My limit to sugar consumption as a healthy lifestyle

Just like every young, growing child in Nigeria, we loved anything sweet and traversed from the Milo cubes to different flavors of nylon-packed drinks. At some points, we got to know of saccharine as a sweetener. But what do little children know or care? We hated sour or bitter and loved sweet and appealing. Unfortunately, growth is imminent, and we are bound to leave behind some behaviors or even, they leave us. Another childhood friend that is very much current in our time is chocolate consumption, which can be found in raw forms of chocolate or as coverings on cakes and the like. Everyone loves it, sweet! But maybe our bodies and even our teeth do not feel too comfortable with sugary substances.

I'm one of the few people with teeth less than the adult (painful and unfortunate), which mostly was as a result of decayed teeth. Personally and medically, our oral hygiene is mostly poor, and I had to seek a dentist to equally put me right. Only a few people change their toothbrushes every three months or even brush twice a day. And very few people let the paste stay beyond a minute or two so as to let the fluoride penetrate in between the gums and teeth; we are often quick to wash them off. And yes, as adults, the ice creams are better taken at nights or after movies, and we care less to brush our teeth before going to bed. All these and many more may have contributed to decayed teeth in adults.

But before I go far, let me call the attention of our dear brothers and sisters that consume at least a bottle of Coke daily. The bottled coke, which can be enjoyed especially chilled, has at least eight cubes of sugar in it. There is the argument that the younger generation who are up and doing can benefit from the calories or energy therein, but truth be told, the body can get overwhelmed with excess sugar, and such is the case of diabetes, where the body is unable to meet up with the processing of the excess sugar or the deficiency in the organ (pancreas) that processes the sugar to glucose.

IMAGE CREDIT IS MINE

My sugar intake has drastically reduced, and it's possible that I have not tasted sugar in its natural forms for some days. I have consciously limited sugar intake, unless I am consuming pap or garri (processed from cassava). Usually when I am taking tea (milk and Milo) either alone as a beverage or in addition to flakes, I do not include sugar, which is already present in the aforementioned. I remember a terrible experience I had while taking too many sugary drinks. The incident was during my internship as a medical doctor, and I barely had the time to cook or source food. I stocked the house with abundant drinks, and I took them religiously every day. On one particular day, I was physically and mentally drained, and after I gulped a bottle of Fanta, barely a few minutes later, I followed suit with a bottle of Sprite. Well, at that point, my hunger was satiated but not with grumbling of my abdomen. I rushed to the restroom only to have greenish and watery stools from my anus. That was the last time I consumed such drinks in that manner. I still take drinks, but occasionally.

As much as sugary substances are enticing, the risk factors and possible complications have cautioned me to limit sugar consumption both in raw forms and as contained in other foods.

Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions.