Stop Eating Sugar

In this fast-paced world driven by the desire for instantaneous gratification, it can be really easy to consume foods that are less than nutritious. According to the U.S. Agriculture Department, the average American consumes about 76.7 pounds of sugar per year.. An increase in the amount of sugar Americans are consuming has contributed to an obesity epidemic that is causing a plethora of health problems for people of all ages. The American Heart Association recommends that men should consume no more than 150 sugar calories per day and women should not consume more than 100 sugar calories. Follow the steps below to decrease your sugar intake and start leading a healthier life.

Steps

Recognizing the Cause

1. Understand that sugar is addictive. Like certain drugs, sugar causes a euphoric effect triggered by the massive release of dopamine, the chemical that controls pleasure in your brain. When your liver converts fructose to fat, you heighten your risk of increasing dangerous LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol) levels. Remember that sugar comes under the guise of many names. Some of most common names include:
   • Agave
   • Various syrups: brown rice, carob, corn, high-fructose corn, maple, malt, and starch.
   • Dextran, glycerol, disaccharides, or monosaccharides
   • Evaporated cane juice
   • Fructose, glucose, lactose, sucrose, or maltose
2. Notice if you are eating sugar to increase your energy level. Sugar is used similarly to caffeine as a way to keep you awake during the day. However, sugar only offers short-term satisfaction and almost always results in a sugar crash later.
   • Try eating a small snack instead of turning to sugar or caffeine. Your body converts healthy calories into energy. A combination of protein and healthy carbohydrates will give you the boost you need without making you sleepy or causing you to crash later on.
   • Caffeine will keep you alert and awake, but will not provide you with enough energy. However, make sure you are choosing caffeine sources that are not packed full of sugar. Opt for coffee or tea without any added sweeteners, lessen your needs for artificially sweetened drinks.
3. Recognize if you are using sugar as a coping mechanism. There are several emotional reasons that you may be turning to sugar. Many people eat impulsively as a response to stress, depression, nervousness, or even as a reward for achieving something.
   • Sugar releases endorphins that can help relieve stress or anxiety, but only for a short period of time. Opt for a more sustainable way to manage your stress.
   • Try exercising, picking up a hobby, listening to music, or doing any other positive activity when you feel the urge to eat sugar to ease stress.
4. Evaluate whether you are eating sugar for the taste. Let's face it, sugar is delicious. Many of us eat a lot of sugar just because it tastes so good. The good news is, there are several natural alternatives to sugary foods that can satisfy your craving without compromising your health. Read on to discover several alternatives to traditional sweets.

