lately it appears in the media that sugar is added to many foods. For example, there would be 8 or 9 sugar cubes in a liter of milk. Is that true and should it not be stated in the ingredients? Or are they talking about the sugars that are in milk anyway and are they unhealthy?
Answer
No sugar is added to drinking milk. On the other hand, dairy products such as chocolate milk, yoghurt and milk drinks can and usually do. Milk naturally contains sugar. The sugar in milk is lactose. This is a different sugar than the sucrose or saccharose that is in a “lump” of sugar. The lactose content in milk is about 40 g per liter. So yes, there is naturally sugar in milk. But sugar is also present in an orange, a pear, a kiwi, banana, grapes…
Sugars are not unhealthy, they are part of our daily diet, just like proteins, fats, fibres, vitamins and minerals. A diet that should be balanced and provide all nutrients sufficiently, so too much sugar, too much fat or too much protein results in an unhealthy diet.
Answered by
Prof. Mia Eeckhout
food science food technology
http://www.ugent.be
.