Barefoot Running Debate

The Denver Post has been printing some interesting articles on barefoot running…stirring the debate about barefooting…pro and con.

It turns out that the biggest opponent of barefoot running is Mark Plaatjes, the owner of the Boulder Running Company. He makes the argument that running barefoot is not for Americans because “98 percent of the U.S. do not grow up barefoot, walking barefoot” and that “If you do not grow up barefoot, it is a really difficult thing to do.”

Granted, Mr. Plaatjes is correct that many if not most Americans did not grow up barefoot…, but making the case that since they did not, they should not, is not the kind of argument one should make without a lot of evidence backing it up. And that evidence is not there.

My experience tells me that you can regain use of your feet, one thoughtful step at a time. For many, the foot has atrophied and become weak from years of wearing shoe casts. Constantly supporting the foot leads to weakness. Strengthening the foot requires patience and care, but the results are so well worth it. Your foot is an amazing and beautiful piece of magical equipment that you’ve inherited from a long line of successful movement. Self-healing and self-nourishing, your feet get stronger with use…the best shoes you’ll ever own.

Michael Sandler of Boulder is the article’s main barefoot running proponent. Sandler says that “When you are barefoot, you are forced to run the way ancient man ran, which is a soft dance,” and I agree. He further points out that even his upper body is getting stronger from barefooting. I understand this too.

One of the other proponents, Ivo Waerlop, suggests that barefoot running allows muscles to strengthen and work in different ways than they are familiar with while in shoes. Runners experience a more natural stride when they are barefoot, he says, and I agree. Further, he points out that when in training shoes, runners are more likely to land on their heel before rocking through to the toes, and that is not a good thing.

They also quote me in the article thus:

“When you take away the feeling of the impact of your feet hitting the ground, you end up putting much more impact into your body than if you felt it and adjusted your stride,” said Barefoot Ted, perhaps the most well-known barefoot running enthusiast. He lives in Washington and has spread the gospel of barefoot running for five years.

“The more padded the shoe has become, the more impact people are putting into their body,” Barefoot Ted said.

No shoes = bigger smiles

Further in the article, it suggests that we (Sandler and me) are on the extreme side of the barefoot spectrum…, but is that exactly true? We are just showing what is possible and suggesting that barefoot and minimal running be included in the dialogue of mainstream’s understanding of running rather than resorting to scare tactics to make people shy away from being barefoot. We are living proof that it can be done…and that it is joyful.

I suggest you give barefooting a try. Start slow and build slow. Be thoughtful, mindful and gentle. The rewards seem very high, and I have been receiving a lot of emails with amazing success reports.

For the original Denver Post article, click here.

Courtesy of Barefoot Ted

30 good reasons to run & exercise

Running is the simplest, easiest and enjoyable way to get and stay in shape. It contributes to the good functioning of all our organs and helps our body to better deal with fatigue.

Here are your 30 GOOD REASONS TO START OR KEEP RUNNING:

1) IMPROVES YOUR INTELLECT:
The old image “big muscle, empty head” is now being reconsidered. Several studies demonstrate that running facilitates the transfer of oxygen into our lungs and much deeper in our organism which also stimulates our brain faculties. No further comments… 😉

2) INCREASES YOUR BONE CAPACITY:
Our organism is under the constant action of cells which creates and destroys bone substances. The tensions brought to our body while running act as a stimulus to maintain the necessary balance between the process of creation and destruction. The bone density of people running 3 times a week for over 30minutes is 30 to 40% greater than the one from non runners.

3) LONGER LIFE EXPECTANCY:
Doctor Ralph Paffenbarger explains through years of research that the ongoing practice of exercise such as running and walking could increase your life expectancy by 2 long years comparing to others that train only once in a while.

4) DESTROYS DEPRESSION:
During an experiment testing multiple therapeutic methods to better deal with anxiety and depression, the Wisconsin university concluded that the most successful method was “jogging” with a 100% success rate to prevent depression. Running has also been used to fight against insomnia and was proven more effective than medications. A jog in the evening will help your muscles to relax and improve the quality of your sleep.