Changing Your Eating Habits

1. Go cold turkey. Make the decision to remove processed sugar entirely from your diet for one week. It is impossible to remove sugar entirely from your diet, as fruits, vegetables, breads, etc. all contain some sugar. However, you can easily remove processed sugars from your diet by not consuming anything typically thought of as a dessert or candy. Natural sugars on the other hand are readily digested and assimilated. Natural sugars are found in fruits, honey, milk etc.
2. Retrain your taste buds. Over time, you can train your taste buds not to like excessively sweet foods. By gradually reducing the amount of sugar you take in, you can alter the way your taste buds perceive different foods.
   • Start off by reducing the amount of sugar that you add to your food. For example, if you put one teaspoon of sugar in your morning coffee or tea, reduce it to 1/2 teaspoon.
   • As you run out of items in your house that contain sugar, opt to buy replacements that contain less or no sugar. For example, if you always purchase sugary breakfast cereals, buy a natural, whole grain cereal instead. You can always add fruit to sweeten it up the natural way.
   • Be sure to eliminate all artificial sweeteners from your diet as well. Although sometimes lower in calories, artificial sweeteners are still sugar-based products that have the a negative effect on your body. These include aspartame, alitame, saccharin, sucralose, and acesulfame potassium. Artificial sweeteners simply substitute one addiction for another. That being said, occasional use of artificial sweeteners possesses no harm.
   • After a few weeks, your taste buds will begin to adapt and the amount of sugar you were eating before will taste sickeningly sweet.
3. Eat vegetables at every meal. Vegetables, especially dark green, leafy vegetables, provide you with plenty of fiber. Your body uses fiber to aid healthy digestion and it helps keep you feeling full for less energy consumption.
4. Add animal protein to your diet. Animal fats help to stabilize the brain's biochemistry and control sugar cravings. Additionally, protein helps fill you up so that you won't be hungry and craving dessert after a meal. Opt for pasture-raised, grass fed meats.
5. Cut out sugary drinks altogether. One of the easiest ways to remove sugar from your diet is to stop drinking it. By simply removing soda and fruit juice from your diet, you can remove a significant amount of your sugar intake. Sugary drinks take no effort to consume, and yet pack a lot of calories in them, which eventually turn to fat. Choose water instead of a sugary drink at your next meal.
   • Fresh squeezed or pressed juices are an excellent alternative. While they do contain sugar, it is not processed. A glass of fruit juice a day, does more good than a can of soda a day.
   • If you don't want to give up flavored drinks, try flavoring them with a non-sugar additive such as a squeeze of lemon or lime. You can also flavor water by soaking fruit slices in your water source. Lemon, pineapple, strawberry, and cucumber are particularly delicious.
   • If you really refuse to cut out sugary drinks, try diluting your drinks with half seltzer water or flat water. Doing so will slowly reduce your sugar intake and slowly wean you off of the drinks altogether.
6. Choose fruit if you are craving sugar. While fruit contains sugar, it is an unprocessed sugar that is much better for you than the refined, processed sugars that you find in baked desserts and fruit juices made from concentrate. When a sugar craving comes on, reach for a piece of fruit instead of a donut.
   • Sweet potatoes are another great replacement for sugary foods and they are extremely filling and rich in antioxidants. Swap your standard potato for a sweet one to satisfy your sweet tooth and fill up your tummy.
   • Blend fat free plain yogurt with frozen fruit to create a homemade sorbet-like dessert that won't add unhealthy sugar to your diet and can satisfy your sweet tooth.
7. Maintain a regular eating routine. Skipping meals or waiting too long between meals can cause you to crave fatty or sugary foods to satisfy your built-up hunger. If the traditional three meals a day routine doesn't work for you, try eating smaller portions every three to five hours to stop you from getting hungry.
8. Get in the habit of reading ingredient labels. Many foods that you wouldn't expect to have sugar in them may actually contain a significant amount. Be sure to always check food labels for the presence of sugar under one of its many names.
9. Add a Chromium Polynicotinate supplement to your diet. Chromium polynicotinate is chromium bound to niacin, otherwise known as vitamin B3. This vitamin helps regulate glucose levels while stabilizing blood sugar. Consult your physician for the usage and the dose you should take before consuming any medicine.

Changing Your Behavior

1. Try hypnosis. This is a way to break deep-seated patterns by changing the perceptions of your subconscious. If you are unable to change your habits through your own will power, you can enlist the aid of a hypnotist. Hypnosis has been proven to be effective for some people dealing with addiction.
2. Adopt a mental and physical exercise practice. Practices such as yoga or tai chi are extremely beneficial for those trying to change their diet. While these practices are physical and a great way to get exercise, they are also extremely mental and spiritual. By getting in touch with and learning to respect your body, you can make it much easier for yourself to kick a bad habit.
3. Consult with a nutritionist. If you're having a hard time figuring out how to change your diet to fit your lifestyle and come up with replacements for sugary foods, try talking to a nutritionist. A nutritionist can get you started on a diet plan that is right for your body and your lifestyle as well. It can be very hard to stay on track if you're constantly running around all day taking care of children or managing an office. Let a nutritionist do the nitty gritty work for you and help get you on the right eating path.
4. Get more physical exercise. Diet and exercise go hand in hand. Incorporate physical activity as a regular routine in your new lifestyle. You should get at least 30 minutes of cardio activity per day to support a healthy blood flow and maintain a healthy weight. Exercise also helps to relieve stress and other anxieties that may be causing you to turn to sugar as a crutch. Find the type of exercise that works for you and make it part of your lifestyle.

Tips

• View kicking your sugar habit as a profoundly positive gift that you are giving your body.
• Don't get discouraged if you cave in and eat sugar. Forgive yourself and move on.
• Build a support system of people who encourage your healthy eating habits.
• Allow yourself one (small!) treat per week as a reward for eating well all week.
• Sit down, relax, and jot down on a piece of paper all the pros and cons of eating sugar.

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