Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Tip
Sugar Awareness
Here are some healthy heart tips to ensure you are keeping an eye on your sugar intake. Sugar Recommendations • Consuming too much sugar in your diet can lead to weight gain and becoming overweight or obese.
Tips to reduce sugar intake • Choose products that are labelled ‘no added sugar’ or ‘no sugars’. • Reduce consumption of sweets treats such as cakes, biscuits, and sweets. • Swap out canned fruit in syrup for fresh fruit.
• ‘Free sugars’ are sugars that are added to foods as a flavour enhancement or to act as a preservative (increasing shelflife of products). This is the type of sugars that adults and children in the UK need to cut down on.
• Switch sugary breakfast cereals for unsweetened cereal and add fresh fruit for sweetness.
• The government recommends that free sugars should not make up more than 5% of the energy you get from food and drink each day.
• Cut down on sugar in hot drinks or try adding sweetener instead
This means: AGE
MAXIMUM FREE SUGAR/DAY
4 – 6 years
19g
7 – 10 years
24g
Adults
30g
• Swap sugary drinks for water, sugar-free or diet alternatives. • Limit fruit juices and smoothies to 150ml a day.
