"Sugar is scary"? Can diabetics still eat sugar?

In the eyes of diabetics, no matter how delicious sugar is, they dare not eat it, because they are afraid of the various harms caused by high blood sugar. Some people may even be afraid of sugar, thinking that their diabetes is caused by eating too much sugar. Not only that, in their minds, if you have diabetes, you can't eat anything containing sugar.

So is this view correct?

According to Yu Kang, associate professor and associate chief physician of the Department of Clinical Nutrition at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, to date, there is insufficient scientific evidence to show that eating too much sugar will lead to diabetes, just as it cannot be assumed that not eating sugar or eating less sugar will not lead to diabetes [1].

We know that diabetes is caused by a relative or absolute lack of insulin secretion, which leads to glucose metabolism disorders in the body. In addition to pancreatic islet dysfunction, genetic factors, mental factors, and endocrine factors can also cause diabetes. For example, diseases of the pancreas, pituitary gland, adrenal gland, thyroid gland, etc. may cause diabetes.

There is no necessary connection between eating sugar and diabetes. Simply linking sugar with diabetes is not scientific and has no scientific basis.

So can diabetics still eat sugar (sucrose or white sugar)?

In the book “Who Says Diabetics Can’t Eat Sugar?” [2], the author mentioned that in the past, it was believed that sucrose has a simpler molecular structure and is digested and absorbed more quickly than starch in grains, so it causes a more significant increase in blood sugar after a meal and is not conducive to blood sugar control in diabetic patients. However, studies in recent years have shown that sucrose does not have such a strong effect in raising blood sugar after a meal. Under the condition of the same carbohydrate content, its effect in raising blood sugar after a meal is even slower than that of some grains.

Based on the above, the "Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes in China (2007)" issued by the Diabetes Branch of the Chinese Medical Association in 2007 clearly stated: Diabetic patients can consume a small amount of table sugar, and the calories provided by sucrose should not exceed 10% of the total calories.

In other words, diabetic patients can eat sugar, but the sugar intake must be controlled, especially methods such as drinking sugar water or adding sugar to meals should be avoided as much as possible.

Of course, if the diabetic patient particularly likes to eat sugar, an article in the 2010 "Diabetes World: Abstracts" [3] pointed out that sweeteners can also be used instead of sugar.

So what are sweeteners? And what qualifies as a sweetener?

Sweeteners are actually a large category of food. Although they taste sweet, they cannot provide energy or basically provide no energy. Natural plants such as monk fruit and stevioside, as well as some chemically synthesized ones such as saccharin and aspartame are all sweeteners.

Although sweeteners can replace sugar, it does not mean that you can take as much sweeteners as you want. Any country, including the Chinese government, uses sweeteners within the scope of the types and amounts allowed by national regulations. Only when consumers control the consumption within the safe range can it be considered safe for them.

So in summary, the view that "diabetics cannot eat sugar" is not correct, and you don't need to give up those unnecessary dietary taboos. Of course, if you are really worried, you can also use a blood glucose meter to test your blood sugar in time after eating sweets.

References:

[1] Zhu Jing. Will eating too much sugar cause diabetes? [J]. Chinese Aging, 2014(8):2.

[2] Luo Yi. Who says diabetics can’t eat sugar? [J]. New World of Diabetes, 2010, 000(007):42.

[3] Ren Jianmin. What kind of sugar is suitable for diabetic patients? Is xylitol OK? [J]. Diabetes World: Abstracts, 2010(1):33-33.