5) REINFORCES YOUR HEART:
Running changes your cardiovascular behavior leading to a physiological state well know as a big heart that is animated with powerful contraction and that beats slowly. When an effort is occurring, the heart reacts moderately and can maintain itself longer without getting exhausted. After a jog, it can rapidly return to its rest beat. In other words, it beats harder while getting less tired.

6) IMPROVES YOUR LUNGS CAPACITY:
The work from your breathing muscles will gradually benefit from the deceasing number of breathing moves per minute due to a better oxygen absorption into your lungs. The capacity and quality of your breathing will see itself improved after repeated training sessions.

7) IMPROVE YOUR DIGESTION:
Running not only develops your appetite, but also facilitates your aptitude to better absorb the natural benefits and vitamins of ingredients you eat. Constipation is totally unknown to those who run regularly.

8 ) REDUCES WORK ACCIDENTS:
Several studies focusing on labor issues demonstrate that people who practice a sport (in particular running) had less accidents in their work place and had a much lower absenteeism rate and shorter sick leaves comparing to less active labor force.

9) RE-ADJUST YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE:
Running strengthen your blood cells, muscles and skin tissue. This contributes to ease your blood circulation and decrease the resistance in your arteries because the “tube” is larger. If you run on a regular basis, those effects will be permanent.

10) DECREASE CHANCES OF BREAST CANCER:
Statistically, the risk to catch breast cancer is twice as high for inactive women than it is for others who practise a regular sport activity. An interesting study from doctor Rose Frisch also showed the connection between the number of period a woman has and the risk to get breast cancer. According to his research, the more periods you have, the more risk you have. His analysis also established that young women involved in sport activities had their period much later (15 years old) than other teenager (12 years old).

11) REGULATES YOUR VEINS CIRCULATION:
Running forces your leg muscles to contract and relax themselves repeatedly. Together, they form a giant pomp that manages both low and high pressure levels in your veins. The contraction of your muscles compresses your veins pushing your blood toward your heart. When muscles relax, your intramuscular veins will suck in the blood and fulfil themselves with it. The more you train, the more this mechanism will be improved.

12) EQUALISE YOUR BLOOD FAT LEVEL:
Depending on your speed, you can burn about 100 calories per kilometer. However, jogging does not just burn calories whilst you are exercising. Research proves that your body will keep burning up to 15% more calories within the next 48 hours following your cardiovascular work-out. Regular exercise can therefore help you burn more calories both whilst exercising and whilst resting. Provided your diet does not change this increased calorie burn will lead to lower body fat levels.

13) STIMULATE YOUR IMAGINATION:
After a series of test conducted on the sports team of Baylor College of medicine, the conclusion was that:”Just like your body, your mind benefits from a sustained activity”.
48 veterans joggers revealed that not only they were in better shape than their juniors but also that they had a superior intelligence (refer back to point 1), imagination, self control and loyalty than the average population.
Those qualities of Independence and imagination are not given but grow progressively into you proportionally with your practises and training.
Imagination also increases with the distance you cover during your workouts. For example, marathon runners will often have more creative thinking than sprinters.

14) BURNS FAT:
When the loss of weight is only caused by a hypo caloric diet, 50% of the kilos you lose are from the fat you stocked and 50% comes from your muscles (we all lose muscle with age and when not active). This method of losing weight is very difficult to keep up as it will cause fatigue and multiple frustration caused by the diet program itself. On the other hand, it was proven that practising an exercise such as running while conducting a diet with lower calories intake was helping to maintain your muscle mass and burn fat faster (muscle facilitate the burning process of fat). The combination of diet and training activity is the most effective way to burn the love handles and keep a defined body shape.

15) DECREASES CHANCES OF HEART FAILURE:
If your are in good physical condition and run steadily, your risk of having a heart attack will be greatly diminished comparing to someone who is inactive. Additionally, the probability of surviving a first heart attack is 2 or 3 times higher with people who were active prior to the incident. Good to know…

16) GOOD FOR DIABETES:
Analysis showed that practising endurance activities helped the penetration of your glucose and decreased the need for insulin. Most diabetes who train regularly are not insulin dependant as the exercise helps them to burn faster their excess of fat and glucose.

