One of the most addictive substances that we’re exposed to and hooked on as kids, it’s time to ask yourself, are you addicted to sugar?
As we age, we add other addictive stimulants to the mix, like alcohol, caffeine, and now even legalized drugs. What makes sugar any different from this?
Why compare it to cocaine? Cocaine is a highly concentrated extraction from the coca leaf, which is a medicinal plant used found in South America. It’s used as a drug by inhalation or ingestion. Sugar is a highly concentrated extraction of sugar cane or sugar beets. This concentrated substance is stripped of any nutritional value, altered into many different forms (example: a liquid form like high fructose corn syrup), and constantly consumed through ingestion. Despite one being illegal and the other legal, we know the harm and effects of both, yet we continue to feed it to our children. Studies even show that animals prefer the sweet taste and reward of sugar more than the reward of cocaine.
I had tried a sugar elimination challenge several years ago. Then I decided to remove processed sugars from my diet, and just use natural sweeteners occasionally when need be. When I removed added sugars from my diet three years ago, over the course of time I felt like a cloud had been removed from my life. Every day I woke up with new energy, I started to lose excess weight, and my mental game and mood was on point. I felt happier overall and wasn’t dependant on sugar anymore. Yes, our brains are hardwired to enjoy sugar (it lights up our pleasure sensors) but now I feel enjoyment and gratification from the sweetness of fruits, and occasionally indulging in natural sweeteners like raw honey or maple syrup. Even when I eat foods that are sweetened with stevia, honey, or maple syrup, my taste buds immediately taste the sweetness.
Ask yourself – how hard would it be to eliminate sugar from your diet? Even only for one week?
Sugar is in almost everything that we’re consuming, that we’re exceeding our daily limit by eating or drinking more than 20 teaspoons of additional sugar each day. That’s and extra 350 or more calories.
HOW SUGAR WORKS:
Sugars (whether in its simple form as sugar) or carbohydrates (vegetables, fruits, grains) convert to sugar in the bloodstream (glucose).
Simple sugars hit the bloodstream quickly, and cause blood sugar levels to rise.
The pancreas pumps out insulin to help move the sugar to our cells. Sometimes the pancreas can’t produce enough insulin to keep up with the amount of sugar in the blood.
The insulin moves sugar to the cells. Excess sugar stores as fat cells.
After that, blood sugar levels drop dramatically. The adrenal glands try to produce adrenaline to help us get more energy.
HARMFUL EFFECTS OF SUGAR:
Obesity
Sugar causes weight gain, and continues to cause obesity in children and adults.
Diabetes
Sugar can contribute to Type 2 adult-onset diabetes, through all the sugary foods and beverages being consumed. The scary part is that more children and youths are being diagnosed with Type-2 diabetes.
Mood and Behavioural Challenges
There’s a reason we’re addicted to sugar. It affects us on a neurological level, by lighting up our brain’s reward system upon tasting it. We feel the desire, we eat it, satisfy the signal in our brain, and reap the pleasurable reward.
But sugar can make us feel tired, lethargic, cranky, and sluggish, especially when we’re desperately craving it. A diet high in sugar can contribute to mood disorders, mental health issues, and even poor brain function.
Hormone and Blood Sugar Imbalance
Eating too much sugar spikes our blood sugar levels and sends them on roller coaster ride of constantly increasing and then crashing down. It can make us feel tired, cranky, anxious, and lack mental clarity, have sleep issues, and cause hormonal conditions (example: thyroid disorder, infertility, etc.). The more sugar we consume forces our body’s natural hormone systems to go into overdrive or underdrive.
Cancer
Sugar can increase the risk for cancers. Our cancer cells have insulin receptors, that are sensitive to sugar and insulin in the blood, thus consuming more sugar can create more fuel for cancer cells to thrive on.
ARE YOU ADDICTED?
Once the sugar craving hits, you can’t stop thinking about the sweet food and when you’ll be eating it?
Do you lack willpower when it’s presented in front of you?
Will you eat the sweet treat even while knowing there’s negative consequences?
There’s more than 60 names for sugar, and it’s lurking in the majority of packaged and processed foods disguised by different names.
Natural sweeteners should be used in place of processed sugar, in limited amounts, while you try to transition off of processed sugars. Natural sweeteners have more nutrient value, making them a better option of sweetness, like:
Raw Honey
Maple Syrup
Coconut Sugar
Stevia
Applesauce
Date Sugar
Molasses
Monk Fruit Sweetener
Dates
Mashed Bananas
LIFE WITHOUT PROCESSED SUGARS:
It's truly sweet, to not be ruled and controlled by addictions and cravings, and to know healthier and nutritious options to satisfy our sweet fix. Overcoming sugar addiction leads to improved energy, stable moods, hormonal balance, mental clarity, better sleep, improved digestion and weight.
Can you break your sugar addiction?
Click below to learn more about my challenge and how these valuable tools and resources can help you live your best life.
