The Hidden Story of Big Sugar

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Dr. Mercola
October 02 2007

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The Hidden Story of Big Sugar

Other than gold, no single substance has had a bigger hand in shaping the history of the western hemisphere than sugar. These videos explore the dark history and modern power of the world‘s reigning sugar cartels.

Using dramatic reenactments, they reveal how sugar was at the heart of slavery in the West Indies in the 18th century, and continues to be at the heart of a present-day epidemic: consumers who are slaves to a sugar-based diet.

(Watch this video: 44:29)

(Watch this video: 44:28)

Dr. Mercola's Comments:

I thought it would be great to juxtapose the stevia article in this issue with the amazing story of big sugar. If you aren’t familiar with the story I would strongly encourage you to watch the videos. You will see the incredible human brutality that occurred as a result of the early sugar trade, and in some parts of the world similar injustices are occurring.

So if you have kids, watch this video with them and give them a great history lesson.

Halloween is without question the biggest event of the year for the sugar industry. They sell more treats during this season than nearly all others combined. So you will be barraged with sugar-filled candy advertisements, perhaps more so than at any other time of year. Even toddlers, it seems, are clamoring for their share of sweet treats, and this is not by happenstance.

The sugar industry is a shrewd, savvy, well-oiled machine that will hook your children from the youngest ages if you allow it, and has already hooked the majority of the U.S. population.

These two videos are a fascinating introduction into the incredible power of the sugar industry, and they’re filmed in a dramatic way that makes them very interesting to watch.

You all know that the tobacco industry has been pushing its addictive cigarettes on the world’s population for decades. When you watch these videos, you’ll see the striking similarities between big tobacco and the big sugar industry, which is now echoing many of big tobacco’s defense strategies.

Namely, they are denying any connection between their product and the obesity and diabetes epidemics going on in the industrialized world. They also have access to immense power and give generously to both political parties to ensure that their products are protected.

Yet, sugar is one of the biggest enemies you face in your pursuit of a healthy eating program. It appears in nearly ALL processed foods and drinks -- even things you wouldn’t think would be sweetened, like canned beans, mayonnaise, and pickles -- making it virtually impossible to avoid.

Sugar Can Destroy Your Health

It is a proven fact that sugar increases your insulin and leptin levels and decreases receptor sensitivity for both of these vital hormones. This can lead to:

High blood pressure and high cholesterol
Heart disease
Diabetes
Weight gain
Premature aging

If you read my newsletter regularly, you know that controlling your insulin and leptin levels is one of the most important things you can do to optimize your health and slow the negative effects of aging -- and avoiding sugar is essential to do this.

Sugar has many more negative side effects beyond increasing your insulin levels, and you can read 76 ways sugar can destroy your health now.

One way in which sugar has been linked to the obesity epidemic, for instance, is that when consumed in massive quantities, sugars cause hormonal changes that lead to overeating.

Meanwhile, sugar suppresses your immune system, contributing to allergies, and it is responsible for a host of digestive disorders. It also contributes to depression, and its excess consumption is, in fact, associated with many of the chronic diseases in the United States, including cancer.

The sugar industry, of course, wants to downplay its health risks because there is big money involved.

The average American eats well in excess of 150 pounds of sugar a year, or about 2.5 pounds each week. This is no surprise because the single largest source of calories in the United States is high-fructose corn syrup from sodas.

The sugar industry has had its share of challenges lately, such as a growing artificial sweetener industry that has been stealing more and more attention and market share.

As a result, they’re coming on stronger than ever, touting their “natural” sweet treat as a fine part of your diet. Of course, most people don’t eat just a dab of sugar a week; they eat over 2 pounds, which is not surprising when you consider that sugar is actually more addictive than cocaine.

If you need help ridding yourself of a sugar addiction, then please consider energy psychology tools. The Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) is one of the best ways I know to help kick the sugar habit. It includes a marvelous technique called Turbo Tapping that has helped tens of thousands of people kick the soda habit.

Sugar is Better Than Artificial Sweeteners

Now that I’ve expressed the dangers of sugar, I have something to say that may shock you:

If you HAVE TO have something sweet it is FAR better to choose the natural, real-deal authentic sugar than its synthetic, no-calorie, artificial sweetener counterparts.

Artificial sweeteners are, hands-down, worse for your health than sugar.

And, while it clearly tends to decrease your health, sugar in moderation is likely not going to cause any significant damage. What do I mean by moderation? Well, something on the order of five pounds a year or less.

Another option if you’re looking for a safe, natural sweetener (that also has no calories) is to give the sweet herb stevia a try.

Related Links:

Big Business Ignores The Health Hazards of Sugar

Is the Sugar Lobby Losing its Influence?

Would You Give Your Toddler 17 Teaspoons of Sugar a Day?

