9 Signs You Could Be Eating Too Much Sugar (And What to Do About It)

[ad_1] <img width="800" height="534" src="https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/signs-youre-eating-too-much-sugar-1024x683.jpg" class="attachment-large size-large wp-post-image" alt="Signs You’re Eating Too Much Sugar (And What to Do About It) | MyFitnessPal" srcset="https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/signs-youre-eating-too-much-sugar-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/signs-youre-eating-too-much-sugar-300x200.jpg 300w, https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/signs-youre-eating-too-much-sugar-768x512.jpg 768w, https://blog.myfitnesspal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/signs-youre-eating-too-much-sugar.jpg 1416w" /> Sugar makes every little thing style higher. However indicators you’re consuming an excessive amount of sugar embrace feeling sluggish, bloated, or craving extra sweets.

It’s straightforward to overdo it. As a dietitian, I’ve labored with many consumers who didn’t understand how a lot sugar was sneaking into their food regimen—till their vitality ranges, temper, and digestion began struggling.

Should you’ve ever hit a day droop that solely a pastry appears to repair or felt continuously hungry regardless of consuming loads of meals, sugar is likely to be the wrongdoer. Among the best methods to know for certain is to trace your sugar consumption.

Let’s break down the indicators you is likely to be consuming an excessive amount of sugar and what to do about it.

How Dangerous Is Sugar, Actually?

Sugar isn’t inherently unhealthy—our our bodies want some to perform. It’s the added sugars, particularly from sweets and processed meals, that may trigger issues.

“Your physique absorbs these easy sugars shortly, which may increase the chance of weight acquire, diabetes, and different well being points,” says Daisy Mercer, a MyFitnessPal dietitian (1).

Even in case you really feel wonderful now, indicators you’re consuming an excessive amount of sugar can quietly present up in your vitality, digestion, and even your pores and skin over time.

I’m not saying it's good to lower sugar out fully. However staying conscious of how a lot—and the place—the sugar in your food regimen comes from might help you meet your well being objectives.

Added Sugar vs. Sugar in Complete Meals

Not all sugars are the identical. The sugar naturally present in fruits, greens, and dairy comes packaged with fiber that helps gradual digestion and supply vitality.

Alternatively, added sugars—like these in flavored yogurts, baked items, and packaged snacks—lack these diet advantages and might spike blood sugar ranges shortly.

An important sugar to be conscious of is the added sugars present in ultra-processed meals (2). Extremely processed meals are designed to be extraordinarily tasty and simple to eat (2).

For instance, most individuals aren’t more likely to overeat apples, although they comprise loads of pure sugar. However cookies? It’s all too straightforward to achieve for one or two and find yourself consuming a whole sleeve. That’s as a result of apples comprise filling fiber and most cookies don’t.

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9 Indicators You May Be Consuming Too A lot Sugar

Look ahead to these indicators you’re consuming an excessive amount of sugar. Should you spot any, it is likely to be time to take a better take a look at your sugar consumption.

1. Diabetes or pre-diabetes

In case your physician’s flagged your blood sugar—or if diabetes runs in your loved ones—it’s good to take a better take a look at your sugar consumption.

What’s taking place:

Consuming an excessive amount of added sugar over time can result in insulin resistance. That’s the place your cells cease responding correctly to insulin, the hormone that helps management blood sugar (1).

When that occurs, your blood sugar stays increased than it ought to, rising the chance for Sort 2 diabetes. In response to the CDC, over 98 million American adults have prediabetes—and most don’t even comprehend it (3).

What to look at for:

Fixed thirst

Frequent urination

Unexplained fatigue

What to do:

To start with, observe your healthcare supplier’s recommendation. It most likely contains reducing again on added sugars and filling your plate with high-fiber carbs and lean proteins that may assist stabilize blood sugar.

Bonus: utilizing a device just like the MyFitnessPal Meal Planner might help you begin consuming a much less processed food regimen.

Meal planner is right here! Construct a customized meal plan round your calorie and macro objectives immediately. attempt meal planner

2. Coronary heart Illness

Whereas sugar won't be the very first thing that involves thoughts once you consider coronary heart well being, consuming elevated added sugar can enhance danger of diabetes, which will increase danger of coronary heart illness. (1).

What’s taking place:An excessive amount of sugar can harm blood vessels and lift your danger of coronary heart illness by contributing to excessive blood sugar and irritation.

A examine within the journal Circulation discovered that individuals who consumed extra of their day by day energy from added sugar have been extra more likely to die from coronary heart illness than those that stored their consumption below 10% (4).

