To explore the effects of sugar on the body, an Australian man recently decided to eat a sugar-heavy diet for 60 days. Damon Gameau is a filmmaker and TV actor who underwent this extreme and rather sickening diet, and chronicled the experience in the upcoming movie, “That Sugar Film”.
The interesting spin on his experiment is that he followed a strict diet of “healthy” foods with high sugar content.
Halfway through, he was already feeling the effects
Gameau was three weeks into the high sugar diet when he realized he was showing sluggish and moody behaviors. The doctor gave him the surprising diagnosis that he had begun to develop fatty liver disease, which can ultimately lead to liver failure.
In reviewing his food intake, Gameau found he was consuming 40 teaspoons of sugar daily, which, thanks largely to sodas, is only a small amount more than the average teenager. The American Heart Association (AHA) states that 20 teaspoons of sugar are consumed by the average American on a daily basis – and many teenagers consume more.
The AHA’s daily sugar recommendations are nine teaspoons for men and six teaspoons for women, however, many health experts believe that this is too high, and that there are no safe levels of added sugars.
You may be surprised by the sugar in “healthy” foods
Surprisingly, all the sugar in Gameau’s diet came from what are considered by most people to be healthy foods. “All the sugars that I was eating were found in perceived healthy foods, low-fat yogurts, and muesli bars, and cereals, and fruit juices, sports drinks…. these kinds of things that often parents would give their kids thinking they’re doing the right thing,” said Gameau.
As he explains in the film, Gameau suffered both mental and physical effects from his unusual sugar diet. He gained nearly four inches of belly fat, and he also found that his mental processes seemed unstable. No matter how much food he ate, he continued to feel hungry.
Consumers need to be aware
According to Gameau, 80 percent of the processed foods in a typical diet contain sugar. While he feels the findings of his experiment don’t necessarily mean sugar should be completely eliminated, he wants to spread awareness of how much sugar is added to many foods.
Consuming excess sugar has been associated with the development of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) claims is the leading cause of death in the United States.
Sugar has also been linked to many other ill effects, including tooth decay, depression, immune system suppression and certain cancers.
Gameau’s movie, “That Sugar Film” is scheduled for release in Australia in February 2015. There is currently no release date listed for the United States.
-The Alternative Daily
Sources:
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/11/19/man-eats-sugar-heavy-diet-for-60-days-receives-shocking-diagnosis
http://www.inquisitr.com/1623131/man-on-sugar-heavy-diet-gets-stunning-diagnosis-after-60-days
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/that-sugar-film-director-damon-gameua-receives-shocking-diagnosis-after-going-on-healthy-sugar-diet-for-just-60-days-9875791.html
https://www.thealternativedaily.com/4-sugar-secrets-food-industry-keeping
