12 Potential Signs You’re Overdoing It on Sugar
Upset stomach, irritability, and sluggishness are all possible warnings you’re consuming too much of the sweet stuff.
Sugar gets a bad rap, but the truth is that it’s a vital source of energy and essential to our survival.
Of course, not all sugars are the same. Fructose found in fruits and vegetables and lactose in dairy-rich foods are natural sugars we don’t have to be as concerned about because these foods also have fiber and calcium, for example.
Added sugars, however, which are often found in processed foods, are those we could do without, and most of us consume too much of them. Added sugars are anything that’s added to food to make it taste sweet, and this includes natural sugars like honey and maple syrup. “Even though they may be more wholesome than table sugar, it’s still contributing more calories but not much in the way of vitamins and minerals,” says Jessica Cording, RD, a health coach in New York City and author of The Little Book of Game Changers.
That can have various health consequences. If you’re not getting enough fruits and vegetables in your diet and not eating balanced meals made up of lean protein, healthy fat, and unrefined carbohydrates, it’s possible that added sugars may be displacing other good-for-you foods. Not only are you likely missing out on vitamins, minerals, and fiber, but all that added sugar could manifest itself in other surprising ways.
So, how do you know if you’re eating too much sugar? Look for the following 12 signs, experts advise.
If you’re consuming a lot of extra calories through added sugars, increased hunger is one of the first signs. “[Sugar] is satisfying to the taste buds, but it doesn’t really satisfy or fill our stomachs,” Keri Stoner-Davis, RDN, who works at Lemond Nutrition in Plano, Texas.
Without protein, fiber, and healthy fats, which most processed snacks and sugary treats lack, the body burns through sugar quickly and ramps up hunger, which can lead to mindless and even compulsive snacking, Cording says.
Yet it’s not only the extra calories that can increase weight.
A healthy gut helps our metabolism regulate blood glucose (blood sugar) and insulin levels and, in part, enables our bodies to use lipids and manage cholesterol. “When you have added sugar, it damages that ecosystem,” says William W. Li, MD, a physician in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and author of Eat to Beat Disease.
Good bacteria decrease and bad bacteria overgrow, leading to dysbiosis (an imbalance between these bacteria) as well as problems with metabolism and the ability to properly process lipids and cholesterol.
What’s more, sugar may damage our fat hormones, including leptin, which inhibits hunger, Li says. “High sugar disrupts metabolism, in part by interfering with leptin,” says Dr. Li. “Eating sugar makes you want to eat more sugar, which makes you more hungry.”
If you’re feeling moody, irritable, or on edge, stress may not be the only reason — it could be a sign that you’re eating too much sugar.
A high-sugar meal or snack without protein and fat quickly spikes your blood sugar, but as your body rushes to process all of it, your energy levels crash, making you feel sluggish and irritable, Cording says.
Also, when there’s low glucose in the bloodstream because your insulin levels have spiked after eating a lot of added sugar, levels of blood glucose in the brain decrease as well. “Our brains are absolutely critically dependent on having a normal level of blood sugar to fuel them,” Li says.
The important thing is to pay attention when you’re feeling off. For example, if you start to feel irritable an hour after you eat a snack or at the same time every day, excess sugar could be to blame. “If you notice that’s happening to you a lot, it’s a good opportunity to take a look at what you’re eating,” Cording says.
Sugar is easily absorbed and digested, so if you’re feeling fatigued, it could be due to the amount of sugar you’re getting in your diet. “Sugar is a very quick energy source, so regardless of how much you eat, in 30 minutes you’re going to be hungry again, low on energy, or looking for energy again,” Stoner-Davis says.
Large swings of blood sugar and insulin can also cause energy levels to plummet and affect your overall energy level, Li says.
If you’ve noticed that foods don’t taste as sweet as they used to, or if you need to add sugar to foods to make them taste good (think: dusting your cereal with brown sugar), it could be that you’re getting too much sugar to begin with.
If you’re trying to make healthier choices, say by switching from flavored yogurt to plain yogurt, the difference will be more noticeable.
“You train your brain to expect a very high level of sweetness, and when you’re used to that, it can be harder to feel satisfied with foods that are less sweet because you’re primed to expect the high sweet levels,” Cording says.
If you’re replacing sugar with artificial sweeteners in your diet, you may also want to give it a second thought. “A lot of these sugar substitutes are so much sweeter than actual sugar so it tricks our brains into expecting this insanely high level of sweetness,” Cording says. This can increase sugar cravings overall.
If you’re craving sweets, you may be addicted to the feel-good effects that sugar has on your brain. Sugar targets the brain’s pleasure center (called the mesocorticolimbic pathway), triggering a rise in the so-called “happy hormone” dopamine, Cording says.
This pathway in the brain plays a significant role in the food choices we make, including affecting cravings for sugar.
The good news is that focusing on small meals and snacks composed of real, whole foods, and eating regularly, can help those cravings improve, Stoner-Davis says.
If you’ve been diagnosed with hypertension (high blood pressure), too much added sugar in your diet could be a contributor.
However, Li notes, a direct cause-and-effect relationship between sugar and hypertension hasn’t been found. However, what scientists do know is that high levels of glucose can damage the lining of our blood vessels, making it easier for lipids like cholesterol to stick to the walls of the blood vessels. “When that happens, you get hardening of the blood vessels. When your blood vessels get hardened, your blood pressure goes up,” Li says.
If you notice pain in your joints, it may not be age alone. Consuming too much sugar can lead to systemic inflammation, which may lead to joint pain, Cording says. That said, there are several potential causes of joint pain, so improving your diet by cutting back on the sweet stuff may not be a magic bullet, Cording says.
Our sleep cycles and the quality of sleep are regulated by the light and the temperature of the room, as well as glycemic control. “For someone who is chronically consuming excessive amounts of added sugar, it can absolutely mess with their sleep cycle and sleep quality,” Cording says.
If you’re having stomach pain, cramping, or diarrhea, there may be many causes to blame, and your doctor can help you get to the bottom of your symptoms. Too much sugar, a known gut irritant, is one of the possible culprits, Cording says.
Plus, for those with underlying health conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn’s disease, or ulcerative colitis, or for those who have had stomach surgery, sugar can also exacerbate gastrointestinal symptoms, Stoner-Davis says.
If high-sugar foods are replacing fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, which offer fiber, constipation can be a problem, too.
Problems with mental clarity, focus and concentration, and memory could be a result of consuming too many added sugars.
Although glucose is the brain’s primary source of fuel, excess amounts can cause hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar levels, and have an inflammatory effect in the brain and a negative impact on cognitive function and mood, Cording says.
The bacteria in our mouths like to feed on simple sugars, so if your dentist is finding more cavities, or if you’ve been diagnosed with gum disease, it could be due in part to too much added sugar, Stoner-Davis says.
Although cutting back on added sugars is a good idea, if you’re going to consume a high-sugar food, swish water around your mouth afterward or eat it with foods like carrots or milk, which protect the teeth and provide a coating, Stoner-Davis says.
Consuming too much added sugar over time can have various health consequences, such as weight gain, sleep problems, digestive issues, brain fog, and cavities, among others. While it’s simply not realistic to avoid all added sugars in your diet, it’s a good idea to read labels, focus on unprocessed whole foods as much as possible, and make healthier food choices.
©2025 sitename.com All rights reserved