What to look at for:

Weight-reduction plan excessive in sweetened drinks, pastries, or processed snacks

Historical past of excessive ldl cholesterol or hypertension

What to do:Swap sugary snacks for nutrient-dense meals like greens, complete grains, and lean proteins.

3. Starvation Quickly After Consuming

Should you simply ate however already really feel such as you want a snack, your meal may’ve been too heavy on sugar and light-weight on the stuff that really retains you full—like fiber, protein, and wholesome fats (5).

A sugary breakfast like cereal or a pastry will digest quick, leaving you hungry once more an hour later.

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What’s taking place:

Analysis has discovered that meals excessive in refined carbs and sugars elevated starvation and led to overeating all through the day (6).

Sugar digests shortly and doesn’t set off long-lasting satiety indicators like protein or fiber do. This units off a cycle of consuming and re-eating.

What to look at for:

Starvation shortly after meals

Meals low in protein or fiber

Fixed grazing all through the day

What to do:

Construct balanced meals and snacks with protein, fiber, and fats. Suppose: Greek yogurt with fruit and nuts or eggs with complete grain toast.

Concerning the Consultants

Caroline Thomason, RD, is a dietitian and diabetes educator combining her love of diet with the ability of constructing higher well being straightforward to know. With 12 years within the trade, her work has appeared in additional than 40 publications. She’s additionally a speaker, broadcast spokesperson, and recipe developer.

Daisy Mercer, RD, is a Meals Information Curator at MyFitnessPal. She graduated together with her bachelors of Meals Science and Dietetics from Colorado State College and accomplished her dietetic internship with the VA San Diego Healthcare system.

Melissa Jaeger RD, LD is the Head of Vitamin for MyFitnessPal. Melissa obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Vitamin (DPD) from the School of Saint Benedict and accomplished her dietetic internship by Iowa State College. In Might 2024 she was acknowledged because the Registered Younger Dietitian of the 12 months awarded by the Minnesota Academy of Vitamin and Dietetics.

4. Pores and skin Issues

Sugar won't be the very first thing you blame when your pores and skin flares up, however it may be a sneaky wrongdoer.

Excessive sugar consumption can result in hormonal shifts and irritation, each of that are unhealthy information to your pores and skin.

One examine discovered that individuals who consumed high-sugar diets had considerably extra breakouts than those that stored their blood sugar regular (8).

What’s taking place:

Sugar spikes insulin, which may enhance oil manufacturing and set off irritation—two key elements in breakouts and boring pores and skin (7).

What to look at for:

Frequent breakouts

Boring or infected pores and skin

Pores and skin points after high-sugar meals or weekends

What to do:

In the reduction of on added sugars, particularly from ultra-processed meals and sweetened drinks. Swap in additional antioxidant-rich produce like berries, leafy greens, or candy potatoes.

5. Digestive Points

Sugar can throw your intestine out of whack. A high-sugar food regimen could feed dangerous intestine micro organism and trigger an imbalance, resulting in bloating, gasoline, or constipation (9).

On high of that, sugar alcohols—widespread in “sugar-free” merchandise—can act like laxatives and irritate your digestive tract (10).

What’s taking place:

An excessive amount of sugar disrupts intestine micro organism and might trigger digestive discomfort and even flare-ups of IBS (9, 18).

What to look at for:

Frequent bloating or gasoline

Sensitivity to sugar-free merchandise

Irregular digestion

What to do:

Concentrate on complete meals with fiber—like fruits, veggies, and legumes—and in the reduction of on extra added sugars and synthetic sweeteners like sorbitol and maltitol.

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6. Temper Swings and Irritability

Ever felt hangry after a sugar crash? That rollercoaster of temper and vitality is likely to be your blood sugar speaking. A examine in Scientific Stories linked excessive sugar consumption with nervousness and emotional volatility (11).

What’s taking place:

Sugar causes fast spikes in serotonin and blood sugar, adopted by dramatic crashes—leaving you drained, anxious, and cranky (11).

What to look at for:

Feeling “off” or irritable after consuming sweets

Temper dips an hour or two after sugary meals

Emotional consuming patterns

What to do:

Select advanced carbs and pair them with protein or fats. For instance, go for candy potatoes and grilled rooster or fruit with peanut butter to maintain your temper (and blood sugar) secure.