17) IMPROVES THE SHAPE OF YOUR BUTT:
If you are carrying excess fat at the moment and you are running enough to lose fat then you may lose fat of your butt and make it appear smaller. However, if that is the case you will have a leaner, tighter and better toned butt! Running and other aerobic exercise are not very effective at changing the shape of your body (short of losing excess fat) so if you want to build a bigger more shapely but then resistance exercise is best. Squats and lunges are great butt and thigh builders.

18) IMPROVES THE FLUIDITY OF YOUR BLOOD:
Inaction makes your blood thicker and hard to circulate in your body – especially while you are seating and when the seat compresses your thighs and blocks your blood from going efficiently to your heart. Wearing clothes too tight (belt etc…) dangerously contribute to the slow down of this fluid of life. Running regularly will help to improve the fluidity of your blood by destroying all the elements that contribute to the blood clot and platelet formation.

19) HELPS TO BETTER DEAL WITH MENOPAUSE:
Due to all the hormonal changes occurring during this stage of life (dysfunction of organs of your nervous system), women are exposed to a number of malaises and other physical reactions. Experts assert that physical activities facilitate the good function of your nervous system and the mechanism that works around it. A simple jogging program can greatly help the women’s mental which will ease the perturbations occurring during the menopause (both mentally and physically).

20) PROTECTS YOUR SPINE:
Your spine is made of multitude of ligaments, tendons and muscles all of connected to your vertebrates. This architecture allows your spine disks to have a multi directional mobility but remain extremely solid. The dorsal spine fulfills it’s role of “Tree protector of life” (nerves and spinal cord) only if it is being maintained and constantly reinforced by daily activities such as running. Only exercises can maintain the solidity of your of ligament system

21) STIMULATE YOUR MEMORY:
If you have not jogged for a few weeks, getting back into it will be tough. The same goes with an “inactive brain“, your brain cells will fall asleep. Just like the body, your mind also need to function and learn to keep performing.
Our memory is articulated by our neurons which communicate between each other thanks to biochemical substances called neurotransmitter. We have between 30 to 40 billion of them. They do not reproduce themselves. At 60 years old, we will have about 14 billion left. On top of stress, anesthesia and artery problems, the lack of exercises seriously impacts your memory. Since our brain is feeding itself with glucose and oxygen, sedentary people are at risk. Everyone who runs on a regular basis noticed they remembered some totally forgotten events of their life in the middle of their work out. Also, how many of us managed to find a solution to a problem we had been stuck with during our run? Far away from any distraction (phone, meetings, emails), there is only room left for “clear thinking”.

22) IMPROVES THE QUALITY OF YOUR SLEEP:
To fight against insomnia, jogging is one of the least known medecine, however one of the most performing one. A good jogging session in the evening will relax your muscles that tend to be tensed after a long stressful day. Your physical fatigue will be an enjoyable one and your mind will see things much clearer since it removed most of the negative thought that generally prevents you from having a deep quality sleep.

23) HELPS DURING LABOR:
According to an Italian study from the Aquila university, aerobic physical activities practised during pregnancy decreases both the perception of pain and your stress level during the labor work.

24) STOPS SMOKING:
Numerous studies on the risks and benefits of running  showed that not only it has direct positive effects on the cardiovascular system but also hides a lot of other considerable indirect advantages.
For example, some of those effects include the “stop smoking” syndrome. Researchers realized that runners could clearly feel and see the benefits of jogging on their health and because of that, many wished to keep acting towards a healthier life. As a result, 80% of men and 75% of women who used to smoke at the beginning of their practises managed to quit smoking completely shortly after.
Researches found an interesting proportionate connection between the number of miles in run in a week and the probability of stopping smoking completely. Serious runners obviously had higher chances to quit smoking than others who ran only once in a while…

