Sugars or calories: Which makes you fat?

Extreme opinions, as always, get the most attention, hits and likes. This always creates camps and "laughable" reasoning.

That's why I like to add some nuance to it on my social media. Though I know I will never make it to the mainstream sensational media. This time discussing a fattener: Is it the sugars or calories...

An example of two camps:

• Camp 1: Sugars make you fat and so you should try to ban all sugars.
• Camp 2: Calories make you fat and it does not matter whether they come from sugars or another energy source.

Both camps have a point, but in my opinion send the wrong message.

Also read the blog: Causes of the obesity epidemic

Opinion camp 1

Thus, camp 1 is wrong when it comes to intervention: where you take in the same amount of calories, but shift the ratio of sugars, fats, proteins. Maybe there is some difference in thermogenic effect and absorption, but this is almost negligible. What you do sometimes notice when you cut sugars and carbs is that the body releases some fluid, and this is misleading on the scales. Of course, this comes right back as soon as you start eating sugars again and people can draw the wrong conclusion from that. In that case, Camp 2 does have a point in responding to this. And no, insulin is not fattening without excess calories.

Opinion camp 2

Then again, Camp 2 does that in a way that is far too short-sighted. After all, we are not given rations but move in a world of temptation, and food choice also has a social role in this.

What we have to remember is that one calorie may trigger more calories than another. For instance, it is easier to measure up with boiled potato, than with fries with mayonnaise. In addition, someone who is "insulin resistant" will be able to experience unstable blood sugar after eating a sugar- or carbohydrate-rich meal. Provided it contains little fibre and fat to inhibit the effect. In the blood sugar dips that follow, it is difficult to push yourself to eat a healthy meal. The temptation is strong to indulge in high-calorie junk food. In addition, sugars in a processed product can increase the follow-through eating factor. This is because sugars contribute to a nice smell, an attractive mouth feel, a nice brown colour and natural flavour (masking sweet and bad tastes). So it is difficult to keep a grip on an industrial snack with added sugar.

Note: It's not just the sugar! People often talk about sugar addiction or a tendency to reach for sugar during emotional dips. This is not entirely true, as no one is going to eat pure sugar lumps in this situation or spoon out a jar of honey. What people are more likely to reach for are almost irresistible processed high-calorie snacks that contain sugar, fat and salt.

So are camp 1 and 2 both right?

So Camp 2 is right but throws out the baby with the bathwater. It is indeed interesting to watch the amount of added sugar, as these are useless calories and in some cases they can stimulate higher calorie intake (blood sugar dips, through-eating factor).

Camp 1 is also right, but trots out. Indeed, you cannot demonise sugar alone, as it is in everything, including unprocessed carbohydrate sources. The difference, however, is that these don't disrupt blood sugar easily, and can have a lot of nutritional value. The problem is that sugars are taken out of context by industrial processing (refining, blood sugar disruption as a result sometimes) and used to make irresistible products from them in combination with fat and salt.

Conclusion: sugars or calories?

• It is fine to watch out for refined carbohydrates and replace them with unrefined ones so that blood sugar is not disrupted too quickly and the nutritional value is higher. Drink as few sugary drinks as possible.
• It is a good idea to greatly reduce heavily processed products that are high in sugar, fat and salt and replace them with less processed foods.
• If you do opt for a fast-absorbing carbohydrate source such as white rice, flank it with a good amount of vegetables (fibre) and (a little) olive oil (fat) to reduce the fast-rising effect on blood sugar.
• In addition, focus not only on what you eat but also why you eat it, analyse your personal pitfalls and try to come up with solutions for these to arrive at a better average...