Supplements Part 2: Sugars.

Processed sugars can cause our cells to age faster, worsen ailments, trigger health issues, and make it harder for our bodies to obtain a true healthy balance.  This includes the processed honey, inulin, sorbitol, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, glucose, sucrose, xylitol, juice concentrates, maltodextrin, and artificial sweeteners found in our supposedly beneficial supplements.The highest offenders are liquids, chewables, and gummy forms of supplements.  This is due to the need for consumers to enjoy taking them.  Capsule forms typically have far less sugar, but be careful, because they are full of additives and toxins (as you learned in Part 1 of this series).  Vegetarian capsules are normally made with cellulose, a type of sugar.  It’s as if we have to choose between two evils: sugar-filled or supplements containing nothing but fillers.  It seems to be a catch-22.  The overall lesson to take away: KNOW YOUR SUPPLEMENTS.The majority of the time, you will find the very first ingredient is a form of sugar in your supplement.Let’s learn why this is a danger to our health: While this article is about the hidden sugars in supplements, it is the amount of sugars we are consuming in total that are endangering our health.  Our supplements are just an unexpected place to find excess sugars, adding to the overall dangers, instead of benefitting our lives as supplements should.  The following is a short list of how sugar affects our body:(http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/04/20/sugar-dangers.aspx )Suppressing the Immune System- As little as 3.5 ounces can suppress your immune system up to 50% by reducing the ability of white blood cells to kill germs. Most sugar is void of nutrients and in turn pulls nutrient from the body. The immune-suppressing effect of sugar starts less than thirty minutes after ingestion and may last for five hours. (http://www.wellsphere.com/healthy-living-article/sugar-s-damaging-health-effects-on-your-immune-system/804129)Obesity- Obesity affects one-third of adults and one-sixth of children in the United States and continues to increase.  Increasing sugar intake, increases risk of obesity.Mineral Deficiency- Sugar consumption upsets the balance of the minerals in the body.  (Calcium and magnesium especially)Cancer- Cancer is fueled by sugar. By lowering sugar intake, cancer growth slows.  The supplements taken to help beat cancer should NOT be allowing it to grow.Arthritis- Sugar increases inflammation, which worsens arthritis.Early Aging- Sugar causes the caps on the end your chromosomes (called telomeres) to shrink faster than they should.  This prevents the cells from regenerating; causing the skin to looked aged.Depression- People who suffer from depression are especially vulnerable to sugar’s evil power. Sugar is also at the root of chronic inflammation, which impacts the immune system, the brain and other systems in the body and also has been implicated in depression. Interestingly, countries with high sugar intake also have a high rate of depression.Candida – The slightest sugar intake can feed candida. Maltodextrin, a form of sugar, is absorbed by your body extremely rapidly, just like glucose, and so it quickly affects your blood sugar levels.Liver Damage- The entire weight of processing fructose lies on your liver.Hormone Imbalance- Sugar affects insulin and insulin is closely connected to all of the other hormones in your body, including estrogen and testosterone.Heart Disease- Recent studies have shown the link between sugar consumption and coronary heart disease. http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/106/4/523.fullHeadaches- Sugar acts as a dehydrator, triggering headaches.Eczema- When not properly metabolized, glucose (sugar) binds to protein molecules, forming abnormal chemical bridges called advanced glycation end products (AGEs)Your body then starts to produce antibodies against the AGEs that cause inflammation. These AGEs accumulate in the tissues, causing skin to become rigid, wrinkly, less elastic, and have reduced regenerative ability. Glycation leads to cracking, weak skin that takes longer to heal, and future damage such as thinning and dryness (eczema).Kidney Damage- Diabetes can damage the kidneys and cause them to fail.Cavities and tooth issues- Gummy, chewable, and liquid forms tend to stick and stay on your teeth and gums causing a breakdown of enamel and increasing the rate of cell degeneration in the gums.High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has been linked to a range of health conditions such as tooth decay, liver damage, obesity, diabetes and ADHD. Additionally, the manufacturing process which transforms corn first into corn starch and then into HFCS involves the use of toxic chemicals. One of those, glutaraldehyde, is