25) SLOWS DOWN THE OSTEO-ARTHRITIS AGING PROCESS
The result of a five year study comparing 498 runners (covering an average of 40km a week for the last 11 years), with 365 non runners demonstrate that jogging and other sport soliciting greatly the articulations does not actually increase the risk of contracting osteo-arthritis problems.
In reality, the activity can even be beneficial and – slow down the aging process of our osteoarthritis system. In reality, researchers observed that runners despite the aging process managed to keep a better functional capacity of their body and less physical impotence comparing to the other group. It was proven that non active individuals had more articulation problems than joggers. Major medical problems were found in large in majority in the non running group, and for those who loved paying a visit to the road, although one third of their injuries were connected to a trauma following a workout, their medical consumption and number of days spent in a medical facility was down by 1/3rd comparing to the other group. Absenteeism at work was also clearly less for those from the athletic group.

26) STIMULATE YOUR DEFENCE MECHANISM:
Studies proved that a training plan adapted to an individual’s possibility will excite the activities of his/her immune system: the number of antibodies increases in response to the antigenic (aggressor) stimulation and your cells will become gradually more responsive.
On the other hand, an excessive training program will deprive you from those responses. Athletes that constantly push themselves to the max will cause their body and immune system system to become weaker and open to infections. As always, it is important to pace yourself and manage well your efforts. Train YES, Overtrain NO.

27) ALSO DEVELOPS YOUR REASONING:
A recent experience revealed that after a four months training program including 3 training sessions a week, mature people were performing better in a series of Mathematics exams and other logical tests comparing to before the research had started.

28) DECREASES COLON AND UTERUS CANCER RISK:

29) STIMULATE YOUR SEXUALITY:
Physically active people, for most of them, are sexually more active than others. The reasons of such phenomenon still remains unclear, however, it is logical to think that an emotional stability and the greater capacity to relax via physical activities may directly benefit sexuality. Just like for other physiologic processes in our body, the healthier we are, the better our blood circulates and the better the rest of our body organs and muscles work efficiently.
Be careful though with overtraining which may lead to an opposite anaphrodisiac effect.
As always, dosage is crucial.

30) DECREASES YOUR INSURANCE COST:
In the US, life insurance cost are cheaper for people who can provide a medical certificate proving their good physical and health condition. A life insurance company even went further by offering systematic discounts to all marathon runners.

Water / food station: Don’t skip a single one

“To run a good marathon, those “water/food” stations are essential from the first kilometers. Don’t wait to be hungry or thirsty, it will be too late”

Whatever your goal is, make sure to stop at each station (even the first one even if you do not feel the need). Slow down or stop for a few seconds to drink a full glass of your preferred drink – especially if it is hot (half a glass will be fine if the weather is cool).
This will take you between 30 and 45 seconds so take advantage of this break to relax your body before you start running again slowly. Don’t worry about trying to catch up the others that may have passed you – you will most likely catch them later down the course when they “hit the wall”.
Drinking and taking efficient breaks allows you to better recover and maintain a more sustained pace (average speed) in between each stations during the race. What may seem to be a few minutes “lost” will actually become a few more minutes “saved”.

Take the weather temperature into consideration:
Temperature affects greatly your performance. An undulating course will be easier to run by 10 degrees than a flat course by over 20 degrees. If you are aiming for a Personal Best (PB), it is always best to pick up carefully your race based on both the location and the season. For example avoid choosing a marathon course in Greece in august that starts from 3pm (do not worry, it does not exist).

For a competitive athlete who runs 42km in around 2h30m, each degree over 15 will add 1extra minute to its final time. The loss of time is obviously more important for an average runner. A hot and humid temperature is a much higher handicap than a hot and dry weather. For those reasons, best to choose marathons around spring or autumn time where the temperature is milder.

If it’s hot, remember to keep your hair wet, it is the best way to reduce the heat. However be careful if the weather is cool and if some parts of the course are shadowed or windy. For some people, the cold can generate strong stomach cramps.
Always avoid dropping water on your shoes. Not only your shoes will be heavier to carry but also it will make it easier for you to get blisters.
Whatever the weather is like you must drink between 1/8th and 1/4th of a liter at each water stops

Don’t skip the first water stop:
The assimilation of the water into your body doesn’t happen instantly – it will take about 30 minutes to be processed in your system. If you start drinking too late, your organism (disturbed by the effort) will have a hard time to properly absurd the drink and accelerate the dehydration of your body. The only aid station you may skip eventually is the last one on the 40km mark because the water you take is not going to be used within the following 2km.

