How sugar is secretly sabotaging your health

“The Secrets of Sugar,” a fifth estate documentary about the dangers of sugar and the tactics used by the sugar industry to hide the truth. Canadians assume that the processed foods they buy are healthy, but they are unaware of how much sugar is in them.

On average, a Canadian consumes 26 teaspoons of sugar per day, which is 40 kilos per year. Sugar is one of the basic ingredients used in 99% of the processed foods out there.

The food industry goes to great lengths to figure out what makes us crave a product by discovering the exact combination of ingredients called the “bliss point.” Dr. Howard Moskowitz, a long-time food industry consultant, uses models to test people’s reactions to different versions of a product.

Once he’s found the bliss point, the product hits the shelves. The sugar industry has used strategies similar to those used by tobacco companies to hide the dangers of sugar.

The industry knew that sugar was causing health problems, but they funded studies that would shift the blame to other factors. For example, the industry paid Harvard researchers to say that fat, not sugar, was the cause of heart disease.

The documentary suggests that people need to pay more attention to what they eat, and the sugar industry needs to be held accountable for the dangers of sugar.

The documentary highlights how the sugar industry has used similar tactics to the tobacco industry to keep the negative effects of sugar hidden from the public.

In the 1950s, researchers discovered the link between sugar consumption and heart disease, but the sugar industry paid off researchers to shift the blame to saturated fats instead.

This campaign, which lasted for decades, resulted in a health crisis where people continued to consume unhealthy amounts of sugar, leading to obesity, diabetes, and other health problems.

The film also examines the impact of sugar on children’s health, particularly in low-income communities. As the cost of fresh produce continues to rise, many families turn to cheap processed foods that are high in sugar and calories.

Schools, which are supposed to provide healthy meals to children, are often sponsored by soda and candy companies, making it difficult to encourage healthy eating habits.

The documentary concludes with a call to action for individuals to take control of their health by understanding the impact of sugar on their bodies and making conscious decisions about what they eat.

It also calls for policymakers to implement regulations that promote healthy eating and reduce the influence of the sugar industry on public health initiatives.

Overall, “The Secrets of Sugar” is a thought-provoking documentary that sheds light on the sugar industry’s role in the global health crisis. It encourages viewers to take responsibility for their own health and to demand change from policymakers and food companies.