Nature knows the dose.
What happens in the body when we give it what it was built for – and what happens when we don't? We'll show you. Honest, well-documented, and understandable.
Note: All content is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not replace medical diagnosis, treatment, or individual advice. If you have any health concerns or before taking dietary supplements, please consult a doctor.
Sweet. Quiet. Systematic.
The problem is not sugar itself, but its refined, isolated form in quantities for which our bodies were never built.
Diseases associated with high sugar consumption
Same sweetness, different body
Why the difference?
The fruit contains sugar packaged, in fiber, water, vitamins and phytochemicals. This packaging slows absorption, satiates, and nourishes the microbiome.
Refined sugar is the same substance. without packagingIt floods the bloodstream, forces the pancreas to produce insulin spikes – and the subsequent crash calls for the next dose. A cycle that nature never intended.
The number increases every year.
Two lines, twenty years. Green: how many adults in Germany have diabetes. Orange: how many are severely overweight. Both are rising continuously.
In 2003, approximately one in 17 adults had diabetes. Today it is one in 10.
Source: Robert Koch Institute, German Health Report Diabetes 2026.
What a bottle of soda does to you
Your body has to break down an apple first. You don't have to break down a soda. The sugar is already liquid and goes almost directly into the bloodstream. That's the whole difference.
- ImmediatelyThe bottle contains 53 grams of sugar. That's the equivalent of 18 sugar cubes. You'd drink that in two minutes. You'd never eat it.
- After 30 to 60 minutesYour blood sugar is at its peak. The more liquid the food and the less fiber it contains, the steeper the rise.
- After 1 to 2 hoursYour body releases insulin to bring the level back down. If your metabolism is already overloaded, this takes significantly longer.
- After 2 to 5 hoursNow things can go downhill: cravings, fatigue, difficulty concentrating. And you reach for the next sweet treat. The cycle begins again.
- After a few weeksIn a study, young men drank almost 0.8 liters of soft drink daily for seven weeks. Afterwards, their livers accumulated twice as much fat as before.
A single drink a day is enough to keep your body permanently in a state of emergency.
Source: German Diabetes Association, Professional Association of German Internists, University of Zurich (2021).
Where the sugar really sits
A sugar cube weighs 3 grams. The World Health Organization recommends a daily intake of about 25 grams, or 8 cubes. Green means: still within limits. Red means: over the limit.
Half a bottle of cola contains 18 cubes. This more than doubles the daily target, even before breakfast.
Source: Sugar list of LAG Berlin (2024), Consumer Advice Center NRW, WHO. The value for iced tea varies greatly depending on the brand.
It's not just about the weight
Many people think: sugar makes you fat, and being fat makes you sick. So, staying slim should be enough. Studies show otherwise. Even when you factor out body weight, the risk remains elevated.
Source: Review articles in BMJ (2015) and in Nutrients (2021), guideline of the DGVS.
Sources: WHO Guideline „Sugar intake for adults and children“ (2015) · DGE Nutrition Report · Meta-analyses including Te Morenga et al., BMJ 2013. Curves shown schematically.
Honey is not a sugar substitute. It is a food in its own right.
Anyone who sees honey merely as a sweet spread is misunderstanding it. It is one of humankind's oldest remedies – and that's not romantic notion, but a factual observation. Ebers Papyrus, Honey appears in hundreds of recipes in an Egyptian collection dating from around 1550 BC. In Ayurveda, it has been considered a distinct class of substances for millennia, while in Traditional Chinese Medicine it serves as a carrier that unlocks the effects of other herbs. Archaeologists have even found honey in the tombs of pharaohs that had remained unspoiled for over three thousand years.
And today he is in the operating room
The most remarkable thing about honey is not its past, but its present: Medical honey is an approved medical product in Germany. Hospitals use it for chronic, poorly healing wounds, large-area injuries, and wounds colonized with antibiotic-resistant germs such as MRSA. This is not natural remedy marketing – it has regular approval.
Please do not confuse: This medical-grade honey is specially sterilized. Honey from a jar should never be applied to an open wound. It's not sterilized and can introduce germs. What applies in a hospital doesn't apply in a kitchen.
