natural childbirth

Well, lets talk about how bad for you sugar is and don't try to tell me it is natural! In this country we consume so much sugar daily! I know, I use to be a pop addict drinking on the average 3 to 6 sodas a day. I loved my pepsi! Now I struggle with problems in my personal health that I can trace back to soda. Oh I know that the pop was not the only cause of my weight and diabetes, yes having PSOS is a major cause too, and doctors who refused to listen to me when I was 30 and not having periods...yes, other issues contributed too. But consuming that much sugar on a daily basis is not healthy.

The following is from the web site http://www.mercola.com/article/sugar/dangers_of_sugar.htm
and I suggest that you sign up for their free newsletters and begin to make a change in your life!
Go ahead and check out their web site for the full article.

Basically the article list the following problems with consuming too much sugar: (I have listed all that apply to problems that can effect your pregnancy-there are many more listed on the site)

1. Sugar can suppress your immune system and impair your defenses against infectious disease.^1,2
   

2. Sugar upsets the mineral relationships in your body: causes chromium and copper deficiencies and interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium. ^3,4,5,6
   

3. Sugar can produce a significant rise in total cholesterol, triglycerides and bad cholesterol and a decrease in good cholesterol.^9,10,11,12
   

4. Sugar causes a loss of tissue elasticity and function.¹³
   

5. Sugar feeds cancer cells and has been connected with the development of cancer of the breast, ovaries, prostate, rectum, pancreas, biliary tract, lung, gallbladder and stomach.^{14,15,16,17,18,19,20}
   

6. Sugar can increase fasting levels of glucose and can cause reactive hypoglycemia.^21,22
   

7. Sugar can weaken eyesight.²³
   

8. Sugar can cause many problems with the gastrointestinal tract including: an acidic digestive tract, indigestion, malabsorption in patients with functional bowel disease, increased risk of Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis.^{24,25,26,27,28}
   

9. Sugar can cause your saliva to become acidic, tooth decay, and periodontal disease.^31,32,33
   

10. Sugar contributes to obesity.³⁴
    

11. Sugar greatly assists the uncontrolled growth of Candida Albicans (yeast infections)³⁸
    

12. Sugar can cause gallstones.³⁹
    

13. Sugar can cause hemorrhoids.⁴¹

14. Sugar can cause varicose veins.⁴²
    

15. Sugar can elevate glucose and insulin responses in oral contraceptive users.⁴³

16. Sugar can cause a decrease in your insulin sensitivity thereby causing an abnormally high insulin levels and eventually diabetes.^45,46,47
    

17. Sugar can lower your Vitamin E levels.⁴⁸

18. Sugar can increase your systolic blood pressure.⁴⁹
    

19. High sugar intake increases advanced glycation end products (AGEs)(Sugar molecules attaching to and thereby damaging proteins in the body).⁵¹

20. Sugar can interfere with your absorption of protein.⁵²

21. Sugar causes food allergies.⁵³

22. Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.⁵⁴
    

23. Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.⁵⁵

24. Sugar can cause atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease.^56,57

25. Sugar can impair the structure of your DNA.⁵⁸

26. Sugar can change the structure of protein and cause a permanent alteration of the way the proteins act in your body.^59,60

27. Sugar can make your skin age by changing the structure of collagen.⁶¹

28. High sugar intake can impair the physiological homeostasis of many systems in your body.⁶⁵

29. Sugar lowers the ability of enzymes to function.⁶⁶

30. Sugar can increase the size of your liver by making your liver cells divide and it can increase the amount of liver fat.^68,69

31. Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney such as the formation of kidney stones.^70,71

32. Sugar can damage your pancreas.⁷²

33. Sugar can increase your body's fluid retention.⁷³

34. Sugar is enemy #1 of your bowel movement.⁷⁴

35. Sugar can compromise the lining of your capillaries.⁷⁵

36. Sugar can make your tendons more brittle.⁷⁶

37. Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.⁷⁷

38. Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha, and theta brain waves which can alter your mind's ability to think clearly.⁸⁰

39. Sugar can cause depression.⁸¹

40. Sugar can increase your risk of gout.⁸²

41. Sugar can lead to dizziness.⁸⁸

42. Diets high in sugar will increase free radicals and oxidative stress.⁸⁹

43. High sucrose diets of subjects with peripheral vascular disease significantly increases platelet adhesion.⁹⁰

44. High sugar consumption of pregnant adolescents can lead to substantial decrease in gestation duration and is associated with a twofold increased risk for delivering a small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infant.^91,92

45. Sugar is an addictive substance.⁹³

46. Sugar can be intoxicating, similar to alcohol.⁹⁴

47. Sugar given to premature babies can affect the amount of carbon dioxide they produce.⁹⁵

48. Decrease in sugar intake can increase emotional stability.⁹⁶

49. Your body changes sugar into 2 to 5 times more fat in the bloodstream than it does starch.⁹⁷

50. The rapid absorption of sugar promotes excessive food intake in obese subjects.⁹⁸

51. Sugar adversely affects urinary electrolyte composition.¹⁰⁰

52. Sugar can slow down the ability of your adrenal glands to function.¹⁰¹

53. Sugar has the potential of inducing abnormal metabolic processes in a normal healthy individual and to promote chronic degenerative diseases.¹⁰²

54. I.V.s (intravenous feedings) of sugar water can cut off oxygen to your brain.¹⁰³

55. High sugar intake can cause epileptic seizures.¹⁰⁵

56. Sugar causes high blood pressure in obese people.¹⁰⁶

57. Sugar may induce cell death.¹⁰⁸

58. Sugar dehydrates newborns.¹¹⁰

59. Sugar can cause gum disease.¹¹¹