You have to have been living under a rock for the last 50 years if you’re not already aware that sugar is just not that great for your overall health.

Here is the thing though: Sugar occurs naturally in all foods that contain carbohydrates, such as fruits and vegetables, grains, and dairy. Consuming whole foods that contain natural sugar is okay. Plant foods also have high amounts of fiber, essential minerals, and antioxidants, and dairy foods contain protein and calcium.

The problems can arise when you consume too much added sugar — that is, sugar that food manufacturers add to products to increase flavour or extend shelf life.

These problems range from obesity, diabetes, heart disease, fatty liver disease and cancer, to name a few!

It’s never too late to start removing sugar from your diet, as it contributes to your risk for developing chronic diseases, like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, dementia, cancer and more.

The average person gets about 30-40% of sugar from drinks. Stick to water, tea or coffee. Try not to add any sweetener. If you need to add flavour your water, try adding fresh fruit, like lime or lemon. Seriously try to avoid fruit juice, sports drinks, no energy drinks or soft drink.

Learn to take a hard look at food labels and packaging on processed foods. About 80% of processed foods have sugar.

Remember, sugar is usually disguised with about 50 different names.

You can look for processed sugar, raw sugar, brown sugar, maldextrose. An interesting one is concentrated fruit juice – it’s nothing but sugar. If you’re unsure about an ingredient, take a moment to Google it, if you have your phone handy.

Fruits and vegetables contain sugar in its natural form, and you shouldn’t worry about those.

Combating your sweet tooth is tough, we know! If you must have dessert, do what the Europeans do: have fruit, cheese and nuts. Or, have a little fruit with some yogurt on it for dessert. Natural foods are always best.