Enjoying sugar found naturally in foods

Here in Sugar Nation, you down 70 pounds of added sugars each year. These are crammed into and hidden in the foods you think are good for you (flavored oatmeal, many yogurts and fat-free and low-fat salad dressings), fooling you and fueling your addiction to sugar.

We know your body and brain need the sugar and carbs found naturally in foods -- just not so much that it addicts your brain. We have been saying for a long time that you can be younger and healthier by eating no more than 4 grams of added sugars per hour. So while you're on sugar patrol, looking to keep excess sweets out of your diet, here are some tips:

* Enjoy the sugar that's naturally in foods such as fruit, vegetables and 100 percent whole grains.

* Be on nutritional-label alert. If there is an added sugar in the first five ingredients on the label, avoid that product. Generally, what's in parentheses doesn't count in the top five, but if the ingredient has an "-ose" in it, beware. Dextrose, sucrose, glucose and their aliases, molasses, HFCS (high fructose corn syrup or corn sugar), honey, fruit juice concentrate, malt syrup, rice syrup and evaporated cane juice are all signs of sugar-loading.

* And if strangers offer you candy, don't accept. Counter with small portions of nuts, quarter-ounce portions of 70 percent or more dark chocolate and fruit such as apples.