Fatimah Ali: 'Arthur,' taxes & the Sugar Blues

THE elderly frequently complain about something they call "Arthur," which can be a painful nag unless we take precautions in our lives to keep him away.

"Arthur" came uninvited to visit me recently and decided to stay, nestled in both of my knees, right around bedtime when it's time to climb up the steps. Out of nowhere, he crept up on me suddenly. I keep telling him to leave, but he insists on trying to make my life miserable, and the pain is getting worse by the day.

Chances are you may also have met "Arthur" if, like me, you're over 50, overweight, partake of enough sweets and have become lax in your exercise regimen.

But I'm determined to get rid of him for good, starting by evicting his best friend - sugar - completely from my diet!

Not only does sugar contribute to arthritis, but also to obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, hyperactivity, depression and heart disease. It robs the bones and teeth of calcium and weakens our immune systems.

I know I have to quit using sugar for good because it's taking its toll on my health. But eliminating sugar is much trickier than it may seem because it's hidden in many of the foods that we consume daily.

For proof of that, just read the labels of all processed foods, including those we frequently don't suspect. It's in like ketchup, canned soups, frozen foods, bread, rice, whole-wheat pasta, energy drinks, applesauce and even milk and vitamin supplements such as bee pollen, just to name a few.

It's even found in cereals that you think don't have sugar, like oatmeal. Food makers call it fructose, corn syrup or caramel coloring instead of sugar, but most of us are consuming it daily, and it can be a dangerous ingredient that can cause long-term damage to our health. We may not even realize it, but we can even become addicted to it.

Wheelchair lifts and dialysis centers are popping up all over Philadelphia as limbs are being lost to soaring diabetes rates - so I fully applaud Mayor Nutter's call for a sugar tax on sodas in an effort to generate revenue for the city, as well as tackle obesity and other diseases.

Because of legal issues with the tax, the mayor has been forced into the riskier political path of having to target consumers instead of bottlers.

But by putting the tax on consumers directly, he's also tackling our health challenges directly by trying to dissuade us from buying all those millions of empty soda calories.

But he just may have bitten off a bit more than he realizes, because by taking aim at sugary sodas, he's also opening up the doors to target the entire sweets industry - and has perhaps turned up the flames on a movement that's been flying below the radar while putting huge amounts of sugar into the food stream even though sugar can be a huge health risk.

According to Dr. Mark Stengler, author of "The Natural Physician's Healing Therapies," the average American consumes 125 pounds of sugar annually.

But no matter how good it tastes, sugar wreaks havoc on our bodies and has no nutritional value at all. William Duffy, who penned the book "Sugar Blues" three decades ago, believes that sugar is even more addictive than heroin.

If you eat it, yet don't believe you're addicted, stop cold turkey and see what withdrawal symptoms you experience before you're completely sugar-free. I guarantee you'll experience headaches like you've never known before.

I drink soda only every once in a blue moon and am trying to eliminate them completely. I also need to get rid of sweetened coffee. Both are empty, destructive calories, and just giving them up alone will help me drop at least 10 pounds and help relieve my arthritis. Giving up sugar again will be even harder than it was the first time, and I really dread those headaches, which lasted for months last time.

WHICH brings us again to Nutter's soda tax. He's facing an uphill battle, but it's a necessary step in helping Philadelphians get healthier.

And while the idea of a sugar- sweetened beverage tax is a good first step toward recovery, the movement against sugar must also be taken to a national level, targeting not only the soda companies, but all other food- makers that put sugar in their products to lure unsuspecting consumers, and profit by keeping us all addicted.

Fatimah Ali is a regular contributor to the Daily News, and blogs about food at healthysoutherncomforts.com.