But only the real one deserves the name
And this is where it gets uncomfortable. Worldwide, approximately Seven times more honey is consumed than produced.. This gap isn't filled with bees. It's filled with sugar syrup, with dilution, with offcuts.
The label gives it away. If the label says "Blending of honey from EU and non-EU countries," you're holding a hodgepodge of honey bought from all over the world – blended and heated to keep it spreadable and allow for machine bottling. This very heat destroys what makes it special: enzymes, pollen, flavor compounds, and other beneficial substances. What's left is golden syrup.
The beekeeper's label states where it comes from. – often right up to the location of the hives. Cold-extracted, not heated to high temperatures, not finely filtered. That it crystallizes over time is not a flaw, but proof: only untreated honey crystallizes.
The varieties. Acacia honey stays liquid for a long time because it is particularly rich in fructose. Rapeseed honey sets quickly and becomes spreadable. Forest honey is dark and tart because it doesn't come from blossoms, but from honeydew. And Manuka Bottles from New Zealand have an MGO number on the glass, indicating their methylglyoxal content – the higher the number, the more sought-after and expensive they are.
There's one thing we still owe you.
We are avowed fans of honey – and that's precisely why we're telling you this: honey consists of approximately 80 percent sugar, And the World Health Organization classifies it as a free sugar. Therefore, the 25-gram recommendation mentioned above also applies to it.
Sugar in 100g of table sugar – the comparative value.
Sugar in 100g of honey. The rest is mostly water.
Sugar in 100g of date syrup, also a free sugar.
This isn't a contradiction to everything that came before, but rather the instruction manual. Honey isn't something you eat by the spoonful because it's healthy. It's something you... targeted If you're going to use it – and then please choose a quality that's worth the effort. Because it tastes sweeter than sugar due to its high fructose content, you need less of it anyway.
Practical: Do not stir into boiling hot tea. Only when the drink has cooled to a drinkable temperature will it retain its original properties. And honey should not be included in the diet of infants in their first year of life.
Sources: Ebers Papyrus (around 1550 BC); World Health Organization, Recommendation on free sugars; Institute for Apiculture at Humboldt University of Berlin; German Honey Ordinance; specialist literature on wound care with medicinal honey.
Your body eats with you.
Left: a person who is separated from pure nature nourished. Right: the same person – with preservatives, emulsifiers, and refined sugar. Scroll and compare.
energy
Colon
skin
immune system
Sleep & Mind
Simplified comparison based on the available research on ultra-processed foods (including the NOVA classification, Monteiro et al.; Chassaing et al., Nature 2015 on emulsifiers). Not medical advice.
Not all magnesium is created equal.
The packaging says "Magnesium" – but what's crucial is... Connection behind it. It determines how much your body actually absorbs and where it has an effect.
Bisglycinate
Bound to the amino acid glycine – very well tolerated, highly absorbed, with a calming effect. Ideal for evening use.
Citrate
Quickly available and well-documented. Also stimulates digestion – lower dosage for sensitive digestive systems.
Malate
Bound to malic acid, which plays a role in energy metabolism (citric acid cycle). Popular for fatigue – especially in the morning.
L-Threonate
The only form that readily crosses the blood-brain barrier. Exciting for focus and cognitive health – but expensive.
Orotate
Bound to orotic acid, traditionally studied in cardiology. A niche formulation with interesting research findings for the heart.
oxide
The cheapest and most common form on drugstore shelves. Only about 4 mg of % is absorbed – the rest has a laxative effect. Lots of powder, little effect.
Score = relative classification based on bioavailability, tolerability, and available studies. Sources include: Firoz & Graber, Magnes Res 2001 (Oxide ~4 %) · Walker et al. 2003 (Citrate vs. Oxide) · Slutsky et al., Neuron 2010 (Threonate). Individual absorption varies.
Vitamin D3 never works alone.
Vitamin D3 brings calcium into the bloodstream – but only first K2 It shows him the way: into the bones, not the arteries. Two vitamins, one task.
Open the door
Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) controls calcium absorption from the intestines and regulates over 200 genes – from the immune system to mood. In winter, the skin in this country produces very little calcium. It's best to take it in an oil-based form, as vitamin D3 is fat-soluble.
