Photo: effectivedietlondon.blogspot.com

Sugar is found in many forms. The sugar in fruit is called fructose, but is not as harmful. When we eat fruit we eat the fibre of the fruit as well. This helps to digest the fructose. A small amount is found in vegetables. There is also a small quantity (about 5%) of  sugar in cow's milk, called lactose. This is also easy to digest for most people.

“Free sugars” are those such as glucose or sucrose (“table sugar”) which are added to foods and drinks by manufacturers, cooks or consumers. They are also found naturally in honey, syrups, fruit juices and fruit juice concentrates. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends “free sugars” should be less than 10% of our total energy intake. Below 5% is even better.

For an average-sized adult, 10% of your total energy intake from free sugar is about 54 grams, or 12 teaspoons, per day. But more than half of Australians (52%) usually consume more than this.

Around 75% of the sugar we eat comes from packaged foods and drinks. The other 25% is what we add to tea, coffee, cereal, and other foods we cook.

The largest amount of free sugar we consume comes from sugary drinks. A 600ml bottle or can of soft drink can contain around 40-70g sugar. That is from 8 to 16 teaspoons of sugar.

Many drinks, such as iced teas, coconut water, juices and smoothies, are sold as “healthy” choices. A medium smoothie can have up to 14 teaspoons of sugar (63.5g) in a 475ml drink. A 500ml carton of  flavoured milk might have 11 teaspoons of sugar.

Breakfast cereals are also high in sugar. One brand of apple crumble granola has 20g of sugar per cup, nearly half your daily sugar allowance in one meal. Tomato and barbecue sauce, salad dressing and stirfry sauces contain one to two teaspoons of sugar in each tablespoon.

We know that chocolate, pastries and ice-cream contain sugar, but just how much might surprise you. A chocolate-coated icecream, or a small chocolate bar, will have five teaspoons of sugar, almost half your daily need.
Some “health foods” and “sugar-free recipes” are  misleading. By “sugar-free” they mean there is no sucrose (white sugar). “No added sugar” means no sugar has been added. That doesn't mean there's no sugar at all in the product.

Food labels use many different words for sugar: sucrose, glucose, corn syrup, maltose, dextrose, cane sugar, malt extract, or molasses – to name a few. These are all sugars and affect us the same as white sugar.
So how can you cut down on your added sugars?

Eat fewer foods with free sugars, such as chocolates, lollies, cakes, biscuits, sweetened soft drinks, cordials, fruit drinks, vitamin waters and sports drinks.

Change some of the things you eat and drink. Choose a lower-sugar cereal, and don't add so much sugar. Drink plain water instead of soft drinks, or choose soft drinks which are sugar-free or have lower added sugar. Swap fruit juices for real fruit, which give you fibre and vitamins as well.

Read the labels on packaged food and drink. If the product has more than 15g of sugar per 100g, check to see if sugar – or one of the many words for sugar – is listed in the first three ingredients. If it is, compare the labels on other products and choose one containing less sugar.

From Kacie Dickinson and Louisa Matwiejczyk (Health Check: How Much Sugar is it OK to Eat, at theconversationcom.)

Span Hanna