Shut Out Sugar for a Healthy Life

Protect your health

Sugar can be deadly

It increases your risk for diabetes and heart disease and is a major cause of the obesity epidemic killing thousands of Americans each year. Sugar-sweetened drinks are to blame for nearly half (46%) of the added sugar in our diet. Because it stimulates the same area of the brain, sugar can be as addictive as cigarettes or cocaine. Just 1-2 cans of sugary drinks a day can seriously damage your health:

  • 25% greater risk for Type 2 Diabetes;
  • 20% greater chance of heart attack; and
  • 60% greater chance of childhood obesity

The American Heart Association recommends limiting added sugar to no more than 100 calories a day for women and 150 for men.

Did you know?

Sugary-drink calories can add up quickly! According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Sugary drinks are the leading source of added sugars in the American diet. These sweetened liquids include regular soda, fruit drinks, sports drinks, energy drinks, and sweetened waters. The flavored coffees we grab on the way to work and the sweetened tea we make at home also count as sugary drinks. 

The link to losing weight

Did you know that you have to walk 3 miles to burn off calories from just one 20 oz. soda?

Sugary drinks are like liquid candy. They have no nutritional value and can cause weight gain. Shutting out, or reducing your number of sugar-sweetened drinks each day, is an easy way to cut calories for a healthier body.

5 Easy Ways to Shut Out Sugar

  • Start by giving up at least one sugar-sweetened drink a day and avoid super-sized servings
  • Make water your #1 drink of choice
  • Switch to no-calorie drinks to break the sugar habit
  • Eat fresh fruit instead of drinking fruit juices
  • Limit sugary drinks to a special treat

 

If you wait, it may be too late!

You may look and feel fine; however, sugary drinks are associated with high cholesterol and blood pressure, increased risk of heart disease, and spikes in blood sugar, which can lead to diabetes.
 

Community Resources

Eat Right

There are many resources help you eat right to be healthier and to lose weight.  Talk to your physician and visit these websites for more information on eating right.

CDC.gov   
American Academy of Pediatrics
American Diabetes Association 
American Heart Association
Cities Changing Diabetes -- Houston
TXDSHS -- Diabetes Prevention Program
Harris County Public Health
Recipes for Success
Link Between Sugar and Cancer -- AICR
Better Living for Texans

Exercise

Go Healthy Houston
Go Red for Women
Kids out and about
Houston Methodist Fitness Programs
Fly Movement