The average adult should consume a relatively modest amount of sugar. According to Healthline, based on the American Heart Association’s guidelines, women should limit their daily sugar consumption to 25 grams and men to 37.5 grams. However, the U.S. Department of Agriculture notes that a cup of dried figs serves up 71.4 grams of sugar. In other words, eating merely a half cup of dried figs would be more than the recommended sugar amount for a woman.
What’s so concerning about eating sugar? For starters, it’s been associated with numerous medical problems. One 2023 article published in Nutrients described sugar concerns rather succinctly: “…findings suggest a negative effect of excessive added sugar consumption on human health and wellbeing.”
How much of a “negative effect” can sugar precipitate? MedicalNewsToday explains that overindulging in sugar can increase your risk of developing a host of physical and mental health issues, including depression, respiratory conditions, cardiovascular disease, some cancers, and gout. As if that weren’t concerning enough, you’re more likely to gain unwanted weight if you load up on sugar.
This doesn’t mean you should ditch your dried fig habit if you want to keep your calcium levels high. It just means you have to get imaginative and selectively incorporate dried figs into your diet.
