8 Eats With More Sugar Than A Twinkie

Sugar In Food: 8 Eats With More Than A Twinkie:

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Sugar In Food: 8 Eats With More Than A Twinkie

The Huffington Post  |  By Sarah Klein Posted: 04/10/2012 7:04 am

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In February, McDonald's oatmeal was "outed" for having more sugar than a Snickers bar, despite being marketed as a "healthier" breakfast option than some of the fast-food chain's more well-known fare.

In 2009, the American Heart Association recommended that women eat or drink no more than 20 grams of sugar a day, and men no more than 36 grams. That means one Snickers bar, at 30 grams of sugar, would be about all the sugar the average man should eat in an entire day. For women, that equivalent to about one Twinkie, which will set you back 18 grams.

Eating much more than that has been linked not only to obesity, but to high blood pressure, and elevated levels of fat and cholesterol in the blood.

You probably wouldn't go around eating more than one Snickers, or even a Snickers every day, but it is still easy to overdo it when it comes to sweets -- and fast, too, considering all the places, like that morning oatmeal, that sugar is hiding. Here are eight foods with more sugar than a Twinkie to watch out for.

Yogurt

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Yogurt is often part of a healthy diet, but it's easy to focus on fat and calcium and forget about checking the sugar content. Yogurt will naturally have about 12 grams of sugar per 6-ounce serving, Keri Glassman, R.D. told "The Early Show", but many people choose artificially-sweetened brands. 

An 8-ounce container of vanilla can run around 31 grams of sugar and a 6-ounce container of fruit-flavored yogurt can set you back 32 grams. Also, keep in mind that different brands make their containers varying sizes, so be sure to read nutrition labels closely.

But there's one stat to steer clear of at all costs: Any yogurt with 30 grams or more -- more than a Snickers bar -- is "pure garbage" Jayne Hurley, a senior nutritionist at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, toldRunner's World.

If you're looking for a lighter option, Greek yogurt naturally has less sugar, thanks to the straining process that gives it that thick consistency.


Flickr photo by Michael Bentley