The importance of controlling sugar intake: Oorenji's challenges

The frenetic lifestyle typical of developed countries has favored the emergence of an environment obesogenic It makes it difficult to follow a healthy diet.

In this context, sugar consumption has skyrocketed in recent years due to the high consumption of ultra-processed products.

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The problem of excessive sugar consumption

Ultra-processed products are characterized by carrying large amounts of sugar, salt, and fat of poor quality, components used by the industry to make their products more palatable and addictive

Frequent and high consumption of these nutrients maintained over time favors the development and appearance of cardiovascular and metabolic complicationssuch as diabetes or hypertension. For this reason, it is advisable to reduce its consumption as much as possible.

To achieve this goal, it is key to take into account two aspects when making the purchase. In the first place, the simplest strategy to avoid consuming ultra-processed products is not to buy them, since

the mere fact of having them in the pantry increases the chances of consuming them.

The second key point is know how to identify those products with added sugar, since the food industry has developed a wide range of marketing strategies to attract our attention and influence the decision to buy that product.

The amount of salt or oil is easy to identify on the label if we look at the list of ingredients. However, identifying whether or not a product has added sugar is a slightly more complicated task, since sugar can be hidden behind numerous names. That is why it is very important to know how to identify it when choosing the products that we take home.

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Different types of sugar to consider

Before proceeding, it is necessary to emphasize that in a product or food we can find different types of sugar: intrinsic sugar, free sugar and added sugar.

• Intrinsic sugar: it is the one that is naturally present in the food or product in question. Example: an orange.
• Free sugar: is that naturally present sugar, but due to the processing that the food has undergone, it has been released from the matrix and is free. Example: an orange juice.
• Added sugar: is that sugar that has been deliberately added to the product with a sweetening or preservative function. Example: orange cookies.

The World Health Organization recommends reducing the consumption of the last two due to their harmful effects on health. Thus, it is more advisable to take food with the least possible processing; for example, always choose the whole fruit instead of the squeezed version (either homemade or bought). And of course, avoid ultra-processed products that usually have large amounts of added sugar.

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Reduce your sugar intake with Oorenji

As we mentioned before, sugar can be hidden under different names: glucose, fructose, dextrose, concentrated fruit juice, corn syrup, sucrose, etc. Oorenji is an interactive app that will motivate you to change your habits with a small 3-day challenge in which you can expand your knowledge about sugar, learn to identify it, and reduce its consumption with its recommendations.

In addition, it will help you plan your fully personalized weekly menu in a simple way, ensuring the nutritional balance and the recommended portions of each food.

You can download the app directly from the official stores android Y from Apple.