Don’t take salt tablets:
Because it can accelerate the dehydration of your body. Taking salt can make sense for longer races when the weather is hot and the food provided lacks salt – but NOT for a marathon.

Despite doping, nothing can make you run faster than your actual level. However, small mistakes can easily make you lose time (like drinking too much coffee the morning of the race). Caffeine taken with excess is diuretic and makes you lose water when you urinate. Drinking too much coffee will make you urinate clear but your body will not be properly hydrated. Drinking a cup of coffee an hour before the race will be just fine.

How much water?
Physiologists explain that the loss of 5%of your body weight (1.3liter for 65kgs) will decrease your potential by 20%. it is therefore crucial to compensate any loss of water due to sweat with drinking water.
Drinking between 1.5 and 2 liters of water is a minimum during the preparation of your marathon.

The Line Diet – Simple and Effective

WHAT ABOUT “DIET PILLS”?
According to a report from CBS, companies have been selling “skinny” for decades and people have been eating it up. Americans only apparently spend about $35 billion a year on weight-loss products and seem to believe that those magic pills will do the work.

Is this really working? No, on the contrary, several diet drugs over the last decade have been associated with serious heart problems and other health-related issues, and diet pills have even been linked to a number of deaths.

The secret to your health and shape resides in a much simpler formula and will save you a lot of money:
a) DIET,
b) EXERCISE
c) PLANNING and
d) DISCIPLINE.

When the loss of weight is only caused by hypo-caloric diet, 50% of the kilos you lose are from the fat you stocked and the other 50% comes from the muscle mass you lose (we all lose muscle mass with age if we do not remain active). This method of losing weight is very difficult to keep up as it will cause fatigue and frustration caused by the diet program itself. On the other hand, the combination of diet with lower calories intake and a regular training activity is the most effective way to burn the love handles and keep your muscle mass and body shape intact.

THE LINE DIET (From Steve Ward):

Steve Ward is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT. In the 1980s, he described a simple and sure diet technique:

“All that you need for my diet is graph paper, a ruler, and a pencil. The horizontal axis is time, one line per day. The vertical axis is weight in kilos. You plot your current weight on the left side of the paper. You plot your desired weight on a desired date towards the right side, making sure that you’ve left the correct number of lines in between (one per day). You draw a line from the current weight/date to the desired weight/date. Every morning you weigh yourself and plot the result. If the point is below the line, you eat whatever you want all day. If the point is above the line, you eat nothing but broccoli or some other low-calorie food“.

Steve’s diet is probably more effective than most popular diets. The only reason why you will not find it on Amazon as a bestselling diet book author is simply because his concept fits into one simple paragraph and the following graph as illustration.

If you wish to use this diet technique, you can also check the following website to get a few additional ideas: http://www.thelinediet.com/

RUN WITH THE RIGHT HEART FREQUENCY (Marathon Training)

HEART RATE:
It is the number of Heart Beats per Minute; the times per minute that your heart contracts.

MAXIMUM HEART FREQUENCY:
The Maximum Heart Rate (Max HR) is the highest number of times your heart can contract in one minute. The maximum heart rate (%) is the most useful tool to determine the intensity of your training.

YOU CAN CALCULATE YOUR MAX HR WITH THE FOLLOWING FORMULA:
For men: 220 – Your Age
Example: A 35 years old man’s maximum heart rate will be equal to 185

For women: 226 – Your Age
Example: A 45 years old woman’s maximum heart rate will be equal to 181

ENDURANCE:
Slower pace (from 65% to 79% of your maximum heart frequency) used for your warm ups and recovery after longer runs.

ANAEROBIC:
Intermediate pace (from 80% to 88-90% of your maximum heart frequency) used during training sessions lasting about 15 to 30 minutes to build your speed and allow to run longer at a faster pace during a competition.

