Sugar is important to the human body. It uses sugar as an energy source.
But many people eat too much sugar per day, and they don’t eat the sugar that is naturally in fruits and vegetables, but the sugar that is in soft drinks and processed foods.
But how much is too much sugar? How much should you eat per day? And what food and drinks should I consume less of because there is too much added sugar that is not good for my body?
There are two types of sugar, total sugars and added sugars.
Total sugars, as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDR) explains, are the sugars that are naturally present in foods and beverages, such as sugar in milk and fruits.
Added sugars are sugars that are added during the processing of food in industries. The sugar is found in syrup and honey, or concentrated fruit and vegetable juices, among other things.
Sugar is added to every processed food, including breads, dairy-based foods, nut butters, salad dressings and sauces. The sugar is added to impart sweetness, but also to extend shelf life and adjust attributes like texture, color, and browning capability of food (FDR).
There aren’t any guidelines for how much of the total sugar should be consumed in a day, however, the government has recommendations for added sugars. They should not make up more than five percent of the calories you consume each day. For children aged from seven to ten, it shouldn’t be more than twenty-four grams of sugar per day, which is equivalent to six teaspoons. For children over the age of ten, and for adults it shouldn’t be more than thirty grams, which is seven teaspoons of sugar per day, according to the National Health System (NHS).
Most of the time, though, US-citizens consume on average about seventeen teaspoons of sugar every day, more than two to three times more than the daily recommendation. This adds up, as the American Heart Association explains, to around sixty pounds of added sugar annually, or in other words, six 10-pound bowling balls of sugar each year.
Often, there is an alarmingly large amount of sugar in American food and drinks compared to food and drinks in Europe, even if it’s the exact same brand with the same product.
While sprite in the UK, for example, contains twenty-two grams of sugar, which is equal to approximately five teaspoons, sprite in the United States contains forty-four grams of sugar, so twice as much sugar as the sprite in the UK.
US Dr. Pepper uses thirty-six grams of sugar, while Germany’s Dr. Pepper only contains twenty-two grams.
But it’s not just sweetened soda, as an article from Medium explains, but many other packaged foods that are sold in the USA contain up to twice as much sugar as the same product in European countries.
One reason for these contrasts between food and beverages are the different food laws between Europe and the UK, and the US.
Many European countries, as well as the United Kingdom, either have laws that limit sugar in food and beverages, or issue taxes on them. Unlike the consumer taxes in US cities like New York and Oatland, where consumers have to pay taxes on food and beverages that contain a lot of added sugars, the UK sugar tax is assessed on beverage makers, so the companies themselves are charged instead of the consumers. There are similar taxes in the EU as well, including Ireland and Finland (Medium).
This is a big problem. Consuming too much added sugar can contribute to health problems such as weight gaining, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart diseases, says an article from the CDC US Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Sugar is also one of the main causes of tooth decay (NHS).
One way to eat healthier and to consume less sugar is by looking on the Nutrition Facts Labels, where all added sugars are listed, as the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) states. Then choose the food with the lowest amount of added sugars.
Drinking water is the best, says the American Heart Association, but if you want to drink something other than water, there are a lot of unsweetened iced teas and other unsweetened beverages that still have flavors that are better than sugary drinks.
Another important thing that many Americans don’t include in their daily diet is eating enough fruits and vegetables, since those contain total sugars, which is a natural source of energy for the body. Fruit and vegetable juices and smoothies, however, do not count, since they are processed beverages and contain more sugar.
It is hard to eat the right amount of sugar in a country that includes sugar in nearly everything, but with the right techniques and an open eye on fact labels, there is a way to eat a healthy diet with just the right amount of sugar.
Works Cited
“Added Sugars on the Nutrition Facts Label.” FDA, 4 March 2026, https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/added-sugars-nutrition-facts-label. Accessed 26 March 2026.
“Added sugar: Where is it hiding?” Harvard Health, 9 November 2019, https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/added-sugar-where-is-it-hiding. Accessed 26 March 2026.
Casil, Amy Sterling. “US Foods Often Pack More Sugar Than UK and EU Counterparts.” Medium, https://medium.com/wise-well/us-foods-often-pack-more-sugar-than-uk-and-eu-counterparts-9daaa959b33a. Accessed 16 January 2024.
“Get the Facts: Added Sugars | Nutrition.” CDC, 5 January 2024, https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/php/data-research/added-sugars.html. Accessed 26 March 2026.
“How Much Sugar Is Too Much?” American Heart Association, 23 September 2024, https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/sugar/how-much-sugar-is-too-much#:~:text=Sugar%2Dsweetened%20beverages%20%E2%80%93%2024%20%25,or%20100%20calories)%20per%20day. Accessed 23 September 2024.
“Spotting Hidden Sugars in Everyday Foods | Diabetes.” CDC, 5 February 2026, https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/healthy-eating/spotting-hidden-sugars-in-everyday-foods.html. Accessed 26 March 2026.
“Sugar: the facts.” NHS, https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/food-types/how-does-sugar-in-our-diet-affect-our-health/. Accessed 26 March 2026.
“Tips for Cutting Down on Sugar.” American Heart Association, 31 July 2024, https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/sugar/tips-for-cutting-down-on-sugar. Accessed 26 March 2026.
Wood, Kelly. “Does the body need sugar? Role in the body and how much to consume.” Medical News Today, 29 March 2021, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/does-your-body-need-sugar#what-is-sugar. Accessed 26 March 2026.
