According to the “standard” recommendations of the American Diabetes Association, people should consume about 50-60% of their daily caloric intake as carbohydrates. Except for fiber, which Americans get too little of, all carbohydrates turn directly into sugar (glucose) in the bloodstream. So, in effect, to determine how much sugar you consume, just look at the "Total Carbohydrates" entry on the nutritional label found on most store-bought foods. You can see that many items labeled as "sugar free" really aren't.

Most people consume between 2000 and 2500 calories per day. So if you get 60% of those calories from carbohydrates, whether they contain actual sugar or not, you are putting more than 3/4 pound of sugar into your bloodstream daily.

Is sugar bad for you?
Well, there is no dispute that sugar can promote tooth decay. That’s a given. However, there may be hidden dangers that most people, even many dieticians, may be unaware of.

The standard thinking is that sugar, in and of itself, does not cause such disorders as obesity or diabetes. However, studies have proven that sugar (carbohydrates) does cause increases in insulin levels in the blood. Over a period of years, an increased level of insulin can lead to a condition known as insulin resistance in susceptible people.

Insulin resistance happens when your body cells have been so flooded with insulin for so long, that they lose their sensitivity to it. Insulin is the hormone that allows cells to use glucose for energy. And if cells are resistant to insulin, your body must produce more of it to be effective. This causes the cells to become even more resistant to insulin. Eventually, the cells lose so much sensitivity to insulin that they cannot effectively use glucose, so it starts to accumulate in the blood. This condition is called Type 2 Diabetes. Too much insulin also causes food to be converted into body fat, which leads to obesity. That explains why most Type 2 Diabetics are overweight. In addition, high insulin levels can cause cholesterol deposits in the arteries and high blood pressure. It's notable that obesity is not the cause of high cholesterol and high blood pressure, but is itself another symptom of too much insulin.

What is the solution?
It is never too early to start eating healthy foods. Generally, that is interpreted as meaning to eat a “balanced” diet, containing up to 60% carbohydrates. However, according to many doctors, including Dr. Robert Atkins, author of The New Diet Revolution, carbohydrates should be limited. The best advice is to eat nothing that contains refined sugar or white flour. That may be tough to do, because it means eating no sweets, pastries, breads, or pasta. However, if those items cannot be eliminated from the diet, at least cut down on them as much as possible. When you reach middle age, you will be glad you did. If you are already middle aged, and are beginning to develop the symptoms of too much insulin in the blood, cutting out high-carbohydrate foods will actually help reverse the damage that's already been done.

Probably the two biggest long-term health risks for Americans today are smoking and too much sugar. Both of these risks can be elimiinated by simply avoiding them.