Most people in the U.S. eat much more sugar than the American Heart Association's recommendation. The association suggests that you should not have more than 100 calories from added sugar if you are a woman and no more than 150 if you are a man, claims the Mayo Clinic website. These guidelines are talking about sugar that is added to products -- not the kind naturally found in food. The Mayo Clinic website explains that too much sugar can lead to a number of health problems, including putting on too much weight, developing too many triglycerides in your blood, decaying of your teeth and a lack of nutrients if you eat sugar instead of healthier options.
Step 1
Reduce the amount of soda and other sweetened-beverages you drink. The American Diabetes Association reports that "sugar-sweetened drinks are the greatest contributor of added sugar in the U.S. diet." Sweetened drinks are associated with gaining weight and developing diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease. The association recommends drinking water and other healthier drinks instead.
Step 2
Choose healthier foods for sugary ones, such as fruit or yogurt for sugary baked goods, plain cereal instead of sugar-coated varieties and low-sugar versions of products, including jam and syrup, says the Mayo Clinic website.
Step 3
Read food labels, recommends the Mayo Clinic website. It advises that sugar is hidden in many products. This resource notes that if sugar is toward the top of the ingredient list, the product contains a lot of sugar. The sugar content is also on the nutrition facts label.
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