HARD RESISTANCE:
Intensive pace (95% of your max HR) used during short speed training sessions. Such work outs are destined to improve your lungs capacity to absorb oxygen and recovery process.

RUN WITH THE RIGHT HEART FREQUENCY
	ENDURANCE		ANAEROBIC			HARD/ MAX
	MARATHON		HALF MARATHON			10KM
HBM*	70%	75%	80%	85%	90%	95%	100%
200	140	150	160	170	180	190	200
199	139.3	149.25	159.2	169.15	179.1	189.05	199
198	138.6	148.5	158.4	168.3	178.2	188.1	198
197	137.9	147.75	157.6	167.45	177.3	187.15	197
196	137.2	147	156.8	166.6	176.4	186.2	196
195	136.5	146.25	156	165.75	175.5	185.25	195
194	135.8	145.5	155.2	164.9	174.6	184.3	194
193	135.1	144.75	154.4	164.05	173.7	183.35	193
192	134.4	144	153.6	163.2	172.8	182.4	192
191	133.7	143.25	152.8	162.35	171.9	181.45	191
190	133	142.5	152	161.5	171	180.5	190
189	132.3	141.75	151.2	160.65	170.1	179.55	189
188	131.6	141	150.4	159.8	169.2	178.6	188
187	130.9	140.25	149.6	158.95	168.3	177.65	187
186	130.2	139.5	148.8	158.1	167.4	176.7	186
185	129.5	138.75	148	157.25	166.5	175.75	185
184	128.8	138	147.2	156.4	165.6	174.8	184
183	128.1	137.25	146.4	155.55	164.7	173.85	183
182	127.4	136.5	145.6	154.7	163.8	172.9	182
181	126.7	135.75	144.8	153.85	162.9	171.95	181
180	126	135	144	153	162	171	180
179	125.3	134.25	143.2	152.15	161.1	170.05	179
178	124.6	133.5	142.4	151.3	160.2	169.1	178
177	123.9	132.75	141.6	150.45	159.3	168.15	177
176	123.2	132	140.8	149.6	158.4	167.2	176
175	122.5	131.25	140	148.75	157.5	166.25	175
174	121.8	130.5	139.2	147.9	156.6	165.3	174
173	121.1	129.75	138.4	147.05	155.7	164.35	173
172	120.4	129	137.6	146.2	154.8	163.4	172
171	119.7	128.25	136.8	145.35	153.9	162.45	171
170	119	127.5	136	144.5	153	161.5	170
169	118.3	126.75	135.2	143.65	152.1	160.55	169
168	117.6	126	134.4	142.8	151.2	159.6	168
167	116.9	125.25	133.6	141.95	150.3	158.65	167
166	116.2	124.5	132.8	141.1	149.4	157.7	166
165	115.5	123.75	132	140.25	148.5	156.75	165
164	114.8	123	131.2	139.4	147.6	155.8	164
163	114.1	122.25	130.4	138.55	146.7	154.85	163
162	113.4	121.5	129.6	137.7	145.8	153.9	162
161	112.7	120.75	128.8	136.85	144.9	152.95	161
160	112	120	128	136	144	152	160
159	111.3	119.25	127.2	135.15	143.1	151.05	159
158	110.6	118.5	126.4	134.3	142.2	150.1	158
157	109.9	117.75	125.6	133.45	141.3	149.15	157
156	109.2	117	124.8	132.6	140.4	148.2	156
155	108.5	116.25	124	131.75	139.5	147.25	155
154	107.8	115.5	123.2	130.9	138.6	146.3	154
153	107.1	114.75	122.4	130.05	137.7	145.35	153
152	106.4	114	121.6	129.2	136.8	144.4	152
151	105.7	113.25	120.8	128.35	135.9	143.45	151
150	105	112.5	120	127.5	135	142.5	150
* Heart Beat Per Minute

Things you did not know about “Sugar”:

146 REASONS WHY SUGAR IS RUINING YOUR HEALTH:
By Nancy Appleton, Ph.D.
www.nancyappleton.com

1. Sugar can suppress the immune system.

2. Sugar upsets the mineral relationships in the body.

3. Sugar can cause hyperactivity, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and crankiness in children.

4. Sugar can produce a significant rise in triglycerides.

5. Sugar contributes to the reduction in defense against bacterial infection (infectious diseases).

6. Sugar causes a loss of tissue elasticity and function, the more sugar you eat the more elasticity and function you loose.

