By Dave Kraybill, Executive Director, Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation

The notion of cutting sugar from your diet seems extreme. It's not like you eat donuts every day for breakfast or dessert after every meal. You don't even touch candy bars, except for those rare occasions that they call out to you at the convenience store. And you buy sugar-free items when available.

So just where is the excess sugar you should cut from your diet?

Do you eat spaghetti sauce? Canned soup? Do you drink those fancy coffee drinks or regular soda? Do you use salad dressing? Ketchup? Mustard? Do you eat bread or crackers?

Yes? Well, you are consuming added sugar.

In fact, it is nearly impossible to avoid sugar in your diet.

The amount of sugar America eats has soared nearly 30 percent since 1983 and is a major contributor to obesity, osteoporosis, heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Americans consume on average 34 teaspoons of sugar per day, more than triple the USDA recommended daily intake of 10 teaspoons, not including naturally occurring sugars found in fruits and dairy products.

Sugar is a type of carbohydrate and carbohydrates are present in any food that comes from plants: fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes. Carbohydrates are our primary energy source so you cannot eliminate them from your diet, but it is just important to be eating the right kind.

Empty carbohydrates contain little or no fiber, vitamins or minerals — soda, cookies, cakes — foods high in sugar. Healthy carbohydrates are the opposite. They have minerals, vitamins, fiber and antioxidants — fruits, vegetables, milk, yogurt and legumes.

When a food item is labeled "sugar-free" or "no added sugar," it means the product has had no added sugar during processing; however, foods may naturally contain significant amounts of sugar.

Why is sugar so addictive?

When you consume sugar your body increases its production of insulin. This increase can be fast because your body regulates the influx through insulin production. The insulin dispatches the sugar from your system quickly, but in the process your body's overall insulin levels drop drastically.

These low levels of insulin create a sugar craving because that will give your body the quickest relief. So the cycle begins: you eat sugar, your body spikes insulin to compensate, your sugar levels become too low for the amount of insulin in your body, your body creates a sugar craving, you eat sugar.

Figuring out how much sugar you are eating can seem daunting, especially since sugar is disguised under many names. The first thing to do is check your nutrition labels, but know that the sugar grams listed lumps all sugars together.

To determine how much sugar has been added to a product, learn to identify terms listed under the ingredients that mean "added sugar," such as table sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, cane sugar, molasses, beet sugar, Turbinado sugar, corn syrup, sorghum, maple syrup, honey, glucose, sucrose, dextrose, lactose, maltose, fructose, Sorbitol, Xylitol, Mannitol, Maltitol.

By recognizing these sugar names in disguise you can immediately see that sugar has been added to the food item. Then start cutting down slowly. If you put two teaspoons of sugar in your coffee or tea, slowly reduce the amount weekly. Slow and steady reduction is the best way to break the cycle and tame that sweet tooth.

Only eat a dessert after dinner, not lunch. Or only eat dessert at restaurants. Instead of drinking sugary-sweet drinks like soda, make your own iced tea, or better yet drink a refreshing glass of water and add lemon or lime juice for flavor.

Consider purchasing reduced-sugar condiments. One tablespoon of ketchup contains ½ a teaspoon of sugar — that can add up.

Other ideas to reduce your sugar intake:

Try all-fruit spread. It's as sweet as sugar but has no added sugar.

Substitute applesauce or pureed prunes for half the sugar in recipes.

Give up sports bars and drinks.

Choose a breakfast cereal with 8 grams of sugar or less per serving.

Do not skip meals. It drops your blood sugar and thus increases your craving for sugar.

Do not add sugar to recipes. Recipes that call for added sugar usually taste fine without it.

Go for a walk when you crave sweetness, Your preference for sweets declines after exercise.

By consciously eating less sugar you will be delighted with the results. You'll feel better, lose weight and reduce your risk for obesity, diabetes, cancer and heart disease. Now that's sweet.

The Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation's mission is to enhance the health and wellness of area residents, providing education, funding and programs that motivate people to adopt healthy lifestyles.