Link Between Added Sugars and Cholesterol Levels

My parents send me the Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter after they read it each month, which is great because I learn something and occasionally get material for the blog. The cover article for July was about how sugars affect cholesterol levels, which is something I thought many of you would be interested in. I often get e-mails from people asking what foods are good for lowering cholesterol. This is always a tough question. I know people who eat a healthy diet who have high cholesterol, and I know people who eat terribly but have low cholesterol. So, it’s difficult to tell someone what to eat without knowing a lot more about their family medical history, current diet, exercise routine, and more.

This article claims that the first study was conducted on the relationship between sugar and cholesterol levels, and the conclusion was that sugars added to processed foods can increase LDL cholesterol, lower HDL cholesterol, raise triglycerides, and increase overall risk of heart disease.

It states that Americans get about 16% of our total daily calories from added sugars found in processed foods. That’s about 90 grams of sugar, or 21.4 teaspoons. Gross!

The group that ate increased levels of added sugars from processed foods had lower HDL (good) cholesterol levels at the end of the study, and higher levels of unhealthy triglycerides. The interesting part, though, is that LDL (bad) cholesterol levels increased only in women in this group. There wasn’t really any explanation as to why men’s LDL cholesterol was not affected by the processed foods in the same way the women’s was. I was surprised to hear these results, but I recommend taking them with a grain of salt. Not that I know more than the medical experts at Tufts, but I don’t want men to read this and think it’s okay to eat more processed foods! We all know that processed foods can take a toll on our health in many different ways, and the best diet is one consisting of fresh, whole foods and minimal amounts of processed foods.

There’s one other interesting part of the article I wanted to point out. Towards the end, they provide some “tips” for reducing sugar intake. One tip reads, “Buy sugar-free or low-calorie beverages.” Besides the fact that I completely disagree with this, there is another tip they give that says to “Use zero-calorie sweeteners in moderation.” Now, I agree with using zero-calorie sweeteners in moderation, but these are the sweeteners used in sugar-free or low-cal beverages, which they are encouraging people to drink! Makes no sense to me.

Either way, it’s an interesting article and I’m glad there is some concrete evidence that sugars from processed foods are not good for cholesterol levels. So many people are constantly concerned about their cholesterol levels, yet continue to eat a diet high in processed foods. Maybe this will give them the motivation they need to transition into a more whole foods based diet! And remember that even foods that appear healthy usually have lots of added sugars and are still highly processed. They may advertise the protein or fiber, but always check sugar content!

Have a great weekend!

Source for this post: Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter, July 2010, Volume 28, Number 5

Triglycerides

Triglyceride levels are typically measured at an annual doctor’s appointment, along with blood pressure and cholesterol. However, it seems like people take blood pressure and cholesterol levels more seriously and tend to ignore or be more relaxed about a high triglyceride reading. So, I thought I’d take a few minutes to just explain what triglycerides are, ideal ranges, and what a high reading can mean about your health.

About 95% of the fats inside our bodies are made up of triglycerides, and they are found both in our blood and our tissues. When we eat too many calories (essentially, more than we can burn up each day), triglycerides are stored as fat inside our bodies. Unsaturated fatty acids make triglycerides more fluid, whereas saturated fats are straight and therefore make the triglycerides more rigid and solid. High triglyceride levels are one of the biggest risk factors for heart disease, and since excess triglycerides are stored as body fat, they are directly linked to obesity as well.

The Blood Sugar & Triglyceride Connection

This can be a bit confusing but it's really important, so pay attention!

When we consume glucose in any form from any food, our pancreas releases insulin so we can get that glucose into our cells quickly to be used as energy. This, in turn, inhibits the release of triglycerides (because if we have glucose, we don’t need to use our triglycerides for energy).

However, when blood sugar imbalances are present and insulin resistance is occurring, we may have plenty of glucose in the blood, but no insulin to help get it into our cells to be used for energy. And when we need energy, our bodies respond. If the cells don’t have glucose, they turn to triglycerides. Therefore, our cells will continuously release triglycerides into the blood so we have something to burn as energy. However, if our triglycerides are constantly being used up, our liver is stimulated to produce even more triglycerides, which overloads the blood with them. This creates blood that is overloaded with triglycerides, glucose, and unproductive insulin – all risk factors for heart disease.

In a healthy, balanced body, insulin does its job of grabbing glucose as soon as the meal is eaten, placing it into the cells, and therefore supplying the energy needed to go on with the day. The liver is not stimulated to produce triglycerides, so blood levels stay healthy.

Elevated triglyceride levels can result from a number of different things. A chromium deficiency can increase triglycerides, as can too much vitamin E in the diet. Cirrhosis of the liver, a diet too high in carbs and too low in protein, too much alcohol, hypothyroidism, and poorly controlled diabetes can also lead to high triglycerides. However, most often elevated triglycerides are a result of one of two things: either someone is eating more calories than their body needs for daily energy, or their blood sugar is out of balance and so their body is confused and is producing more triglycerides than it really needs. A combination of these two things is also often the cause of high triglycerides.

Fish oil is one way to lower triglycerides. Supplementing with 2-4 grams of EPA and DHA (combined) daily has successfully lowered triglycerides in many people, along with reducing inflammation, reducing blood clotting, and stabilizing the heart.

Dietary changes can lower triglyceride levels as well. Balancing your blood sugar is a great way to lower triglycerides. I talk about blood sugar often – go HERE to read more about it. Other dietary measures that can help lower triglycerides include reducing calories to only those you need each day; reducing fat from non-whole food sources; increasing omega-3 fatty acids to 4 grams per day; reduction in alcohol intake; and weight loss.

NOTE: A triglyceride level of less than 100 mg/dL is desirable. “Normal” triglyceride levels are less than 150 mg/dL, borderline high is 150-199 mg/dL, and high is anything over 200 mg/dL.