7. Sugar reduces high density lipoproteins.

8. Sugar leads to chromium deficiency.

9. Sugar leads to cancer of the ovaries.

10. Sugar can increase fasting levels of glucose.

11. Sugar causes copper deficiency.

12. Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.

13. Sugar can weaken eyesight.

14. Sugar raises the level of a neurotransmitters: dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.

15. Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.

16. Sugar can produce an acidic digestive tract.

17. Sugar can cause a rapid rise of adrenaline levels in children.

18. Sugar malabsorption is frequent in patients with functional bowel disease.

19. Sugar can cause premature aging.

20. Sugar can lead to alcoholism.

21. Sugar can cause tooth decay.

22. Sugar contributes to obesity

23. High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis.

24. Sugar can cause changes frequently found in person with gastric or duodenal ulcers.

25. Sugar can cause arthritis.

26. Sugar can cause asthma.

27. Sugar greatly assists the uncontrolled growth of Candida Albicans (yeast infections).

28. Sugar can cause gallstones.

29. Sugar can cause heart disease.

30. Sugar can cause appendicitis.

31. Sugar can cause multiple sclerosis.

32. Sugar can cause hemorrhoids.

33. Sugar can cause varicose veins.

34. Sugar can elevate glucose and insulin responses in oral contraceptive users.

35. Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.

36. Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.

37. Sugar contributes to saliva acidity.

38. Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.

39. Sugar can lower the amount of Vitamin E (alpha-Tocopherol in the blood.

40. Sugar can decrease growth hormone.

41. Sugar can increase cholesterol.

42. Sugar can increase the systolic blood pressure.

43. Sugar can cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.

44. High sugar intake increases advanced glycation end products (AGEs)(Sugar bound non-enzymatically to protein)

45. Sugar can interfere with the absorption of protein.

46. Sugar causes food allergies.

47. Sugar can contribute to diabetes.

48. Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.

49. Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.

50. Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.

51. Sugar can impair the structure of DNA

52. Sugar can change the structure of protein.

53. Sugar can make our skin age by changing the structure of collagen.

54. Sugar can cause cataracts.

55. Sugar can cause emphysema.

56. Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.

57. Sugar can promote an elevation of low density lipoproteins (LDL).

58. High sugar intake can impair the physiological homeostasis of many systems in the body.

59. Sugar lowers the enzymes ability to function.

60. Sugar intake is higher in people with Parkinson’s disease.

61. Sugar can cause a permanent altering the way the proteins act in the body.

62. Sugar can increase the size of the liver by making the liver cells divide.

63. Sugar can increase the amount of liver fat.

64. Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.

65. Sugar can damage the pancreas.

66. Sugar can increase the body’s fluid retention.

67. Sugar is enemy #1 of the bowel movement.

68. Sugar can cause myopia (nearsightedness).

69. Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.

70. Sugar can make the tendons more brittle.

71. Sugar can cause headaches, including migraine.

72. Sugar plays a role in pancreatic cancer in women.

73. Sugar can adversely affect school children’s grades and cause learning disorders..

74. Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha, and theta brain waves.

75. Sugar can cause depression.

76. Sugar increases the risk of gastric cancer.

77. Sugar and cause dyspepsia (indigestion).

78. Sugar can increase your risk of getting gout.

79. Sugar can increase the levels of glucose in an oral glucose tolerance test over the ingestion of complex carbohydrates.

80. Sugar can increase the insulin responses in humans consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.

81. High refined sugar diet reduces learning capacity.

82. Sugar can cause less effective functioning of two blood proteins, albumin, and lipoproteins, which may reduce the body’s ability to handle fat and cholesterol.

