Q: How much sugar a day is a safe amount and are all sugars equal?
A: The new World Health Organisation guidelines are actually concerned about added sugar – now recommending just 5-6 teaspoons a day. A single teaspoon of sugar is basically 4g, so you can see how easy it is to reach that amount.
Food packaging doesn’t make it easy to determine how much refined sugar is in something, so it’s tricky for the consumer to calculate how much they’re eating. Make sure you check the ingredient list and look out for sugar in all its different ‘ose’ guises. An investigation a few years back actually found some cereals contained as much sugar as a doughnut, so it really is worth paying attention to the different brands we buy.