Community Comments (13)

Posted On Sep 18, 2007

Could'nt open the videos but interesting headline, one that always did and i guess always would sadden the life outta me.To comment a little on this article, yes in the West Indies in the olden days cultivating sugar cane was done entirely by hand all manual. So to get this done slave labour was the ONLY way they could get it harvested and shipped to the very profitable markets in Europe and the rest of the world. With the abolition of slavery i think back in 1833 (if memory serves me right) the practise continued but with the newly freed slaves called "indentured labourers". An indentured labourer was really another form of slavery except they were paid a very small fee, be it in the form of land or money, in exchange for their labour. The day usually began from somewhere around 4 o'clock in the morning and would end most probably around sunset.
This practise continued with these "free indentured labourers" up until recently when the mechanical harvester was introduced to help out since a lot of the people were getting themselves educated/skilled and moving to other less physical demanding jobs.
This was a sight to see, i mean the entire process from the planting of the sugar cane and to the actual harvesting. It is truly one of the toughest jobs on the planet and i'm not asking anyone i'm telling it as i see and know it..... Why, because i grew up in it and to this day even thinking about it really saddens me to see my parents working like slaves to put food on the table for us, while taking care of 9 kids as well.
My hats are of to them i'm really proud and happy to call them my parents,they are the absolute best in the world.Can anyone find a reason to like Tate & Lyle who was and still is one of the biggest culprit in more recent years to this grossly &distasteful trade,enslaving people to create the most addictive&wasteful substance in the entire planet, sorry i can't

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seg

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KathieJamisonCote

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Posted On Sep 22, 2007

Seg - Bless you for sharing from such an incredible perspective. Your parents must be amazing! To raise 9 children in the face of such daily hardship.......I can't imagine, I have great respect and admiration for them. As parents, they far succeeded what most parents ever have to think about or deal with and they now have children touting them as the "best in the world." What a beautiful tribute to them <3.

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Posted On Sep 18, 2007

Shvia mentioned "I became acutely aware of the negative (weakening), effects of sugar on my body whenever I allowed myself a very rare sugar sweetened desert or drink." EXCELLENT POINT! I'd like to go a bit further with that - I too, have found the very same fact to be true. I start to feel very ill if I have more than just a little organic turbinado organic cane juice or sugar here and there.

However, when your body builds a tolerance for sugar when it's everpresent, the problems don't necessarily show up as an unsettled stomach like it does for you and me. Bodies become numb to the nausea and more severe conditions present themselves - in the forms of ADHD, ADD, Hyperactivity, Headaches, Depression, Irritability, Candida Albicans, Bi-Polar, Clinical Depression, Misbehavior, VA Tech type behavior...IT'S SCARY EVERYONE !

The Sooner You Remove Refined Sugar from your Life - the happier, the healthier and the more "comfortable in your own skin" you become.

If these are possibly words that don't resonate with you yet, I am asking you very kindly to read them again. Our bodies are the most amazing creations but truly "what we ingest into our bodies becomes the very core of each and every cell."

This video was most eye-opening. The entire history of sugar is indecent, immoral and life-taking, humanly and environmentally. I'm sick of our government allowing special interest to maime, kill and destroy lives and property. The future of our species and the future of our home planet depends of citizens taking and accepting responsiblity for the future of what Big Pharma, Big Sugar, Big Factory Farms, Big Oil, Big Food are to destroying.

Fl Crystals - as in crystal meth? No? Certainly as deadly though!

Good Read - William Duffy Sugar Blues .

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KathieJamisonCote

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Russ Bianchi

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Posted On Sep 18, 2007

Also consider for your reading list:

SUGAR SHOCKED by Connie Bennet & Dr. Sinatra, MD

SWEET DECEPTION by Dr. Joseph Mercola

FAT LAD by Greg Critser

All fast reads, and salient in understandable layperson terms.

Uncle Russ

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human freedom

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Posted On Feb 03, 2009

The comments you all made, inregards to refined sugar. Did not want to accept the obious health problems it has on us. The reason? I have and to this day addicted to sweets. Man! talk about the power of sugar has on me!

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Posted On Sep 17, 2007

Probably the best dietary change I ever made in my life (which I began back in 1981), .. was to eliminate the consumption of refined sugar. ... Once I had cleaned up my body and my diet, I became acutely aware of the negative (weakening), effects of sugar on my body whenever I allowed myself a very rare sugar sweetened desert or drink.

From my experience, the most important dietary change for anyone who is dealing with any form of illness can make, .. is to eliminate all intake of sugar and refined carbohydrates (which convert to sugar in the digestive process).

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shiva

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Posted On Sep 18, 2007

Refined Sugar Feeds CANCER!

Refined Sugar Is Unsafe ANY Consumption Level!

There is a reason sugar is WHITE, it's to remind you what color your bleached bones are, post mortem, from an early and painful DEATH.

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Russ Bianchi

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Posted On Sep 18, 2007

Great Videos!

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southcoastgrl

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