Directs traffic
Vitamin K2 (ideally as MK-7) activates proteins like osteocalcin, which incorporates calcium into bones, and matrix GLA, which keeps it out of blood vessel walls. Without K2, high doses of vitamin D3 can deposit calcium in the wrong places.
Often usefully combined; typical supplementation 1000–2000 IU D3 + ~100 µg K2 (MK-7). Consult a doctor if taking blood thinners (vitamin K antagonists). Sources include: Maresz, Integr Med 2015; van Ballegooijen et al., Int J Endocrinol 2017. Not medical advice.
It's not about more, it's about the relationship.
Our diet provides plenty of omega-6, but hardly any omega-3. The ratio has completely reversed. ~2:1 often today 15:1 – and excessive amounts of Omega-6 fuel silent inflammation.
Not all Omega-3 sources are created equal.
Plant sources provide ALA – the body converts only a small percentage of this into the active forms EPA and DHA. They are directly available from fish and algae.
Bar = proportion of directly available active omega-3 (EPA/DHA). Pay attention to freshness (Totox value) and an algae alternative for a vegan diet. Sources include: Simopoulos, Biomed Pharmacother 2002 (ratio) · EFSA recommendations on EPA/DHA. Not medical advice.
Sugar-free does not automatically mean harmless.
Sweeteners save calories – but some irritate the microbiome or keep cravings for sweets alive. There are better and worse Paths.
This classification serves as a guideline, not a prohibition. The best approach remains to lower the overall taste threshold for sweetness. Sources include: WHO guidelines on sweeteners (2023); IARC/JECFA on aspartame (2023); Suez et al., Nature 2014 (microbiome).
The root is located in the intestine.
Trillions of bacteria digest what we ourselves cannot – and influence the immune system, metabolism, and even mood. Their food: Fiber and variety.
Sources of dietary fiber
This nourishes the intestines
- Dietary fiber from vegetables, legumes, whole grains
- Fermented foods: sauerkraut, kefir, yogurt, kimchi
- Polyphenols from berries, herbs, olive oil, cocoa
- Diversity – many different plants instead of always the same one
This puts a strain on the intestines
- Emulsifiers & additives from ultra-processed products
- Lots of sugar and refined white flour
- Excessive alcohol
- Constant snacking without breaks for digestion
Sources include: German Nutrition Society (DGE) reference value for dietary fiber (30 g/day); American Gut Project (diversity/„30 plants“); Chassaing et al., Nature 2015 (emulsifiers). Educational content, not a health claim.
It's not what you eat that matters – it's what gets absorbed.
The central theme of this page: Nutrients only work if the body absorbs them. The right combination Often, more than quantity matters.
Sources include: Hurrell & Egli, Am J Clin Nutr 2010 (iron) · Shoba et al., Planta Med 1998 (piperine/curcumin). General knowledge, not an individual recommendation.
Two that many are missing.
Especially with a plant-based diet, a closer look is worthwhile: iron is absorbed less well by plants, B12 It is found almost exclusively in animal sources.
How well iron is absorbed
Iron – cleverly combined
- Sources: Lentils, chickpeas, pumpkin seeds, rolled oats, spinach
- Always combine with vitamin C (bell peppers, lemon, berries).
- Drink coffee/tea at different times
- Unbalanced diets and heavy menstrual bleeding increase the need for
Vitamin B12 – don't guess, measure
- Virtually only found in animal products (meat, eggs, milk)
- Vegan/vegetarian: targeted supplementation (no „organic by chance“)
- Storage lasts a long time – shortages often only become apparent late.
- If in doubt, have your blood values checked by a doctor.
Intake rates are approximations and vary individually (storage capacity, demand). Sources include: EFSA reference values, Hurrell & Egli 2010. This does not replace a medical diagnosis.
Where our numbers come from.
We rely on official guidelines and peer-reviewed studies. Bars and percentages are Classifications, no exact measurements – the order of magnitude is correct, individual values vary depending on the person, storage capacity and needs.
Key institutions to which we refer: WHO, DGE and EFSA. Individual specialist studies are listed directly in the respective chapters.
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