If we didn’t already have a sugar tsunami in America, food companies have doubled the amount of sugar they add to some of their most popular products. This includes soups and cereals.

Some of the biggest increases in sugar have been in breakfast cereals, and even whole-grain bread has become sweeter. It now routinely contains nearly a teaspoonful of sugar in every three slices. In 1978 Kellogg’s Special K had under 2 teaspoons of sugar per ½ cup, but this has now nearly doubled to 3½ teaspoons—a similar level to vanilla ice-cream.

Ian Tokelove, a spokesman for the Food Commission, which campaigns for healthier foods, said: “Most of us are eating too much sugar, but we are being swamped with it in our food. We naturally have a sweet tooth and manufacturers have been quick to use that to try to increase sales in a crowded marketplace. It’s cheap to use and it’s been one of the first things to be added when companies want to make a product a bit different.”

Food companies maintain that sugar forms a useful part of a balanced diet, but an article in the British Medical Journal warned: “Sugar is as dangerous as tobacco and, in terms of world health, far more important.”

The first step when heading off the sugar tsunami is to read the nutrition label. You might not be surprised to hear that most processed foods are high in sugar and salt. The best foods for your family are whole foods. The next step is to purchase nuts, seeds, fruit, and veggies. Guess what the kids will have for a snack? The whole foods you purchased!

Pictured: Luke-Xavier’s mom is heading off the sugar tsunami by being prepared.
She’s reading food labels and purchasing whole foods.

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