Silly question: is this habit very unhealthy?

[Agota]

Okay, this might sound silly, but I was wondering about this habit of mine for a while and since I don't know much about nutrition decided to ask you guys for an input..

I believe that my daily intake of white sugar might be around 15-20 small spoons. This is because I love black or fruit tea with sugar and drink a cup with almost every meal and I put three spoons of sugar into each cup. It's getting colder, so my intake of tea and therefore sugar really goes up. I had a flu yesterday and drank loads and loads of hot tea and I realized that the amount of sugar I consumed is huge when you think about it. What do you guys think? Is this suicidal or an innocent guilty pleasure?

I usually don't eat sweets as such because I simply don't like them, so I often go without any sweets or sweet drinks (asides tea) for days. My intake of sweet food, like cookies, candies or cakes is very low compared to most people.

I also happen to drink a lot of water, it's at least two litres a day everyday I believe (that's actual water, tea or other liquids doesn't count), I'm not sure whether this is relevant

[Clint Cora]

WOW - 3 spoons is a lot! You might want to see what happens if you gradually decrease that amount per cup. I think tea taste is something one can get use to. I use to add sweeteners to herbal tea and Chinese tea too when I was younger but when I decided to cut all table sugar out, I hated tea without sugar at first. But like many things, I got use to it. So now, I enjoy my tea especially like you, during winter months, for the warmth.

I don't mind the taste now even if it's sugarless. The only thing I don't like is what it makes my breath feel like right afterwards so I tend to rinse with water immediately finishing a cup of tea. I certainly would not want to kiss anyone as I'm consuming herbal tea!

[momo3bur]

Yeah, it could definitely be unhealthy to keep a steady stream of sugar going throughout the day! LOL! I only tell you this through experience as this is one of the things I'm having to change as per doc's orders.

I used to drink a lot of coffee and I liked to sweeten mine and would drink a cup with every meal and sometimes a few during the day without meals. Apparently, according to my blood work, this steady stream of sugar has helped raise triglycerides (which I didn't know would happen as I thought that was all a fat-content, not sugar content, thing) and puts me at a much higher risk for heart disease and diabetes. It doesn't sound like it makes much sense for it to cause diabetes, but that was her biggest concern due to the combination of results from my blood tests, my triglycerides being her focal point.

She said the results she got from me were most often seen in a person who keeps a sucker or hard candy all day long or drinks a lot of soda, etc., and are seen many times in a person who is in the process of "earning" diabetes. LOL. I don't drink soda or eat candy all day, though, so at first I was a little confused until I thought about the coffee. When I told her about my sweetened coffee habit, she said BINGO. I go in tomorrow to be retested and I'll let you know if cutting the sugar out has made a big difference or not.

Anyway, I'm not a doctor so I can't tell you why, when, how, who, what, etc., but just give you my experience. It may be a good idea to limit the sugar.

[firenexx]

I used to put 3-5 spoons of sugar in tea when I was young and foolish. I gradually decreased that amount and now unsweetened tea tastes great to me. Taste buds are very versatile.

[WilliamForrest]

no honey.. that is an unhealthy lifestyle.. reduce your sugar intake as soon as possible.. it may cause you some illness.. ;(

[LoudSilence]

Of course, compared to those that drink lots of sugary sodas, you are probably consuming far less sugar (try googling how much sugar is in a typical can of soda). But still, you're wise to consider weather this constant consumption of sugar in your tea will harm your body. Indeed, eliminating the sugar and drinking your tea straight would be ideal. I've read a few times that sugar consumption can put a strain on your immune system. Assuming there's truth behind what I read, it indicates that all that sugar when you're fighting illness isn't good.

Wondering if Stevia might be a suitable substitute while you're trying to cut down. I should create a thread about stevia pros and cons as it's been a long time since I did research on it (I personally like it to sweeten smoothies and yogurt, but I drink tea and coffee black).

