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Sugar Shock: The Hidden Sugar in Your Food and 100+ Smart Swaps to Cut Back

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Discover how to identify hidden sugar traps in your food while reducing your sugar intake, losing weight, and improving your overall health

Did you know that you may be consuming the equivalent of 22 teaspoons of added sugar a day? Added sugars are in practically everything you eat, and you probably eat much more of them than you think. In fact, 80 percent of the 600,000 consumer packaged foods sold in the United States contain added sugar. Most of us are eating way too much of the sweet stuff and don't even know it.

Sugar Shock is the ultimate resource you need to break the hold sugar has on you. This easy-to-use guide will help you understand and gain control of the amount of added sugar you consume. It shares the science behind sugar: what it does to you, why your body is wired to crave it, and how to keep track of your intake. Plus, the extensive at-a-glance photo gallery shows hundreds of sugary packaged foods in the market, along with smart swaps for less sugary (but still delicious) options. There are also surefire low-sugar swaps for kids' cereals, snacks, and drinks that even your pickiest eater will love.

Sugar Shock is packed with hundreds of nutritionist-approved sugar-zapping strategies:

- Get Your Sugar Score - Take the Sweet Tooth Quiz and find out if your daily sugar dose is okay or out of whack.
- 7-Day Sugar Tracker - Crack the deceptive code words and measurements that food labels use to fool you, and uncover the truth about your food choices.
- Go Clean & Lean - Wean yourself from added sugars with an easy, painless 7-Day Sugar Step-Down Plan. Go further with a 21-Day Sugar-Detox Meal Plan chock-full of hearty meals and satisfying snacks.
- 50 Shades of Sugar - Discover the 50+ (!!) types of sugar disguised in many of the foods you eat (hint: Just because a sweetener like honey is "natural" doesn't mean it's better).
- Smart Sugar Swaps - Trade up to healthier foods that are just as crave-worthy with the Sugar Shock photo guide to beverages, snacks, breakfast, baked goods, soups, sauces--even cocktails!

With everything you need take back control of your well-being and your waistline, Sugar Shock is your path to sweet victory and a slimmer, healthier you!

272 pages, Paperback

First published September 15, 2020

142 people are currently reading
147 people want to read

About the author

Carol Prager

8 books1 follower

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5 stars
30 (17%)
4 stars
63 (36%)
3 stars
62 (36%)
2 stars
16 (9%)
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
Profile Image for Rama Rao.
836 reviews147 followers
April 20, 2020
The myth of sugar detox program

In 2018, 34.2 million Americans (10.5% of the population) had diabetes according to American Diabetes Association, and 14.3 million of them were over the age of 65. Diabetes is also controllable by following low carbohydrate diet. Eating doesn’t have to be boring, but it is all about finding the right balance that works for you. The A1C test is a common blood test used to diagnose type 1 and type 2 diabetes, this is also referred to as hemoglobin A1C and HbA1c.

The glycemic index, or GI, measures how a carbohydrate-containing food raises blood glucose. Foods are ranked based on how they compare to a reference food — either glucose or white bread. A food with a high GI raises blood glucose (diabetic state), but a food with a medium or low GI produces glucose slowly into the blood stream (non-diabetic state). Examples of carbohydrate-containing foods with a low GI include dried beans, legumes, all non-starchy vegetables, some starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes, most fruits, and many whole grain breads and cereals. In page 22, the author discusses these food types and offers some advice; substituting sugary food with spices would be helpful (page 66).

The sugar detox program of the author includes following 7-Day Sugar Tracker exercise for three weeks that includes recording the type of food consumed, portion consumed, sugar amount in the food consumed, time of eating, and a measure of urge to eat. The author makes helpful suggestions for breakfast, lunch and dinner. One of the downside of the plan is it is focused on non-vegetarian food. There is little room for people interested in vegetarian diet. This is a helpful book if you are seriously considering going through a sugar detox program.
Profile Image for Am Y.
878 reviews38 followers
January 8, 2021
The final part of the book was the most interesting one for me. It offers a brand comparison of various processed foods in terms of how much sugar they contain. We are then told what other brands we can replace the high-sugar ones with. E.g. Instead of Kraft's sweet balsamic dressing which contains 10g of sugar per 2 tbsp, we can use Litehouse's balsamic vinaigrette dressing, which contains only 1g of sugar; and instead of Heinz's tomato ketchup which contains 4g of sugar per 1 tbsp serving, substitute with Primal Kitchen's unsweetened ketchup, which has only 1g of sugar. A whole range of food types, ranging from breads to butters to yoghurts to cereals and many many more, are listed. It was interesting to see which brands were consistently high in sugar, or added sugar even when there was absolutely no need to. Also interesting to see which brands were low-sugar or did not add it at all. I also liked the sugar-substitute ideas, like for instance how to use other condiments or spices instead of sugar to flavour food.
Profile Image for CraftyBirdies.
941 reviews21 followers
November 24, 2020
This book was more a compilation of products and which you should avoid and which you should choose. I think once they went over how much sugar is too much, and how to read a nutrition label, the rest can be determined in the store by looking at ingredients. So the first part of the book is helpful but the rest just compiles nutritional information for sugar and calories.