“Concentrate on fiber-rich carbohydrates for a nutrient-dense vitality supply that helps you're feeling full and energized longer,” presents Melissa Jaeger, RD, LD, Head of Vitamin at MyFitnessPal.

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7. Poor Sleep

Late-night sweets is likely to be messing together with your relaxation. Analysis exhibits that diets excessive in sugar can intrude with melatonin, the hormone that helps regulate your sleep-wake cycle (12).

What’s taking place:

Blood sugar spikes late within the day can wake you up in the course of the evening, disrupting deep, restorative sleep (12)(13).

What to look at for:

Hassle falling asleep or staying asleep

Stressed nights after dessert-heavy dinners

Feeling groggy within the morning

What to do:

Keep away from sugary snacks late within the night. As a substitute, attempt a bedtime snack with magnesium and protein like a banana with almond butter or Greek yogurt. (You should utilize MyFitnessPal’s Sleep Characteristic to match meals consumption with the way you slept.)

8. Weight Achieve

Consuming an excessive amount of sugar—particularly added sugars—can result in weight acquire as a result of sugar doesn’t preserve you full the way in which protein and wholesome fat do.

What’s taking place:

Sugary meals can spike your blood sugar and depart you hungry once more quickly after consuming, resulting in overeating (14). Research additionally present that high-sugar diets are linked to elevated fats storage, particularly across the stomach (14).

What to look at for:

Issue reducing weight or unexplained weight acquire

Meals or snacks excessive in refined carbs and low in fiber or protein

Fixed starvation, even after consuming

What to do:Shift your focus to meals that embrace extra fiber, protein, and wholesome fat to assist regulate starvation and help wholesome weight administration. Be conscious of added sugar hiding in on a regular basis meals like:

Salad dressings

Granola bars

Low-fat yogurt

Pasta sauce

Instantaneous oatmeal

Non-dairy milks

Chopping again on these and selecting extra complete, unprocessed meals might help you're feeling fuller for longer—and handle your weight extra successfully.

9. Power Crashes

In case your vitality looks like a rollercoaster—up after breakfast, crashing by lunch—sugar is likely to be the explanation. Meals excessive in refined sugars trigger fast spikes adopted by steep crashes, resulting in sluggishness (15).

What’s taking place:

Sugar shortly boosts blood sugar, however the ensuing crash can depart you feeling fatigued and foggy.

What to look at for:

Afternoon slumps

Want for caffeine or sugar to get by the day

Fatigue shortly after consuming

What to do:

For regular vitality, give attention to snacks and meals that mix fiber, protein, and wholesome fat—like apple slices with almond butter or eggs with avocado toast.

The right way to Minimize Again on Sugar

Listed here are 5 easy methods I like to recommend as a dietitian that will help you scale back your sugar consumption with out feeling disadvantaged:

Swap sugary drinks for glowing water, natural tea, or espresso with only a splash of milk.

Select complete meals like nuts, cheese, or fruit as a substitute of packaged snacks with added sugars.

Learn meals labels and search for added sugars in addition to hidden sugars below names like maltose, dextrose, and cane syrup.

Don’t go chilly turkey—scale back sugar progressively to keep away from cravings.

Use MyFitnessPal to trace sugar consumption and set sensible objectives.

Regularly Requested Questions

How a lot sugar is an excessive amount of? The American Coronary heart Affiliation recommends not more than 25 grams (6 teaspoons) of added sugar per day for girls and 36 grams (9 teaspoons) for males (17).

What are hidden sources of sugar? Sugar could be present in salad dressings, bread, flavored yogurts, and even pasta sauce. Checking diet labels might help you see these hidden sugars.

How lengthy does it take to detox from sugar? Your physique doesn’t must detox from sugar. Nonetheless, you might get sugar cravings in case you lower sugar out too shortly. As a substitute, give attention to including in additional steadiness within the type of excessive fiber and excessive protein meals first.

Are pure sugars (like in fruit) unhealthy? No. The sugar in fruit comes with fiber and vitamins that assist your physique decelerate the absorption. Concentrate on decreasing added sugars, not reducing out complete meals.

The Backside Line

Should you’re seeing indicators you’re consuming an excessive amount of sugar like continuously craving sugar, feeling sluggish, or battling temper swings, it might be time to chop again.

Decreasing sugar doesn’t imply deprivation — small modifications, like swapping sugary drinks for higher alternate options and prioritizing complete meals, could make an enormous distinction.

You can even use MyFitnessPal to trace your sugar consumption, experiment with new habits, and take management of your well being—with out sacrificing your manner of consuming.