83. Sugar can contribute to Alzheimer’s disease.

84. Sugar can cause platelet adhesiveness.

85. Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance; some hormones become underactive and others become overactive.

86. Sugar can lead to the formation of kidney stones.

87. Sugar can lead to the hypothalamus to become highly sensitive to a large variety of stimuli.

88. Sugar can lead to dizziness.

89. Diets high in sugar can cause free radicals and oxidative stress.

90. High sucrose diets of subjects with peripheral vascular disease significantly increases platelet adhesion.

91. High sugar diet can lead to biliary tract cancer.

92. Sugar feeds cancer.

93. High sugar consumption of pregnant adolescents is associated with a twofold increased risk for delivering a small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infant.

94. High sugar consumption can lead to substantial decrease in gestation duration among adolescents.

95. Sugar slows food’s travel time through the gastrointestinal tract.

96. Sugar increases the concentration of bile acids in stools and bacterial enzymes in the colon. This can modify bile to produce cancer-causing compounds and colon cancer.

97. Sugar increases estradiol (the most potent form of naturally occurring estrogen) in men.

98. Sugar combines and destroys phosphatase, an enzyme, which makes the process of digestion more difficult.

99. Sugar can be a risk factor of gallbladder cancer.

100. Sugar is an addictive substance.

101. Sugar can be intoxicating, similar to alcohol.

102. Sugar can exacerbate PMS.

103. Sugar given to premature babies can affect the amount of carbon dioxide they produce.

104. Decrease in sugar intake can increase emotional stability.

105. The body changes sugar into 2 to 5 times more fat in the bloodstream than it does starch.

106. The rapid absorption of sugar promotes excessive food intake in obese subjects.

107. Sugar can worsen the symptoms of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

108. Sugar adversely affects urinary electrolyte composition.

109. Sugar can slow down the ability of the adrenal glands to function.

110. Sugar has the potential of inducing abnormal metabolic processes in a normal healthy individual and to promote chronic degenerative diseases.

111. I.Vs (intravenous feedings) of sugar water can cut off oxygen to the brain.

112. High sucrose intake could be an important risk factor in lung cancer.

113. Sugar increases the risk of polio.

114. High sugar intake can cause epileptic seizures.

115. Sugar causes high blood pressure in obese people.

116. In Intensive Care Units, limiting sugar saves lives.

117. Sugar may induce cell death.

118. Sugar can increase the amount of food that you eat.

119. In juvenile rehabilitation camps, when children were put on a low sugar diet, there was a 44% drop in antisocial behavior.

120. Sugar can lead to prostrate cancer.

121. Sugar dehydrates newborns.

122. Sugar increases the estradiol in young men.

123. Sugar can cause low birth weight babies.

124. Greater consumption of refined sugar is associated with a worse outcome of schizophrenia

125. Sugar can raise homocysteine levels in the blood stream.

126. Sweet food items increase the risk of breast cancer.

127. Sugar is a risk factor in cancer of the small intestine.

128. Sugar may cause laryngeal cancer.

129. Sugar induces salt and water retention.

130. Sugar may contribute to mild memory loss.

131. As sugar increases in the diet of 10 years olds, there is a linear decrease in the intake of many essential nutrients.

132. Sugar can increase the total amount of food consumed.

133. Exposing a newborn to sugar results in a heightened preference for sucrose relative to water at 6 months and 2 years of age.

134. Sugar causes constipation.

135. Sugar causes varicous veins.

136. Sugar can cause brain decay in prediabetic and diabetic women.

137. Sugar can increase the risk of stomach cancer.

138. Sugar can cause metabolic syndrome.

139. Sugar ingestion by pregnant women increases neural tube defects in embryos.

140. Sugar can be a factor in asthma.

141. The higher the sugar consumption the more chances of getting irritable bowel syndrome.

142. Sugar could affect central reward systems.

143. Sugar can cause cancer of the rectum.

144. Sugar can cause endometrial cancer.

145. Sugar can cause renal (kidney) cell carcinoma.

146. Sugar can cause liver tumors.