[firenexx]

Stevia is great as it doesn't actually have sugar and is an herb so is harmless. But it is near impossible to find it, even in a health food store, in a form that does not contain processed corn sugars or other strange additives. The only physical place I've seen pure stevia extract is in some random Stop & Shop in the middle of a ghetto neighborhood. Internet is probably the only good source.

[ssandra]

I used to only like tea with sugar. Now I only like tea without sugar

And actually, I cannot stand tea with sugar anymore. It is a habit that you can change and where you can easily teach your taste buds to like something else entirely.

I would start with using 2 spoons of sugar. You won't taste the difference that much, and it will be a lot less already.

From there go to one spoon, half a spoon, no spoon

what I had to do (this will sound silly) is keep a little spoon in my tea and stir it for a bit, even when it didn't have any sugar in it. I had to do that before I could drink the tea....

This changed after a while as well, now I can just have a nice cup of tea without problems.

[Merr]

It probably is unhealthy but I'm guilty of doing something like this too. I do think though, especially when you're feeling unwell, sometimes you need to 'treat' yourself to feel a bit better.

[stanmrak]

Originally Posted by Agota

I believe that my daily intake of white sugar might be around 15-20 small spoons...

Definitely not a good idea. Set a goal to get down to zero. I initially went off sugar cold turkey and after 6 months, I couldn't stand the taste of it anymore, unless it's masked by chocolate!

Stevia is the only sweetener I would recommend in that quantity... maybe honey. Stevia is all I use.

[LoudSilence]

Originally Posted by firenexx

Stevia is great as it doesn't actually have sugar and is an herb so is harmless. But it is near impossible to find it, even in a health food store, in a form that does not contain processed corn sugars or other strange additives. The only physical place I've seen pure stevia extract is in some random Stop & Shop in the middle of a ghetto neighborhood. Internet is probably the only good source.

Those are good points. Yeah, I purchase my stevia online, and can't seem to find the brand I last bought - it didn't have the concerning additives that I've seen elsewhere. But clearly they do more to it (than "add" things to it because natural stevia is green, so some additional bleaching is going on.

For those who already have a garden or are so inclined/curious, you can grow your own stevia, dehydrate the leaves and powderize them with a processor, vitamix or probably a tiny coffee grinder. I've found stevia plants locally for cheap, and one season when I couldn't, I bought them off ebay from a grower who ships. Obviously, there is lots more work to growing your own. I add the homegrown powdered stevia to my tea blend, not directly to my teacup as it otherwise is still a little grainy for me. I didn't care for it in coffee. It was nice in my smoothies.

[Andrew Brunelle]

That's quite a bit. Every teaspoon of sugar has 4g, so you do the math. Sugar is very addictive, so it would be wise to try and lower the amount you have in your tea slowly. If you are craving something sweet, eat a fruit or make a fruit smoothie. It is far better for you, and will satisfy your sugar cravings.

Getting off of sugar was one of the hardest things I ever did. That's not to say I don't still consume some sugar. I drink a fruit smoothie at least 5 days a week, and have a little in my cereal, but besides that I try to limit the amount of sugar I consume. For me, I know that I lack control if something has too much sugar, so I try to limit anything too sugary.

Here's a link for you: The 76 Dangers of Sugar to Your Health

[EvolveWithFlavor]

I try not to beat myself up too much about the sugar thing.

Our brains are literally wired to seek out sugar because of evolution or something. The impulse is REALLY strong and the marketers have known this, so they can really do a creative job selling it to us (examples are endless).

I seek alternatives - such as Hemp Waffles with some organic maple syrup, or some Dark-Chocolate covered organic nuts from the health food store, or a vegan chocolate chip cookie.

As long as the impulse is there, you might as well satisfy it somehow. But do it in a way that your brain can accept as more wholesome

[InterfaceLeader]

You are ruining a good cup of tea, putting all that sugar in it!

As others have said. Sugar is nasty stuff. I put agave in my coffee, but I only drink coffee about once a week. Tea I drink as it is, but try honey if you really want to make it sweeter.