Refined sugar

Refined sugar, from sucrose, does not occur naturally in food but is added in. Refined sugar can be found in confectionary, cakes, biscuits, ice cream, fizzy drinks and alcohol. Too much refined sugar in the diet can cause tooth decay, weight gain and diabetes. Therefore, refined sugar should only constitute a small portion of the diet. A person with a ‘sweet tooth’ is said to be addicted to refined sugar. Refined sugar is described as having ‘empty calories’ as it provides no essential nutrients to the body.