You are eating more sugar than you think, without knowing.
and how brands use "No added sugar" label.
A curious foodie who can't stop flipping ingredients labels and assessing wait, whats that? OG Scoop decodes the science behind every food in plain, snackable English with OG Twist.
If you choose products with a "No added sugar" label, this blog is for you. If you're unsure about the difference between sugar and sugar substitutes and how your body processes them, this blog is also for you. Most importantly, if you track your daily sugar intake, this blog is definitely for you.
In this blog, let's dive into the most talked-about ingredient in food brands—"Sugar"—and understand how our body processes sugar and sugar substitutes like dates, honey, and natural or artificial sweeteners. As always we'll explain it in simple English but with an OG Twist.
Before we start with sugar substitutes, let's understand how our body processes sugar and the role insulin plays.
What is Sugar and how does body process it?
Ready for some gyaan? :P
Regular sugar, the kind we see in our kitchen, is a disaccharide, meaning it's made of glucose and fructose. It has a glycemic index of 65 (a GI over 50 is considered high). A higher GI means it releases glucose into the bloodstream much faster, causing a sugar spike. To understand why this is not ideal, let's understand insulin.
Whenever we eat sugar, our body breaks it down into glucose and fructose. As glucose enters the bloodstream, insulin is activated. Its job is to manage the incoming glucose by directing it to muscles for energy use or storing it as fat.
If you eat sugar often, your cells are exposed to insulin all day long and eventually stop responding. This is known as insulin resistance and is generally considered a pre-diabetic stage.
Now that we established the regular sugar is high GI and it causes glucose spike, let us look at some of the popular sugar substitutes brands use nowadays.
Everything about Dates and Coconut Sugar
Nowadays, many modern brands choose dates or coconut sugar as substitutes for table sugar to add sweetness. Compared to table sugar, coconut sugar and dates have a lower glycemic index and fewer calories, making them better choices.
But interesting point to highlight here is, glucose from these sources are still counted in your daily sugar quota, so watch out for that!
Zero Calorie Sugar Alternatives - Natural Sweeteners, Artificial Sweeteners
Natural Sweeteners: Stevia and monk fruit come from plants and act like zero-calorie sweeteners, meaning they don't cause a glucose spike. The only downside is they are much sweeter than regular sugar—stevia is 300 times sweeter, and monk fruit is 250 times sweeter than regular sugar.
So overall, these are good alternatives to regular sugar but balancing the taste is a challenge.
Artificial Sweeteners: Remember Diet Coke? How do they manage to offer the same Coke taste and sweetness without any calories? It's Aspartame. While artificial sweeteners are safe to consume, prolonged use has been shown to have negative effects on gut health.
Below table summarizes types of sweetness sources:
| Sweetener/ Source | Glycemic Index | Classified as free sugar? | Counts towards Daily Sugar Limit? |
| Table Sugar | 65 | Yes | Yes |
| Honey | 50-65 | Yes | Yes |
| Jaggery | 84 | Yes | Yes |
| Coconut Sugar | 35-40 | Yes | Yes |
| Date Syrup | 45-55 | Yes | Yes |
| Whole Dates | 42-55 | Yes | Yes |
| Whole Fruit | Varies | No | No |
| Fruit Juice | Varies | Yes | Yes |
| Fruit Concentrate | High | Yes | Yes |
| Stevia/ Monk Fruit | 0 | No | No |
| Aspartame/Sucralose | 0 | No | No |
How brands emphasize on “No added sugar” & correct way to calculate sugar intake.
Let us look at real fruit juice for an example. The front of the pack says “No added sugar” which is great, but does the label support it?, let’s check.
Well, the label looks perfectly fine, there is no added sugar!
But does that mean no sugar spike or it would not be counted in your daily sugar quota?
Well, not really. If you check the total sugar = 11.4gm in 100ml which means in a single serve (~150ml), total sugar would be ~18gm (Sugar from fruit juice is classified as free sugar)
Based on our earlier calculation, daily ideal sugar consumption is 5% of total calorie intake i.e. 5% 2000 = 100 Kcal. Which roughly translate into 25gm sugar. (1gm sugar = 4 Kcal)
That means, with 200 ml of this juice, you already cross your daily ideal sugar quota.
The OG Recommendation
Sugar itself is not bad; our body needs it. However, judge sugar by the amount, not by the name. Some sugar sources are definitely better than others, but remember—if it contributes to free sugar, it counts towards your daily limit.
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