Easter sweets. “A day is not a day” or is there a real danger in eating a packet of almonds or a large egg at once?

We are about to celebrate Easter, one of the festivities that is associated with some traditions at the table, such as roast lamb or goat, folar with boiled eggs, or even sweet almonds and chocolate eggs. Anyone who passes by a supermarket cannot help but notice the wide variety of sweets available, real temptations for those with a sweet tooth and even for those who just like to try one or the other.

It is a time conducive to overeating, with special emphasis on sugar consumption. The National Health Service (SNS) website says that “inadequate eating habits are the risk factor that most contributes to the total years of healthy life lost by the Portuguese population (19%) and one of the determinants of chronic disease, which represents more than 85% of the disease burden in the Portuguese health system”.

People say that “a day is not a day”… but is eating a whole chocolate egg or a whole packet of almonds really a health risk?

The amount of sugar in Easter sweets

The World Health Organization recommends that you should not eat more than 50 g of sugar per day. Given this value, it is important to note that, on average, 100 g of milk chocolate has around 52 g of sugar, while the same amount of dark chocolate has 48 g of sugar and white chocolate has 59 g. Therefore, a 150 g milk chocolate egg has 72 g of sugar, which means eating one of these sweets in a single day exceeds the recommended amount.

As for almonds, there is a varied offer, from the simplest to roasted, stuffed and those covered with chocolate. A 100 g package of traditional colored almonds covered in sugar has around 80 g of sugar, while the same amount of roasted almonds has a little more than 60 g.

A 100 g package of sugar coated almonds with chocolate filling has around 61 g of sugar, while those covered in milk chocolate have 41 g of sugar, those covered in dark chocolate have 39 g and those covered in white chocolate have 50 g.

The effect of excess on the body

Saying that excess sugar is bad for your health is nothing new to anyone. In the long term, this consumption can increase the risk of obesity and the development of diabetes, and in the short term there are also associated problems as the body becomes unbalanced.

In the brain, excess sugar alters the reward system, as glucose provides a feeling of well-being. When this organ receives a higher dose of sugar, it feels the need to have even more, like an addiction, whether there is hunger or not. In the long term, this situation can trigger memory problems, with the development of fat increasing the risk of stroke.

In the heart, excessive sugar consumption promotes the formation of fatty plaques in the coronary arteries that can form clots and affect blood pressure.

When faced with a spike in blood sugar, the kidneys are overloaded to eliminate it from the body. In the long term, this organ may fail.

In the short term, the intestinal flora can become unbalanced, which leads to abdominal pain, diarrhea, flatulence and even difficulty in absorbing vitamins into the body.

The more sugar the pancreas receives, the more insulin it releases, but there is a limit to the function of this organ. When this organ works too much, it can fail, no longer capturing glucose and producing insulin, which leads to the development of diabetes. The liver receives excess sugar that is transformed into fat, which can result in inflammation, fibrosis and even cirrhosis.

The skin, the body’s largest organ, also reacts to excess sugar, becoming more oily, which can lead to unwanted breakouts, seborrheic dermatitis and facial peeling. In teeth, sugar is one of the main responsible for the development of cavities.

Moderation is the key word in this matter. It will be difficult to avoid one sweet or another, but with the information above it may be easier to make choices and understand how much you can eat. Eating a chocolate egg in just one day is not at all recommended, but breaking it and enjoying a piece throughout the week can be a good balance between maintaining health and satisfying your desire.