If you watch this video by dr mcdougall you will learn that he uses the world "sugar" to refer to foods like potatoes, corn, grains and anything else that is known as a "starch" or "carbohydrate".  He uses the word sugar because these foods are a sugar.  They are a "long chain sugars".  So, everytime he advertises humans needing sugar, he is talking about long chain sugars.  

And, there are also short chain sugars.  Short chain sugars are foods like fruit, honey, and sucrose(table sugar).  He talks about those too, including that they rot your teeth among other negatives.  So, croix, don't think you have dr mcdougall on your side because he uses the word sugar and that we are "sugar seekers".  He is not talking about table sugar, fruit, or any other refined sugars.  

You can start listening at 930 if you want to get up to the sugar topic.
[video]

Pax Vobis says:
Agree, PG.  All sugars/carbs are not equal.  The best carbs are of the "complex" type because they take longer for the body to break down, which means glucose is released slowly.  Glucose spikes are what cause insulin problems, which lead to diabetes, which is basically when your insulin response shuts down.  Simple, sugary carbs might be ok for those who run 10-15 miles a day or weight train, but for the avg Joe, whose exercise is sporadic, they are awful.  Not to mention, besides fruit, 90% of sugars have no nutritional benefit, because most are processed.  Even if you want to eat fruit, pick the low glycemic types - berries, apples, lemons.  The rest should be eaten irregularly, like a dessert.  There are plenty of veggies with enough Vit C; fruits aren't as necessary as "they" say.

Ladislaus says:
I recommend intermittent fasting.  It's fantastic.

Also, refined sugar & fruit won't rot teeth as long as the person practices regular dental hygiene. It's called brushing your teeth.

croix - dr. mcdgouall is very much a motivational speaker.  He is not perfect.  And, sometimes it shows.  Because, his facts are wrong here.  white rice does not go centuries back as he says.  It is not an ancestral rice.  It is the result of modern technology.  Without modern machinery, you cannot achieve white rice.  And, again, refined starches are not the deal breaker for me when discussing the problem of obesity.  Because, I know where they belong.  They belong to the gym rat.  It is a diet for gym rats.  They can promote that lifestyle.  However, when you are on the opposite end of the spectrum, it is doubtful that they will promote an active exercise lifestyle for reasons I have already mentioned.  

Back to white rice.  White rice is a technological “modernization,” starting about a century and a half ago, of corporations developing technology to refine rice (and other grains) further. In the case of rice, milling technology created the possibility of peeling the bran off the grain and polishing what is left into shiny, white rice.

But polishing rice from so-called “dirty rice” into the sparkling white form that most people prefer has caused—yes, caused—a number of major, adverse impacts on health.
First, polishing removes most of the vitamins and minerals vital to one’s health. One example: the rice bran contains vitamin B and thiamine, both key to preventing beriberi. Indeed, in the largest World War II prison camp in the Philippines (where John’s grandfather was interned), American prisoners suffered from beriberi until they convinced the Japanese prison guards to let them cook the bran shavings that came off the polished rice; then the beriberi went away.
White rice also increases the risk of diabetes, rates of which are rising quickly in the Philippines, the United States and many other countries. The rice layers removed during polishing contain nutrients that guard against diabetes. Polished rice further contributes to diabetes risk because it causes blood-sugar levels to rise more rapidly than brown rice does. According to the New York Times, a 2010 Harvard study showed that people who consume white rice at least five times a week “are almost 20 percent more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes than those who eat it less than once a month.” In our travels in the Philippines and the United States, we meet people who are shifting to brown rice on their doctors’ orders precisely because of concerns about diabetes.
And polishing rice also reduces the protein content of the rice, which can mean the difference between being well-nourished or malnourished. The bottom line on all of these health fronts is the same: the more polished the rice, the less healthy.

http://www.yesmagazine.org/blogs/john-cavanagh-and-robin-broad/the-story-of-refined-white-rice

Pax Vobis says:
Uhhhh....?  The FDA has never said sugars are bad.

Pax Vobis says:
Yes and no.  Brushing your teeth will help, yes.  But tooth decay is more a lack-of-nutrition problem, rather than a 'sugar stays on your teeth' problem.

Pax Vobis says:
Bruh, you obviously have no idea what intermittent fasting is.  The difference between it and normal fasting (i.e. what is commonly referred to as 'dieting' and includes the negative things you talk about) is that intermittent fasting is not a lowering of calories.  You eat 2-3 typical meals, as normal, but you only eat them in an 8 hr window.

Agree, PG.  All sugars/carbs are not equal.  The best carbs are of the "complex" type because they take longer for the body to break down, which means glucose is released slowly.  Glucose spikes are what cause insulin problems, which lead to diabetes, which is basically when your insulin response shuts down.  Simple, sugary carbs might be ok for those who run 10-15 miles a day or weight train, but for the avg Joe, whose exercise is sporadic, they are awful.  Not to mention, besides fruit, 90% of sugars have no nutritional benefit, because most are processed.  Even if you want to eat fruit, pick the low glycemic types - berries, apples, lemons.  The rest should be eaten irregularly, like a dessert.  There are plenty of veggies with enough Vit C; fruits aren't as necessary as "they" say.  

Intermittent fasting is great.  Tons of Hollywood actors use it; even those who train really hard.  Terry Crews is a big fan.  I heard Hugh Jackman used a 4 / 20 split when he trained for wolverine.  

... in the form of glycogen

Ladislaus says:
which the body can produce from various carbs.  

Ladislaus says:
Or else the muscles can work off of ketones ... in the absence of carbs.

Ladislaus says:
But ingesting too much sugar (or carbs), more than the muscles can burn, guess what, these get converted into fat and stored.  

Ladislaus says:
Meanwhile it wreaks havoc on the insulin system

You have no idea what you're talking about.. You're parroting lies from the past 80-100 years. Sugar/carbs increase insulin sensitivity, thereby improving the metabolic state & burning glycogen for energy more efficiently.

It's fats, oils & excess animal protein that wreaks havoc on the insulin system. You are obstinately ignorant.