The American Heart Association recommends that women consume
no more than 100 calories (or about six teaspoons) a day of added sugar. Seems doable, right? Except surveys have found that the average American consumes more than three times that amount—22.2 teaspoons of added sugar every day—and we eat a significant amount of it before we're even lucid enough to put in our contact lenses. Healthy-seeming bran flakes and granola can top out at five teaspoons of sugar (milk adds another two), and a packet of instant oatmeal has around two to three teaspoons.
Microchange: If you switch to an
unsweetened breakfast of eggs (over easy with turkey bacon; scrambled with broccoli), you'll eat five to six times less sugar than if you simply drink your coffee black (although you can do that, too). Bonus: The extra protein might make you feel fuller longer, eliminating your craving for a 10 a.m. bear claw.
