Scientists are finding new evidence that one of the most common sugars, fructose, can be as toxic to the liver as alcohol.
For most people, fructose in its natural state--fruit--is not harmful. The unique feature of fructose is that it is processed in the liver, which has no problem handling the small amount of this sugar that enters the body slowly. Take an apple, for example: it takes a long time to chew it, and the dietary fiber in the apple slows its processing in the intestine.
But today, manufacturers are increasingly adding fructose in a highly concentrated form to foods. They do this by extracting it from corn, beets and sugar cane, in the process losing its original nutrients and fiber. Frequent consumption of large doses of fructose throughout the day, without fiber to slow its absorption, causes our bodies to process so much of this sugar that it is not adapted to. Almost all foods with added sugar have extremely high levels of fructose. Both standard sweeteners (corn syrup, table sugar) and even the trendy ones (like organic cane sugar) are half fructose. Consuming such fructose in large quantities, especially in liquid form and on an empty stomach, we give the liver an excessive load for it. This is dangerous for our health.
Liver damage is a looming public health problem. For a long time, doctors have been concerned about life-threatening diseases of this organ in alcoholics. But since 1980, there has been growing alarm over two new liver diseases, not related to alcohol but to fructose in the form of added sugar and to trans fats:
- Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: excess fatty deposits in the liver;
- non-alcoholic steatohepatitis: fatty liver, inflammation and "steatosis" (essentially scarring of the liver trying to heal its injuries, which gradually cuts off the blood supply to that organ).
About a quarter of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis cases progress to non-alcoholic cirrhosis. And this disease requires a liver transplant, otherwise it can lead to death.
The incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis has been increasing rapidly since 1980. Most people with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis also have type II diabetes.
How do you know if you have liver problems?
A "sugar belly," or excess belly fat in you or your children, should be a cause for concern. If your waistline is larger than your hips, you should get a blood test for triglycerides.
"Sugar belly" occurs when the liver is forced to process more fructose than the body needs for energy. Excess fructose is broken down in the liver and turned into fat globules (triglycerides), some of which are exported into the blood and selectively deposited around the waistline and internal organs. Just as people who drink get a "beer belly," those who abuse fructose get a "sugar belly.
The fat cells around your waistline, send hormonal messages that upset your body's chemical balance. Now scientists are investigating how this hormonal imbalance is implicated in cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer's disease.
Scientific evidence on the effects of fructose on the liver is relatively new, but it is one of the most important areas of research at the world's top universities and medical centers.
If you want to learn more about sugar and reduce it in your own diet, take the three-week Sugar Detox Program
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