How Much Sugar Can I Eat in a Day?

diet

eieu5683 - 2025년 01월 25일

How much sugar can I eat in a day without it affecting my health? I’m answering your top questions on sugar and health in my expert guide and top 10 low sugar recipes.

Sugar, sugar everywhere! You can find loads of added sugars in many foods, such as cakes, cookies, candy, ice cream, sodas, and energy drinks. But there can also be a lot of added sugars hiding in foods you’d least expect, such as yogurts, pasta sauce, ketchup, nutrition bars, muffins, and fruit drinks. According to the American Heart Association, adults and young adults in the U.S. consume about 17 teaspoons of added sugar every day on average, which is more than 2 to 3 times the recommended daily allowance for men and women. respectively. This adds up to around 60 pounds of added sugar consumed each year! So just how harmful is all of this sugar in your diet, and what should you do about trimming sugar in your diet? Read on as I answer your top questions on the safety of sugar in your diet.

*Added sugars can be prominent in frozen desserts, such as ice creams.*

Question: How much sugar can I eat per day?

Sharon’s Answer:

That question has been answered by a number of health organizations. Firstly, the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans has been stressing how important it is to cut down on added sugars, setting limits to no more than 50 grams per day for the average person eating a 2000 calories per day. In other words, less than 10% of your total calories in added sugar, which is 200 calories for the average person, or about 50 grams or 12.5 teaspoons of sugar per day. That means people who don’t need to consume that many calories—especially young children—need to cut back even more!

Actually, the American Heart Association has been warning us about consuming too much sugar for some time, as too much in the diet increases the risk for cardiovascular events. And more research in the past few years has confirmed that too much sugar is linked with obesity and the development of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. They set their sugar recommendations even lower: Men should consume no more than 9 teaspoons (36 grams or 150 calories) of added sugar per day, and women should consume no more than 6 teaspoons (25 grams or 100 calories) per day. It may sound like a lot of sugar you are allowed in a day, but added sugars are coming from more than the sugar bowl in your kitchen. You can reach your daily limit with just one can of soda (about 39 g of sugar, almost 10 teaspoons), not to mention the sugar added to so many common foods in your pantry that you might not be aware of. How much sugar can I eat per day if I want to lose weight? Follow these same guidelines for weight loss, too.

*Look beyond “total sugars” on the food labels, which include natural sugars in foods. Instead, check out “added sugars” on labels.*

Question: What counts as added sugar?

Sharon’s Answer:

Keep in mind that when we talk about trimming sugars in your diet, you don’t have to worry about the natural sugars found in foods, such as vegetables and fruits—it’s the “added sugars” we are worried about. The grams of total sugar on a food label include both natural and added sugars, but fortunately the latest FDA rules require food labels to list “added sugars” separately on the label (see above). You can also discover added sugars in ingredients lists on food labels. Keep in mind that ingredients are listed in order by weight, so the closest they come to the beginning of the list means the higher the amount of added sugars in the product.

Many Names for Sugar

There are lots of names for added sugars in food products, such as the following you may spy on ingredients lists:

Agave nectar
Anhydrous dextrose
Brown sugar
Cane sugar
Coconut palm sugar
Corn syrup
Corn syrup solids
Crystal dextrose
Dextrose
Evaporated cane juice
Fructose sweetener
Fruit juice concentrates
Glucose
High fructose corn syrup
Honey
Invert sugar
Lactose
Liquid fructose
Malt syrup
Maltose
Maple syrup
Molasses
Pancake syrup
Raw sugar
Sucrose
White sugar

*No need to worry about the natural sugars found in fruits, such as in this easy recipe for Pear Sauce.*

Question: Do I have to worry about the sugars found in foods, like fruits?

Sharon’s Answer:

When it comes to trimming sugar in your diet, you need not worry about those sugars found naturally in foods, such as fruits and even vegetables. In fact, you’re better off choosing fruits as your naturally sweet treat to help cut back on sugary desserts, like cookies, bars, candy, and ice cream. By selecting a serving of fruit at each meal or snack you can help reduce those added sugars in your diet! These naturally sweet desserts, fresh from nature, come with fiber and phytochemicals, which increases the nutrient density of your meals, and lowers the impact of their natural sugars on your body.

*Much of our sugar is coming from sweet drinks. Try swapping those out for home-made sugar-free drinks, such as this recipe for Iced Green Tea with Lemon and Cucumbers.*

Question: Where is most of the sugar in the diet coming from?

Sharon’s Answer:

Added sugars can be high in obviously sweet foods, like ice cream (even vegan ice cream!), cookies, bars, cakes, pies, candy, and sodas. And they can be hiding in less obvious foods, too, including yogurt (even plant-based yogurt!), coffee drinks, iced teas, fruit drinks, sports drinks, smoothies, pasta sauce, muffins, and condiments.

Studies show this is where most of the sugar in coming from in our diets:

Sugar-sweetened beverages – 24 %
- Soft drinks – 16%
- Fruit drinks – 5%
- Sport/energy drinks – 2%
- Other sources – 1 %
Desserts and sweet snacks – 19%
- Cookies and brownies – 6%
- Ice cream and frozen dairy desserts – 5%
- Cakes and pies – 4%
- Doughnuts, sweet rolls and pastries – 3%
- Other sources -1%
Other sources 19%
Coffee/tea – 11%
Candy – 9%
Sandwiches – 7%
Breakfast cereals and bars – 7%
Higher fat milk and sweetened yogurt – 4%

*Turn to fruits to add natural sweetness to recipes, such as in this recipe for Vegan Date Shake.*

Question: How can I trim sugar in my diet?

Sharon’s Answer:

Trim added sugars in your diet by being more mindful of how much is in products. So pick up your favorite food product, turn over the package, and read the food label. While “total sugars” on food labels include natural sugars founds in foods like fruits and vegetables, “added sugars” include only those sugars added to the food—these are the sugars that you need to avoid. If you see 5% DV or less it is a low source of added sugar; 20% DV or more is a high source of added sugars. You can also check out the ingredients list and search for added sugars, which have many names (see Many Names for Sugar), keeping in mind that ingredients are listed in descending order by weight. You can also cut back on the use of added sugars—white sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, honey—in foods like cereal and coffee and baked goods such as cookies, bars, and cakes. Often, you can trim added sugars in baked recipes by up to one-half without noticing a significant difference. Turn to fruits—bananas, applesauce, dates, raisins—to add more naturally sweet flavor to your baked goods, too.

*This recipe for Dark Chocolate Rose Brownies with Pomegranates has only a modest amount of added sugar because pomegranates provide sweetness.*

Question: Do I need to remove all sugar in my diet for good health?

Sharon’s Answer:

There is no need to eliminate 100% of sugars in your healthy diet plan. Your eating style should be sustainable over the long haul. That means birthday parties, family dinners, and picnics that bring joy to your life. Your diet does not have to be perfectly void of all sweets and sugars every day of the year! One key tip is to save your added sugars budget for where they really count—a piece of dark chocolate or a small homemade cookie for dessert—instead of using them up where you get low impact, such as in pasta sauces and condiments. So read labels of food products to root out those added sugars. Do plan for treats in moderation! Beyond fruit for dessert, you can get creative in the kitchen by cooking up low-added sugar desserts, such as Rustic Peach Tart, Banana Rice Pudding, and Pomegranate Brownies. The secret of many of these low sugar recipes is to let natural fruit create the foundation of the dessert—with low added sugars necessary.