Additionally, not all of these products they suggest as substitutes are available everywhere or are affordable to everyone. And they do not comment on any other nutritional facet. I know it’s a book about sugar, but there are substitutes offered with no comments on cholesterol, fat, etc. So it teaches me how to eat less sugar but it could be amping up my fat with no comment or caution.

Lastly, I think there should have been much more thorough citations. There are a lot of claims and statements that I want to know where they came from. I find saying “several studies” with no citation or footnote is not a reliable source.
4,408 reviews57 followers
March 20, 2021
3 1/2 stars. It is amazing how much sugar there is in our food. This provides some good suggestions of what to look for and some alternatives.
Profile Image for Hali Davidson.
241 reviews6 followers
January 6, 2024
I'd consider this "nutrition smut."

It's not bad, and I did enjoy reading it and also learned a few things, but there was also misinformation (pushing protein, cautioning moderation for whole grains, and more that I can't remember) as well as a lack of information (particularly on reducing blood sugar spikes through things like berries and ACV) that would have been helpful to the reader.

All things considered, I'd only recommend this book to people eating the Standard American Diet (SAD) who aren't particularly curious about nutrition but do want to eat more healthily. Otherwise, I'd recommend reading How Not To Diet by Dr. Michael Greger for scientific advice on weight loss.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
846 reviews4 followers
December 14, 2020
Good, lots of attractive pics and short blurbs. Not new information, but a few good reminders 😊
Profile Image for Jennifer Ladd.
554 reviews4 followers
December 11, 2025
A small book packed with helpful visual information. Several products shown side by side listing the amount of sugar with alternative swaps. A sample 21 day sugar detox menu includes easy recipes and food you probably already have.
Profile Image for Allison Altepeter.
69 reviews8 followers
January 18, 2021
SAD Diet But Still Informative

Best part of the book: Comparisons of labels, specifically sugar content, of various brands of food. Especially loved knowing 4g sugar = 1 tsp, as that gives quite the visual. Also loved comparing the sugar in a typically "non-sugar" food like bbq sauce to a sugar treat (e.g. 2 T. Sweet Baby Ray's Original = 6 Hershey kisses).

Unfortunately, the authors still conform to standard American diet pyramid, touting whole grain and low fat. Annoying as many dieticians have begun understanding that our pyramid is literally killing us.

Recommend as a reference if you're not convinced of the keto, paleo, primal, low carb healthstyle. Or if you really want a reminder of the insidiousness of sugar in American "food". Otherwise, eh, it's an easy read with great pics and a couple tidbits that you might take with you.
Profile Image for Laura.
558 reviews
August 20, 2024
This book was helpful in motivating me to cut back on added sugar in my diet. I learned that the American Heart Association recommends no more than 6 teaspoons or 24 g of added sugar per day for women. I did not think that the logbook for monitoring sugar would be that helpful, but I also didn’t use it. A large section of the book Has pictures of common processed foods and how much sugar they contain and also some better alternatives. It was informative, but I would not necessarily be likely to pick the alternatives and instead just avoid the whole class of snack, like protein shakes for example.
It was very shocking to me that 70 to 80% of food at the grocery store has added sugar, even things we don’t think of as sweet. I have switched to peanut butter, which will take a little getting used to, but it will be fine.
Profile Image for Broken Lifeboat.
214 reviews9 followers
November 22, 2023
5 stars for this shocking look at the sugar content of processed foods. This fast read includes how to read nutrition labels for sugar (I had no idea manufacturers now have to include added sugars on labels!!!), 7 and 21 day sugar-free meal plans and low/no sugar alternatives to popular products.

I thought I generally made low sugar choices but was shook when I saw some of my favorite 'healthy' foods in this book. I ran to my cupboard to check and yep, way too much added sugar. (How could you, granola??!!!)

