11 Shocking Sources of Added Sugar

If you haven’t heard, the “Nutrition Facts” label is changing: The calorie number is getting bigger so you can’t miss it, and a line is being added to tell how much added sugar is in your food. This change will not only make the label easier to read; it will also make it easier to spot sneaky sources of added sugar.

Why the focus on added sugar? Because too much of it can kill you… literally. In a 2014 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Internal Medicine, consuming 17 to 21 percent of your daily calories from added sugars increased heart disease-related death risk by 38 percent.

The American Heart Association recommends a limit of 100 calories per day of added sugar for women—roughly 24 grams, and 150 calories per day for men—about 36 grams. You know that to stay within these limits, you should probably steer clear of the obvious sweet treats (think candy, cakes, cookies and sodas). But did you know that sugar is added to some not-so-sweet food items as well? That’s right, even if you’re diligent about avoiding sugary snacks and desserts, added sugars could be finding their way into your diet through some unsuspecting meal-time staples.

Take baked beans, for instance. A half-cup serving of a leading baked beans brand’s “original” flavor has more than 10 grams of sugar, says the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). And it’s not likely that you’re eating just half a cup. After beans and water, the label on one popular product lists brown sugar and sugar—meaning this side dish is chock full of the sweet stuff. Kind of surprising, right?

Here at the South Beach Diet, we recommend keeping your intake of added sugar to a minimum. This means reading labels and avoiding hidden sources of sugar that may sneak their way into your healthy, low carb diet. Avoiding these 11 ingredients that are chockfull of the sweet stuff will make a big difference in your weight loss results.

Here are 11 other surprising sources of added sugar to avoid:

Sneaky Sugar Source 1: Barbecue Sauce

Until the Nutrition Facts label is updated, the back of the bottle will just list “sugars,” but even that will shock you when it comes to barbecue sauce: According to the USDA’s nutrient database, just two tablespoons of one leading brand’s sauce has nearly 12 grams of sugar.

The key to finding added sugars is to look at the Ingredients list: Words like high fructose corn syrup, honey, cane sugar, dextrose, maltose, sucrose, molasses, evaporated cane juice, glucose and fruit juice concentrates are code for added sugar. And on most barbecue sauces, the first ingredient—and thus, the ingredient with more weight in the product than any other—is high fructose corn syrup.

Sneaky Sugar Source 2: Spaghetti Sauce

One half-cup of one of the leading jarred pasta sauces contains 10 grams of sugar, according to the USDA. And, in another popular brand, the fourth ingredient listed is simply “sugar”—there’s more of the sweet stuff than there are onions!

The biggest brands now offer a “no sugar added” variety—grab a jar of that and add some flavor with extra black pepper, a sprinkle of dried oregano or some sliced basil leaves on top.

Sneaky Sugar Source 3: Tonic Water

You may not notice because of the gin and the lime, but tonic water is more like tonic soda pop: One 11-ounce bottle can dish out nearly 30 grams of sugar, according to the USDA’s nutrient database. Many popular brands list high fructose corn syrup early on in the Ingredients list, which explains the surge of sugar in these hidden sources. Opt instead for plain water with a squeeze of lemon and lime or seltzer water, which serves up the bubbles without the added sugar.

Sneaky Sugar Source 4: Flavored Applesauce

It’s fruit, right? Only kind of: Those blue- or orange-tinted cups of applesauce that have magically been turned into blueberry- or mango-flavored treats aren’t actually made by magic—they’re made by adding sugar. One popular brand does list mango and peach purees among the ingredients, but only after high fructose corn syrup and plain old sugar. No wonder a serving has 22 grams of sugars.

The “natural” applesauce varieties get their 11 or so grams of sugar from apples—grab a cup of that and stash some cinnamon in your desk drawer. Sprinkle it on top to give the cup of fruit some extra zing without the extra sugar.

Sneaky Sugar Source 5: Dried Fruits

Many dried fruits are covered in sugar or honey both as a preservative and to make them even sweeter—so you keep grabbing them until the bag is gone. Banana chips are a great example: 225 grams of raw banana (equal to about two medium bananas) has 27.5 grams of natural sugar. But a 100-gram serving of banana chips has 35 grams of sugar… and those extra grams came from somewhere besides a banana tree.

But the most egregious adding of sugar to fruit might be in dried cranberries. Cranberries are not sweet, but these bags of cran-raisins are sweet enough to pop as a snack—probably because a quarter cup serving has a whopping 29 grams of sugar. They’re injected with sugar to make those tart berries turn sweet. Have regular—unsweetened—raisins instead.

Sneaky Sugar Source 6: Almond, cashew and other non-dairy milks

These milks seem healthy, and most do have fewer calories than traditional cow’s milk. But they don’t get so sweet and vanilla-flavored just from the almonds: According to the USDA, a one-cup serving of one of the leading brand’s vanilla-flavored almond milk has 15 grams of sugar thanks to the second ingredient listed—cane sugar.

The fix is easy: You can still have the vanilla flavor from the “unsweetened vanilla” varieties—you’ll save all 15 grams of sugar, plus enjoy the milk for nearly 60 fewer calories per cup.

Sneaky Sugar Source 7: Flavored Yogurts

Many of the major yogurt brands are advertising that they now have less sugar—but there’s still plenty inside the sweet, candy colored fruit flavored varieties. One major brand’s blueberry flavor has 18 grams in the tiny little cup, and lists “sugar” before “blueberries” on its Ingredients list!

Mix in your own fruit: Bring a quarter-cup of blueberries and mix it in with plain Greek yogurt. A five-ounce serving of Greek yogurt has more protein than those sugary cups, and just four grams of natural sugar.

Sneaky Sugar Source 8: Granola

Granola might be the unhealthiest “health food” ever created. A holdover from the days of the Food Pyramid—when the government recommended a whopping 12 servings of grains per day—just a half-cup of even the “low fat” varieties can have 14 grams of sugar, according to the USDA. That’s because to make all those clusters of rice, whole wheat and oats stick together, you need sticky stuff—usually molasses, but also corn syrup, sugar and honey.

Do yourself a solid: Skip the sweet stuff and opt for nuts and seeds over these sneaky sources of sugar.

Sneaky Sugar Source 9: Sports Drinks

The label of the leading sports drink reads like this: Water, sugar, dextrose. Since dextrose is a code word for added sugar—it’s a form of glucose—the second and third ingredients on the list are sources of plain old sugar. That’s why if you drink the whole bottle, you’ll down 30 grams of sugar, according to the USDA database.

Sure, you burn some calories when you exercise, but a 20-ounce bottle of sports drink has nearly 160 calories—a little less than you burn on a two-mile run. Wouldn’t you rather refuel later with actual food? Sip some water while you work and save your calories—and sugar—for solid food later.

Sneaky Sugar Source 10: Instant Oatmeal

If you’ve ever tasted an instant oatmeal packet before adding water, you know they’re sources of more sugar than oatmeal. But the total amount may still shock you: The USDA database indicates that one leading brand’s apple cinnamon flavor as contains 12 grams of sugar, and lists “sugar” before “dehydrated apples” on the label.

Sneaky Sugar Source 11: Soda

You’ve heard the phrase “Don’t drink your calories,” but you shouldn’t sip sugar either. A regular, 12-ounce can of soda contains close to 37 grams of sugar. Reach for that 16-ounce bottle, and you’re looking at just under 50 grams of sugar! Skip the soda and opt for water flavored with fruit or sparkling water.

*Nutritional information taken from the USDA nutrient database and individual product sites as of 5/27/2016.