Say 'No' to Added Sugar

Excerpt from Granola Brea, Spotlight on a Health-nut, Book #2 of the Granola Brea Series,

by Suzanne Rightley, coming to Amazon Summer ‘22.

In the following excerpt... Brea learns that a reporter, from The Daily News, is attending her school's pre-summer break assembly... to read an article, that she wrote, for the popular Kids' Section, Health Matters by Granola Brea...

"So…, without further delay… and if my camera crew is ready…, I’d be honoured to read this article by our very own…, Granola Brea...

We have a problem. It’s called sugar. Cake, cookies, candy, and – I’m very sorry to say – even ice cream, are among the many foods causing us to be sick.

Many people are now calling the effects of ‘added sugar’ a global epidemic, and for good reason. There has been a marked increase in metabolic diseases.

Once upon a time, these illnesses were referred to as chronic. And when people hear the word chronic, they think old-people problems.

Today, we know better. Metabolic Diseases can affect everyone. Even kids have some of these health problems.

It’s complicated for sure, but we can understand metabolic problems because we know about our metabolism: we eat, sleep, run, drink, (go to the bathroom), and of course breathe.

It doesn’t matter how old we are – metabolism is part of our life.

So…, it’s important.

Some of these Metabolic Diseases include Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, Dementia, and Cardiovascular Disease.

The complete list is staggering, and I’m not trying to scare you – well, maybe a little.

Here’s the good news:

It’s not an impossible problem to solve.

But it will need some commitment on your part.

1. Education: Without knowledge, kids are not easily motivated to make changes. Education means awareness and awareness leads to action. Hey, that’s why we go to school. To learn stuff…, so we’ll know how to do more stuff. Thankfully, there’s lots of free information on Metabolic Diseases thanks to Libraries, and the Internet.

2. Study: Like any new information, it takes our brains some time and effort to understand. (Think multiplication tables.) The science is there, and it is powerful, because we can use the information for better health. In other words, the changes mean we can have more energy to do the things we like, such as sports, swimming, dancing, and whatever.

3. Get to Know the Bad Guys: Sugar, vegetable oils, and processed foods are at the top of the list. These guys are potentially toxic to the human body. Question: Do you really think there are veggies in that vegetable oil?

4. Ask for Better Labelling: Added sugar should be clearly stated, vegetable oils should have warning signs. If the package said: This is a Processed Food Substitute, Eat at your own Risk. Don’t you think that would help?

5. Create New Habits: Read labels, study nutrition and health articles regularly, help your mom to plan meals, make grocery lists, avoid impulse buying, and avoid fast-foods. Hey, learn to cook! Eat at home!

6. Exercise Regularly: Become more active and make yourself a regular fitness program.

7. Remember, the effort you put in today – your body will thank you for, tomorrow.

In conclusion: It’s recommended that children should consume less than 25 grams of ‘added sugar’/day. (Now this is when all those multiplication and division drills come in handy) There are 4grams of sugar/teaspoon of sugar.

Granola Brea, Spotlight on a Health-nut, by Suzanne Rightley, availableummer '22, on Amazon.