Ask Mary

If a significant percent of your total calorie intake comes from sugar, then cutting back on your sugar intake should lead to weight loss.  But sugar's biggest problem is that it adds "empty" calories unaccompanied by precious vitamins and minerals.  Dieters cut back on sugar primarily to make room for more nutritious foods; however, everyone has at least 100 “discretionary” calories to spend each day on food that tastes good but is not necessarily nutritious.