as; milk, yoghurt and other sweet treats, they had to increase the sugar component to still make it taste nice. The natural fats in foods are what gives the food its flavour, it is also the component that makes you feel full and keeps your hungry under control for longer. We need good fats in our diet for various reasons including; balancing hormones, stabilizing blood sugar, aiding digestion and to support our skin and muscles.

The first thing some doctors do when someone’s cholesterol is high is encourage the person to choose low fat milk and other products and provide medication. Shouldn’t we be asking why is our cholesterol high in the first place? Maybe we aren’t eating enough good foods to encourage the breakdown of bad cholesterol or maybe there is another underlying factor that is causing it.

So instead of avoiding full fat products, the question comes down to what types of fats are you actually eating and are they healthy?

Low Sugar/Sugar Free – sugar is a debate that will continue to go on for years. Sugar was actually the predominant factor that caused heart disease and associated conditions back in the 1950’s. Sugar in general is dangerous in large amounts and again comes down to what forms of sugar you are eating. Sugar creates an inflammatory response in the body that cause havoc on all bodily systems and has been linked to many conditions such as; insulin resistance, obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart conditions, and various other autoimmune conditions that result in long term pain.

In low sugar or sugar free products, artificial sugars are being used as the replacement. These artificial sugars haven’t been around long enough for substantial research to be done to determine the health benefits long term. Aspartame which is the main artificial sugar used has a lot of research that confirms it is dangerous long term on your health and actually causes neurotransmitters in your brain to die and there are various signs and symptoms linked to it. Check out my blog I wrote on aspartame – https://www.good4younutrition.com.au/2016/10/13/aspartame-deadly-neurotoxin/

In my eyes and from my study over the years I encourage everyone to avoid these artificial sugars. I encourage you to learn how to eat well long term and how to avoid a lot of processed sugar in your diet and stick to the natural sugars like fruit and vegetables. There are healthier sugar alternatives you can use in baking, but like anything you need to eat in moderation.