Candida: The yeast Candida albicansneeds glucose to multiply. If you have an overgrowth of vaginal yeast or systemic candida, you should temporarily avoid all sources of sugars including dairy (lactose). Eliminate refined sugar completely. After you feel better for several months, try adding complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains and beans, in small quantities.

Crohn's disease: Refined sugar alters the friendly-to-harmful bacteria ratio in your colon, which increases symptoms of Crohn's or can contribute to this disease. Eliminate refined sugar and eat limited amounts of sweets containing high fiber, such as fresh fruit.

Depression: My own 24 years of clinical experience, backed up by a number of double-blind studies, indicate that some depressed people become more depressed when they eat refined sugar, and are less depressed when they eliminate it. This indicates insulin sensitivity. Eliminate refined sugar and reduce all other sweets, especially alcohol.

Diabetes: High amounts of refined sugar increase diabetic retinopathy and a chromium deficiency. Sugar increases urinary chromium excretion, and chromium is often low in diabetics. Eating sugar, even if you can control your insulin levels with supplemental insulin, may contribute to further problems. If you eat more than one or two pieces of fruit a day, this fructose may increase your insulin resistance (a bad idea) and cause a copper deficiency, which further affects glucose tolerance. Limit all sweets.

Fatigue: If you get tired after eating a high carbohydrate, low protein meal, you may be triggering an abnormal insulin response. Even in normal people, eating a candy bar tends to give energy for the first hour followed by fatigue.

Gallstones: Studies indicate that a diet high in refined sugar increases your risk for gallstones. It also increases your risk for obesity and diabetes, both of which increase your risk for gallstones! It's a vicious cycle. Reduce refined sugar.

Hypertension: Both salt and sugar can contribute to high blood pressure. High amounts of sucrose (refined sugar), glucose, and fructose can raise blood pressure in people with hypertension. About one-third of all people with hypertension are sensitive to refined sugar.

Immunity: You're as healthy as your immune system. The stronger it is, the healthier you are and will continue to be. Your immune system fights harmful bacteria and viruses. One study indicated that a diet containing 10 percent refined sugar reduces antibody production by half. Complex carbohydrates don't have this effect.

Infection: Your resistance to infection is reduced when you eat 100 grams of sugar from glucose, fructose, sucrose, honey, or orange juice and remains low for five hours. If you feel like you're coming down with a sinus infection, urinary tract infection, or any other bacterial infection, don't eat sugar. When you're exposed to people who may be sick, reduce your sugar intake greatly.

Kidney Stones: Eating high amounts of refined sugar can cause kidney stones in some susceptible people. The combination of a genetic predisposition for kidney stones along with a high intake of refined sugar contributes to kidney stones.

Ulcers: Refined sugar promotes peptic ulcers, and the more sugar you eat, the higher your risk becomes for duodenal ulcers. Two-thirds of a group of ulcer patients who ate a low refined-carbohydrate diet for three months felt better than they did on their high sugar diet. However, a diet high in whole grains, beans, and potatoes did not affect their ulcers.