Since when did sourdough bread contain added sugar?
I only ask because I happened to look at the label of a sourdough bloomer by Tesco and found it contained 2g of sugar. At 2% this was higher than the fat or salt content. In the nutritional breakdown it said it contained 1.6g sugars (presumably from carbohydrates). I checked my Waitrose sourdough loaf at home, and it contained no added sugar. Sourdough bread is reckoned to be good for diabetics because it has less blood glucose impact than both white and whole wheat bread, a result of lactic acid produced by bacteria used to ferment the dough.
Even if I stand accused of misreading the label, my point is it is confusing. Given the variables on commercial versions of this most vital foodstuff, it highlights the importance of being vigilant. We do need carbohydrates, which include both complex and simple sugars, for our bodies to break down and convert to energy. It is the added sugars in foods and drinks we need to watch out for: consuming sugar in large quantities is linked to soaring rates of obesity and Type II diabetes.
But stopping to read labels is a hassle, and too many of us do not bother: last week figures were released that showed a third of adults in England have pre-diabetes (up from 12% in 2003), putting them in the high-risk category for Type II diabetes and placing the country on a par with America. The latest figures for Type II diabetes in Scotland show more than 228,000 people, or one in 25 of the population, have been diagnosed with the condition, and an estimated 20,000 remain undiagnosed. (This figure has steadily increased from about 100,000 in 2002 and now accounts for 10% of all NHS expenditure, or more than £1 billion a year.) Inevitably, medics describe it as one of the most significant health challenges facing us. This week at the Royal Highland Show the food and rural affairs secretary Richard Lochhead said: "Our nation has one of the poorest diet-related health records in the world with obesity alone, if unchecked, set to cost Scotland £3 billion by 2030. Consumption of fruit and vegetables among the poorest 20% of Scots has fallen by a fifth since the recession."
The World Health Organisation used to recommend that added sugars make up no more than 10 per cent of our calorie intake, but recently acknowledged five per cent would be more beneficial. But how can that be feasible when young children are being given massive doses of sugar on a daily basis, and developing a toxic taste for it in adulthood?
A friend, blogger Ciara MacLaverty, recently posted an article recording her alarm at the high sugar content of the food and drinks served at children's parties. Children get party invitations every other weekend, and she acknowledges that at this young age they should have lots of fun. However, she wonders: "Can we just find a way to do it without involving about eight or 10 of those egg cups full of sugar? Ten times an adult's daily amount, before the sweet-filled party bags?" She points out that just about every childhood celebration is based around sugar: Easter, Hallowe'en, Christmas, birthdays. They come home in an almost hyperactive state after stuffing down as many sweets and cakes as they can, washed down with sugary juice. Worse, she is made to feel like a party-pooper for being the mum who does not allow her children so much sugar. With peer pressure like that, she wonders how the campaign group Action on Sugar, supported by 21 expert advisers in the UK and America, would respond.
Action On Sugar is working to reach a consensus with the food industry, and is pushing the World Health Organisation to actively recommend sugar intake does not contribute to more than 5% of total energy intake per day. At the moment, we consume about three times that much. This is because of the huge amounts of hidden added sugars in most processed foods: soups, yoghurts, ready meals, sugary drinks, fruit juices and smoothies to name a few. We continue to splatter tomato ketchup on burgers and chips like there is no tomorrow, even though it has been well documented it can contain up to 23.7g sugar per 100g (the Food Standards Agency defines high-sugar content as being 10g per 100g).
Interestingly, a key aspect of both the Diabetes Action Plan and Action On Sugar is that people living with diabetes take a leading role in their healthcare. Fat chance of that now, when we have the possibility of a daily pill that would leech excess blood sugar from the body just like magic. It's called Canagliflozin and has been recommended for use on the NHS to treat adults with Type II diabetes. Professor Miles Fisher, a consultant physician at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, said that gaining access to such treatments is "important in helping us to better manage this deadly epidemic".
Given how much the tide is going against it, I see why the NHS wants to resort to such a quick fix. On the other hand, it is depressing to think it means the battle to persuade the public to take responsibility for itself - and read food labels - is being lost.
After all, if even sourdough bread contains added sugar, what hope do we have?
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