A really helpful guide that I'll be re-reading and using to make a new grocery list.
Profile Image for Carrie.
20 reviews1 follower
March 31, 2021
Some people may not like this book. Some people will really like this book. But all can say it provided insight and almost eye-opening conversation, disclosing where sugar is hidden in food.

What you do with that information is up to you. What corporations do with their products being revealed (the good, the bad) is up to them.

What I did with this information was a better understanding of what is “sugar” and use that info to be aware of the choices I was making at the grocery store. Stay healthy is my motto
Profile Image for Patricia Atkinson.
1,052 reviews11 followers
October 6, 2020
love this book it explains all about the hidden sugars in our foods that really helps me with why my sugar readings are so high and how i can avoid it so that im not eatting foods that will harm me and it also has a blank pages where you can write the foods that you eat the only down fall of this book is that alot of the products mentioned are from the united states and we dont have them in canada but it tells you what to look for in reguards to the names of sugars to look for....
Profile Image for Janice Robertson.
595 reviews3 followers
March 28, 2022
This was useful for pointing out all the foods that contain hidden sugar (protein powder!) but not as helpful as I’d hoped because many of the products they recommend as smart swaps in the book can’t be found where I live.
Glad I read it though - makes me more aware of what to look out for. I already knew muffins and bagels were deadly but I didn’t know Panera’s Cinnamon crunch bagel had as much sugar as 15 slices of white bread!!!! Yikes!
Profile Image for Annie.
293 reviews1 follower
June 5, 2022
Not bad for a starting point if you're thinking of lowering your sugar intake but some of the advice is just plain silly. I mean, no one is adding tomatoes to smoothies and if you're craving Oero O's then what's essentially no sugar added Cheerios isn't going to work for you. It might actually make you go crazier on the real stuff when you can get it.
It also needs a quick re-edit. Ex: 1 gram of sugar is not "half" of 13 grams and "you won't fine high fructose corn syrup".
Profile Image for Y T.
269 reviews3 followers
June 15, 2022
Simple to read and understand. The author highlights the risks of a high sugar diet. Through the book, the author shares many of the items which are high in sugar and the low sugar alternatives. What I like was the visuals used, which helps me to easily identify the items discussed.

Most of the items are probably localised to the author‘a home country and might not be available where you live. Nevertheless, gives you an idea what to look out for.
Profile Image for Sharon.
4,152 reviews31 followers
May 1, 2020
This is a well presented book that is full of information. I liked the fact it has a 21 day meal plan to follow. The information about different foods is very informative. The lay-out and comparison of specific foods was also very easy to follow and understand and offered informative choices. A really good book.
Profile Image for Sharen.
1,470 reviews3 followers
March 19, 2021
I found the science portion of the book shallow. I also found the amount of added sugar in food items to be shocking. The author's replacement healthier options did appear to be ones that were readily available and not drastically different in price from the original offender, which I did appreciate.
14 reviews1 follower
September 20, 2020
Excellent!

I've taken Diabetes courses before and the information in this book will have a greater impact on my life. The book provides suggestions to use in your everyday life and encourages the reader to make positive changes.
Profile Image for Kayla Anderson.
1,628 reviews5 followers
June 30, 2021
Some stuff I already knew, but I liked the end, where it offered a lot of lower sugar options for snacks and drinks to swap out. I consume more sugar than I mean/want to, and am looking for ways to cut back, and mostly out of my diet, so this was helpful.
241 reviews
March 28, 2023
Very good. It’s quite and education on what will help everyone be healthier. It all comes down to what we buy off the shelf at the grocery store, and helping our children get healthy and stay healthy.
Profile Image for Viktoria Mirigliano.
163 reviews5 followers
November 3, 2020
For what it is - it’s great and gets the job done. A very simple outline that offers actual alternatives instead of just telling you what not to eat!
1 review
January 12, 2022
Picture perfect

The pictures are everything. It makes it easier for me to associate brands with sugar
Habe the digital but will buy hardcover to gift away to others
Profile Image for Kim Ballance.
50 reviews2 followers
January 4, 2023
I love the visuals of what the sugar content is in some of the healthy stuff we think we are doing!! Powerade = 2 Hostess Cupcakes!
21 reviews
December 13, 2022
Easy to read book with lots of pictures. Very helpful in finding hidden sugars in foods. It is a collection of information you could easily find just by searching the internet, but for a few dollars they have done all the work for you.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews

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