CBS News’ “60 Minutes” asks "Is Sugar Toxic?" on Sunday. This segment explores a pediatric endocrinologist’s theory that sugar is toxic. Dr. Robert Lustig of the University of California talks to Dr. Sanjay Gupta for the report.
Americans consume about 130 pounds of added sugars per person each year, CBS News says.
Lustig sees little difference between sugar and high fructose corn syrup. ”They are basically equivalent. The problem is they’re both bad. They’re both equally toxic,” he tells Gupta. Lustig attributes the sickness in the obese children he sees to the sugar they have eaten.
A sugar-packed diet can result in Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, Lustig says. “Ultimately, this is a public health crisis … you have to do big things and you have to do them across the board,” Lustig says.
Sugar needs the regulations and warnings slapped on tobacco and alcohol, Lustig argues.
Watch “60 Minutes” at 7 pm ET/PT Sunday.
