Sweet Poison: What 'That Sugar Film' Teaches About Sugar

So much has been said about sugar that the topic might seem pretty ordinary, but in this article, we’ll explore sugar through the lens of the documentary That Sugar Film. I found it impactful and believe it offers new perspectives that could influence anyone who watches it.

Sugar is a carbohydrate that many of us love, can't imagine living without it, and desperately want to believe it is innocent, but it negatively impacts our bodies in every way when consumed excessively. First, don't think of sugar as just white granulated sugar. Many foods we consume daily contain sugar without us realizing it. If all products containing sugar were removed from a supermarket, about twenty percent of the products would remain. Therefore, learning to read product labels is important because we don’t just see the word "sugar" on the ingredient list. Sugar appears in the market under approximately 56 different names, such as maltose, sucrose, rice syrup, and dextrose.

Let’s start with the question: What is sugar? Sugar is pure carbohydrate. In its simplest form, it is glucose. It is the energy source for the body and brain. Our bodies cannot function without glucose, but we shouldn't think we can consume it freely because we get enough from our meals. Our bodies do not need additional processed sugar from external sources. Another type of sugar is lactose, found in breast milk. Another type is sucrose, which is the sugar we add to our tea, coffee, and desserts. Sucrose is a combination of two sugars: 50% glucose and 50% fructose. The real issue is with fructose. It is the type of sugar that sweetens foods and is found in many of the products we eat. Normally, it is present in small amounts in fruits and honey, and we consume it in an ideal ratio. But today, sugar is so widespread that it’s found in most of the products we eat, and we are consuming more than our bodies can handle.

How does sugar affect our bodies? This is well addressed in That Sugar Film. Damon Gameau, who normally avoids sugar, decides to make a documentary about sugar and starts consuming it. He assembles a team consisting of a doctor, dietitian, psychologist, and pathologist. For the experiment, he consumes sugar for 60 days, and his team monitors his health throughout this period. He begins consuming 40 teaspoons (160g) of sugar daily (an average Australian reportedly consumes this amount daily). While this amount might seem excessive at first, you'll be surprised to see how easily it can be reached during the day. Moreover, Damon reaches this amount without consuming products high in sugar like chocolate, ice cream, or cakes. He only consumes products like breakfast cereals, flavored yogurts, and ready-made fruit juices. Over the course of 2 months, he experiences changes such as mood swings, excessive abdominal fat, and weight gain. The physical changes happening so quickly are truly interesting. You can observe this better by watching the documentary.

The reason for the changes in mood is that when we eat sugary products, our blood sugar rises rapidly, leading to an energy spike and a brief period of feeling energetic and happy. Then insulin is released. With the release of insulin, blood sugar drops quickly, causing fatigue and a renewed desire to eat. These fluctuations significantly affect mood because the brain's fuel is glucose, and it is healthiest when glucose levels remain stable. If glucose levels are fluctuating, this imbalance negatively affects the brain, leading to brain fog, fatigue, distraction, and depression. Another effect of sugar on the brain is when we consume sugar, it stimulates the body's reward mechanism and releases dopamine. This makes us crave sugar again, leading to a form of addiction. This is why many people seem addicted to sugar. Abdominal fat, weight gain, and other issues are known to lead to insulin resistance, liver fat accumulation, artery blockage, and obesity, among other diseases. If sugar hadn't distorted its place in our diets, would these diseases be as prevalent today?

Let's illustrate how much sugar we can consume through a drink. For example, imagine drinking a large, heavily sweetened, chocolate-flavored cold drink to cool off in the summer. Unfortunately, it contains about 34 teaspoons (approximately 136g) of sugar. To consume this amount of sugar naturally, we would need to eat 4 peaches, 2 limes, 30 lemons, or 30 strawberries, which is nearly impossible. However, we have made it possible to consume this much sugar in one sitting by presenting it in different forms. Sadly, the same issue exists with freshly squeezed fruit juices. Normally, one apple would fill us up, but when we juice it, we remove the fiber that helps us feel full and only keep the sugar. For one glass of apple juice, we use about 4 apples, meaning we can consume the sugar from four apples at once. This process distorts the natural package from nature and loads our bodies with excessive sugar.

So, should we stop consuming sugar entirely? Moderation is key. Eating a small piece of dessert or a small amount of chocolate once a week won't hurt anyone. As with everything, balance and control are essential.

There is much more to discuss about this documentary, but I don’t want to spoil it for those who want to watch it. I highly recommend watching the documentary to explore sugar from other angles, and I think you’ll find it entertaining as it presents the subject in a very engaging way. Also, I’m including two TEDx talks that I liked below for those interested in checking them out.

References:

That Sugar Film

Robert Lusting: Sugar : Hiding in plain sight , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4CZ81EmAsw

Dr.Nicole Avena,How Sugar Effects The Brain?, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEXBxijQREo

"The Scoop on Sugar “https://ntischool.com/the-scoop-on-sugar/