In a 2009 study by Dr. Serge H. Ahmed, Is Sugar as Addictive as Cocaine?, published in the Journal of Food and Addiction, it was shown that sugar is eight times more addictive than cocaine. A staggering 94 percent of the rats studied wanted sugar or saccharin over cocaine. Seriously.
We know that health is wealth. And being healthy is not only about looking good, it’s mainly about feeling good. So if you are one of those who are drawn to sugar because of its sweet taste and you are concerned about your health, know that you can change your diet — and consequently your life — by doing the following:
1- Start By Taking That Decision: Acknowledge the issue and decide to do something about it. Your own motivation and seriousness to heal are what make the whole difference.
2- Do Some Research: Learn what sugar is and what it does to your body and overall health. Identify the sources of sugar in your diet, then decide which to cut out completely and which to cut down on.
3- Eat More Fruits: Oranges, peaches, figs, dates and bananas among others all taste sweet and they are full of vitamins.
4- Eat More Vegetables: Sweet potatoes, beets and carrots. Raw carrots are known to create a rise in blood sugar that occurs faster and lasts longer than eating sugar.
5- Eat Sour or Spicy Foods: Eating a pickle or drinking water with lemon could reduce sugar craving.
6- Less Red Meat, Dairy, and Refined (Processed) Food: The body craves sugar when it does not metabolise protein properly. Replace then with more fruits and veggies.
In actual fact, when you drop ― or reduce ― the meats you will notice that you have more space for veggies and fruits. Simply because meats are the main items which usually fill us. So naturally, most of the rest gets less attention as they’re considered secondary. With less or no meats, time to get creative and colourful.
Taste the rainbow |
7- Chew Your Food: The longer you do it the sweeter complex carbs taste ― improving digestion as well.
8- Exercise: The body usually craves sugar when it is in an acidic condition. Incorporate exercise into your daily routine to get it into a more alkaline state. Water should replace sugary drinks after workout and should be drank throughout the whole day. And if like many, your excuse is “I don’t have time,” know that we, humans, made time up so you can always create time, like two hours a week. Get some fresh air too while you’re at it, honey.
9- Recognise The Disguising Sugar Aliases: Many foods have hidden sugars, like cereals, salad dressings, sauces, bottled drinks, and breads. Some of them are digested more slowly than sugar but they’re still sugar. When checking food labels look for these:
Brown sugar, raw sugar, fructose and crystalline fructose, high-fructose corn syrup, maltose, sucrose, glucose, invert sugar, rice/corn/maple/malt/
10- Eat At Home More: When we eat out a lot, we have no real control over our sugar intake.
Cooking and eating at home more often will allow you to make your meals as healthy and as sugar-free as possible. It also helps you greatly with getting creative with your diet.
The reason why I wrote this is because I lately had my first frozen yoghurt in three years and it truly felt like it was the first time to eat it. Fortunately, I don’t feel like redoing it anytime soon. Some of you may think that the fro yos are a healthy choice and all, but the reality is that they often have more sugar than ice cream. You can find more about the additives and what they are essentially made of in this Article.
Think and rethink your “drink” |
Eliminating sugar from our diet has to be done gradually. You will want to eat less and less over time. As the case with many drugs, going cold turkey rarely works here.
If you’re worried about cravings, know that the key lies in how to snap out of it; how to trick the brain into shifting its attention to something else, anything. Having a fruit, doing meditation, or even taking a short walk or a phone conversation work quite well as healthy distractions. Likewise, developing a personal support network you can share your gradual achievements with equally help — it will actually reduce your risk of relapse.
I suggest for a start you integrate just two or three of the above recommendations into your routine and see how you feel. Then take it from there. You may find that a combination of a few works well for you, keep doing them until you are ready to move to the next level. And remember, the less you eat sugar, the less you’ll crave it; the more you resist the temptation, the less you’ll obsess about it.
Make sure to check out the below video to see the severity of the matter. Also check How I Dropped Two Waist Sizes in a Few Months to see what has worked for me, ending with shaping up in my late 30s
Good luck, Sweetie. You CAN do it.
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