Sugar is everywhere nowadays.

In coffee, in soda, in tomato sauce, in juice – most things on a shelf of a regular grocery store you can think of contain at least some sugar.

Everything is okay in moderation, but in today’s world it is not always easy to properly monitor the amount of sugar you consume, especially if we take into consideration natural sugars like fructose and lactose.

So, why exactly sugar is bad?

Sugar can and probably will be addictive.

You’ve probably experienced sugar highs before – short-lived bursts of energy after a cupcake or a chocolate. As pretty much anything that tastes or feels good sugar makes our brains want more of it.

In combination with all the other stuff sugar does to your body it’s really not a great thing.

Sugar affects your microbiome.

The bad bacteria in your gut grows stronger as it feeds off of sugar. Then the good bacteria gets overpowered by the bad and the results are not going to be pretty.

Our guts are lined with tiny live things that keep the nasty things that are drained through our intestines away from the bloodstream.

When that shield is disrupted all hell breaks loose, the toxins that normally can’t go through are able to get to your bloodstream and cause all kinds of inflammation in your body. Many people experience acne breakouts for this reason.

Sugar is bad for your teeth.

But your intestines are not the only place where the bacterial balance gets disrupted. We’ve all heard the story about how candy is bad for your teeth – and it’s definitely not a lie.

The bacteria that destroys the enamel of the teeth is thriving in a presence of sugar as well, it grows, multiplies and gets its nasty job done. Of course, there are other contributing factors but this one is very much avoidable.

Sugar is not the only problem.

This reason is two-fold. In processed food sugar often comes along with other not-good-for-you stuff like artificial trans fats and caffeine, so, cutting down on sugar could also help you cut down on those. Basically, killing two birds with one stone.

You can develop insulin resistance over time if you daily overconsume sugar over a long period of time.

Insulin is the hormone produced in your pancreas that helps your body to use glucose as a source of energy.

The amount of insulin your body makes depends on how much glucose there is. If you constantly consume lots of sugar, the insulin level is going to be high also.

What can happen next is your cells will essentially become “numb” to the insulin therefore not being able to use glucose for energy. That’s what insulin resistance is to put it simply.

Over time it can turn into prediabetes and then into type 2 diabetes.

Sugar has a lot of calories yet very little nutrients.

It’s not great if you’re trying to be fit or to lose weight. Essentially in gives nothing to your body. The burst of energy you get with sugar evaporates as quickly as it comes and the crash follows – similar to caffeine high.

Contrary to popular belief, sweet treats won’t make your appetite go away, it’s the opposite – you will be even more hungry after some chocolate or a muffin, and probably will end up eating even more than you wanted originally.

Sugar can potentially damage your liver.

While a little sugar will do next to nothing, an excessive amount over time will cause fat buildup in the liver which will affect the normal functioning of the organ.

It can go unnoticed, because at the same time on the outside everything can seem normal and your weight and body in general won’t change at first.

Considering all of the potential risks that come with excessive consumption of sugar it’s a good idea to at least cut down the amount if not quit it completely and by completely I mean added sugars, because it’s impossible to get rid of all the sources of sugar in your diet and neither it is really necessary.

Humans don’t need sugar to survive.

Our bodies make glucose on their own when it’s needed. Sure, it tastes good and it gives you the thrill, excitement and bursts of energy – but with all of the downsides I don’t think it’s worth it at all.

At the end of the day, it’s still your choice to make. Nobody can force you to do anything and your health and wellbeing are solely your responsibility, so choose wisely.