Dear Doctor,

Let’s begin with a little sugar trivia:

• A 20 ounce bottle of Coke contains 17 teaspoons of sugar.
• In colonial times, the average amount of sugar consumed was four pounds per year.
•   Cardiovascular disease and cancer were virtually unknown.
• Currently, the average person eats 155 pounds of sugar per year, which is equivalent
• to over half a cup per day.  The average teen boy eats twice as much sugar than any
• other age or gender group.  That puts him at over a cup of sugar a day.
• Most children get on average 20 % of their daily calories from sugar—that means
• 29 teaspoons of refined sugar per day!
• Only one child in five consumes the recommended MINIMUM of five fruits and
• vegetables a day, while the top 10 sources of carbohydrates in children’s diets include
•  soft drinks, cakes, cookies, jam, fruit drinks, and fruit snacks.
• Children who eat lots of sugar consume significantly lower amounts of protein,
•  vitamin E, B-vitamins, iron, and zinc.

Most people are addicted to sugar, and along with grain addiction, the

over-consumptionof added sugars—whether they are high-fructose corn syrup,

fructose, glucose, dextrose, or the sucrose from sugarcane and sugar beets—

is one of the major health problems facing our nation today.  Although many

people do not consider food a drug, sugar, white flour, and refined carbohydrates

are akin to drugs in that they are addictive substances with effects on brain

neurotransmitters similar to those from alcohol.  The taste for sweets leads to

 a craving for more sugar, just the way other drugs create cravings. Trying to go

 “cold turkey” from a diet with a heavy emphasis on these foods can result in

 withdrawal symptoms including strong cravings, fatigue, mood swings, irritability,

 depression, headaches, and dizziness.  The withdrawal symptoms are usually

 gone in about 10 days, but can range from three days to three weeks. Sugar and

 refined carbohydrates are also intoxicating, causing the brain to increase its

 production of the chemicals dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.  This process

 leads to a high, similar to that from alcohol and other drugs.

            Coffee-and-doughnut-type breakfasts—low in protein and high in caffeine and

       sugary carbohydrates—commonly cause fatigue, mental confusion, nervousness,

       and indecisiveness.  These symptoms may be followed by the kind of hunger usually

       associated with a craving for something sweet or starchy. Stimulants/depressants

       such as caffeine and alcohol also cause this syndrome.  Hypoglycemia is caused

       and exacerbated by irregular meals and high sugar, low protein diets.  The symptoms

       can be so severe that they are mistaken for panic attacks or even more serious mental

       illnesses including depression and anxiety.

            Sugar depletes the body of calcium, phosphorus, chromium, vitamin E, magnesium,

       B vitamins and potassium.  Vitamins B1, B2, and B6 are needed to detoxify and metabolize

       sugar; our bodies particularly need vitamin B1 to metabolize sugar.  Sugar also increases

       the magnesium and calcium excretion in our urine and decreases the overall absorption

       from our food (which predisposes to osteoporosis). 

       Just two teaspoons of sugar causes the calcium level to rise in the bloodstream while the

 phosphorus

 level drops, forcing all the other minerals in the body to go out of balance as well.  Sugar increases the

oss of potassium because it causes the urine to become alkaline.  Excess sugar also contributes to

amino acid deficiencies because sugar and amino acids compete for absorption in the intestines. 

 Specifically, the influx of the amino acids tryptophan and phenylalanine are inhibited by sugars.  Sugar

also decreases the body’s white blood cell count, thereby suppressing immune function inviting disease

 and lowering resistance to colds, flu, and other infections.

            It is no secret that dental diseases such as periodontal (gum) disease and cavities are directly

 related to refined sugars.  If you consume three sugar snacks per day, dental destruction exceeds dental

and skeletal formation for up to six hours per day.  A Tufts University School of Dentistry study reported

that the diet of a group of indigenous Brazilians consisted of two staples—fish and potatoes—but no sugar. 

 Not one permanent molar cavity was found in anyone under age 20.  By 1962 this same group of people

was consuming about one pound of sugar weekly per person.  They were found to have fifty percent of their

 molars decayed.  The greatest nutritionist of the 20^th century, Dr. Weston Price, studied indigenous

cultures throughout the world; he noted that when refined sugars were added to the diet, the pelvis and jaws

 of subsequent generations narrowed and the teeth became crowded and malformed.  For more information,

read Nutrition and Physical Degeneration by Weston A. Price, DDS or visit www.westonaprice.org.

Learning disabilities and behavior problems are also associated with sugar intake due to allergy,

 yeast overgrowth, or low blood sugar reactions.  Sugar can affect any area of the body, especially

 the brain, causing learning and behavior problems.

The digestive tract is often referred to as the “Root of the Tree” because our entire body is impacted

 by the health of the intestines and liver.  Excesses of refined sugars, particularly in combination

 with common antibiotic use, contribute to dysbiosis, an abnormal ecology, favoring unfriendly

 bacteria and fungal overgrowth.  This imbalance is the source of an entire array of symptomatology,

 including fatigue, depression, dermatitis, and fibromyalgia.  A correlation has been found between

 refined sugar and Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, IBS, and constipation.  There are also many

 skin pathologies that are the result of excess sugar intake.

 Elevated blood sugar levels cause increased liver cell division and may lead to liver enlargement and

 excess fat deposition there.  The heart and cardiovascular system are also vulnerable to sugar—

 excess sugar in the bloodstream stimulates the generation of free radicals; in blood vessels, free radical

 damage causes an accumulation of plaque that can lead to blocked arteries and cardiovascular disease.

 Increased refined carbohydrate intake also elevates insulin levels which lead to inflammation and

 atherosclerosis/   arteriosclerosis.  High sugar intake is correlated with elevated triglyceride and LDL levels. 

 Evidence also links high sugar intake to increased evidence of breast, ovarian, prostate, stomach,

 and colorectal cancer.  Many tumors are obligate glucose metabolizers, meaning that they need

 sugar to survive.

 Type II diabetes and obesity are caused and exacerbated by over consumption of refined carbohydrates.

 As sugar is stored in the form of fat tissue, resistance to insulin is exaggerated, and as fat cells

 manufacture additional estrogen, greater insulin resistance develops.  Overweight people commonly

 find they can eat less and less and still gain weight.  Also post-prandial (after meal) sugar cravings

 may be a result of low blood sugar, due to an insulin bolus, in response to the previous high-carbohydrate

 meal.  Watch out for “low-fat” foods, which have added sugar (and often more calories) to make up for the

 lavor missing when the fat is removed.

 Sugar has also been cited as a contributing factor to premature aging (by increasing free radicals and

 advanced glycation end-products), reduced ability to build muscle, increased kidney size, asthma,

 ear infections, canker sores, cystic fibrosis, arthritis, multiple sclerosis, gallstones, and gout.

Yellowstone Naturopathic Clinic
720 N. 30th St.
Billings, MT 59101
PHONE 406·259·5096/FAX 406·248·5655

ync@180com.net

Dispensary
406·254·9682

dispensary@yncnaturally.com