an embalming fluid which can induce headaches, dizziness, burning eyes, and asthma. Mercury is also used in the HFCS production process. In a 2009 study, between half and one third of all products containing HCFS were found to have mercury contaminationhttp://www.naturalnews.com/034035_childrens_vitamins_corn_syrup.html#ixzz3pKAEEd7vUnfortunately, maltitol, one of the substitutes some companies use for HCFC, carries its own health issues. Products containing maltitol technically qualify as "sugar-free." Maltitol is a sugar alcohol, meaning its chemical structure resembles both sugar and alcohol. Unlike sugar, sugar alcohols are not fully absorbed in the bloodstream so they have less impact on blood sugar. Sugar alcohols cannot cause inebriation but they can ferment in the intestinal tract, causing gas, bloating or diarrhea.Sugar actually depletes the body of nutrients, as it requires vitamins and minerals to metabolize.  So any nutrients within the supplement may actually be used before they serve you any benefit.What happens to the body as it processes sugar? From www.foodforthebrain.org“Eating lots of sugar is going to give you sudden peaks and troughs in the amount of glucose in your blood; symptoms that this is going on include fatigue, irritability, dizziness, insomnia, excessive sweating (especially at night), poor concentration and forgetfulness, excessive thirst, depression and crying spells, digestive disturbances and blurred vision. Since the brain depends on an even supply of glucose it is no surprise to find that sugar has been implicated in aggressive behavior, anxiety, and depression, and fatigue.Sugar also diverts the supply of another nutrient involved in mood – chromium. This mineral is vital for keeping your blood sugar level stable because insulin, which clears glucose from the blood, can’t work properly without it.”Natural Options don’t mean perfection:  Even some natural-minded supplements can fall into the sugar-filled category.  Activated charcoal, for example comes in a “sweetened” form.  Just because you are purchasing a product that should naturally improve your health or benefit your body, does not mean that every brand is created equal.  Companies are taking advantage of the trends to lean toward more natural living, but the problem arises when these companies sacrifice the true benefits by over-processing and adding fillers, etc.I am not just talking about the supplements we, as adults, are taking.  We are poisoning our children with their daily vitamins, and our infants with their formula. http://www.naturalnews.com/034035_childrens_vitamins_corn_syrup.html#ixzz1cl7rsvVBSugars are linked to Learning disabilities: Children classified as learning disabled have one or more mineral deficiencies and require supplementation. A common problem with mineral supplementation is the supplements’ content of sugar. It is important to avoid supplements containing lactate, corn derivatives or sugar. Another way sugar and learning are related is that sugar hinders proper absorption of many B vitamins into the body and its cells. B vitamins are necessary to endorse cognitive thinking, coordination, and memory. When there is a lack of B vitamins, a child’s blood sugar can drop about 20 minutes after eating sugar, which leads to a lack of oxygen to the brain. The lack of oxygen to the brain can cause forgetfulness and affect ability to concentrate.Sugar has the potential to be a destroyer of general health and immunity as it robs the body of important vitamins and minerals. Besides, sugar can cause a chemical addiction as severe as other drug addictions. Many children are addicted to sugar, eating it regularly instead of the important nutritious foods. Over consumption of sugar makes children vulnerable to yeast overgrowth, which can lead to chronic nasal congestion, eczema, and ear infections. Yeast overgrowth is linked to sensory integration disorders, high threshold of pain, inappropriate giggling and mental fogginess. The yeast becomes much greater problem with the ingestion of sugar or a sugar source.Children’s vitamins: Chewable or Gummy form, these are some of the worst supplements you can have in your home. The sweetening ingredients added to make vitamins more attractive to children also put them at risk for obesity, diabetes, asthma, diarrhea and other ailments.Infant Formula: Formula is loaded with corn syrup and sugars, often not included on the label.  Feeding your baby sugar and corn syrup also increases your child's risk for a wide spectrum of other health problems ranging from dental cavities to high triglyceride levels to nutritional deficiencies. Even the mainstream medical establishment warns of the dangers of added sugars.An eye opening video on what sugar is doing to our health: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM