We hope you are enjoying the greening trees and blossoming flowers now that spring is fully underway. Each month we give you something that we hope will enhance your health and help you stay well. But this month we want to ring an alarm bell. Americans have become addicted to sugar, and it is resulting in an epidemic of excess weight and obesity, as well as an increase in the risk of many associated diseases.
Because sugar addiction does not have the negative social and legal consequences of other addictions, it can remain under the radar for the most part. But take a look around and you’ll find the lure of sugar in more places than you think.
In this issue we are going to tell you what all the extra sugar we consume is doing to us, what consequences it can lead to, why sugar has become omnipresent in our diet, who is responsible, and how we can spot sugar in places where we might not expect. We will also give you tips on what you can do to reduce your consumption of sugar. Frankly, we hope these articles will give you pause!
Too much sugar frequently results in Type 2 diabetes, and research shows that nearly 10 percent of the population is experiencing the reality of dealing with this condition. In this issue, we will tell you about an insurance benefit called Livongo that helps diabetics manage their disease. Livongo was listed as part of Brethren Insurance Services benefits for 2019, but the provider experienced a delay initiating the program. We have been assured that this benefit will be rolled out soon, and we have been in touch with those in our plan who have a diabetes diagnosis, to provide assistance in the interim. We encourage you to contact us if you are having difficulty managing your diabetes supplies during this delay. Please call Jeremiah Thompson at 847-622-3368 for assistance.
Also in this issue, you will find a PDF link that shows just how much sugar is in your favorite drinks. And on the lighter side, we’ve included some sugar-themed jokes and cartoons.
As you click down through this issue, may it open your eyes, make you think, alert you to the dangers of sugar, and spur you to follow healthy eating (and drinking) habits.
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Livongo — a medical insurance benefit
for managing diabetes
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The rising incidence of diabetes is one of the results of a population that is consuming too much sugar. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an estimated 30.3 million people of all ages have diabetes; that’s 9.4 percent of the U.S. population. And the percentage rises with age — 25.2 percent of those 65 or older have diabetes.
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Sounding the sugar alarm!
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It has been said that sugar gives you empty calories, but Dr. Robert Lustig says they are
toxic calories. This pediatrician and research scientist specializes in neuroendocrinology with a focus on childhood obesity and diabetes, and is the author of
Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity, and Disease, in which he takes on the food industry.
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Stop consuming all that sugar!
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Eating or drinking less of the following will reduce your sugar intake.
- Fruit juice — Don’t substitute fruit with fruit juice. Fruit juice in cartons or bottles has had all the fiber squeezed out of it, making its sugars more dangerous.
- Sweetened beverages — Don’t drink sodas, energy drinks, sports drinks and fruit drinks if you want to avoid sugar.
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Spotting sugar on food labels can be tricky. It’s sometimes disguised in unsuspicious names. Here is a list of more than 60 different names for sugar. Put these on your radar:
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How much sugar and calories
are in your favorite drink?
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- What do you call a baker holding a bag of sugar in each hand?
Ambidextrose
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For your long-term care needs
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Brethren Insurance Services offers Long-Term Care Insurance all through the year.
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If you're interested in purchasing coverage, you should know that eligibility for benefits is determined by the inability to meet at least two of these six activities of daily living
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bathing, eating, dressing, toileting, continence, or transferring. Cognitive impairment can also trigger benefits.
It's difficult to think about the fact that a debilitating condition or a disabling injury might leave you unable to care for yourself, or that when you reach your twilight years, the time will come when you will need some extra care. Long-term care insurance makes sure that you will get the care you need. It helps assure that the cost of your custodial care will not eat up your savings. Finally, and this is one of the best things about LTCI, it can help protect your children and other relatives from having to use their resources to care for you.
Brethren Insurance Services offers Long-Term Care Insurance for all members and employees of the Church of the Brethren and their family and friends; and also for employees of Church of the Brethren-affiliated agencies, organizations, colleges, and retirement communities and their families and friends.
If you are interested in obtaining this coverage, contact Brethren Insurance Services at
insurance@cobbt.org
or 800-746-1505 for a free, no-obligation proposal.
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Church of the Brethren Insurance Services provides the following products - dental, vision, basic life and accidental death & dismemberment, supplemental life and AD&D, dependent life and AD&D, long-term disability, short-term disability, accident insurance, and Medicare supplement for eligible Church of the Brethren employees.
Dental, vision, and Medicare supplement coverage may also be available for eligible retired Church of the Brethren employees.
For eligibility information, call Connie Sandman at 800-746-1505, ext. 3366, or contact your human resources representative.
Medical and ancillary plans (named above) may be available to Brethren-affiliated employer groups.
Long-Term Care Insurance is available for all members of the Church of the Brethren, their family and friends, and employees of Church of the Brethren-affiliated agencies, organizations, colleges, and retirement communities.
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A not-for-profit ministry of
Church of the Brethren Benefit Trust Inc.
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Contact Us
1505 Dundee Ave
Elgin, IL 60120
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