We all know sugar is bad for health but we feel powerless to stay away from it because it tastes so good. It’s practically sweet poison. But, how do we overcome our addiction? Let’s find out.
Why is sugar addiction bad for health?
When consumed in excess, sugar can cause significant health problems. Research has shown that reducing or eliminating sugar consumption can significantly improve obesity, fatty liver and Type 2 diabetes in only two weeks.
When you consume glucose, 20 percent is metabolised in your liver and 80 percent throughout the rest of your body.
When it comes to fructose, 90 percent is metabolised in your liver and converts to fat. Fructose provides no nutritional value and isn’t metabolised in the brain. Your body converts it to fat, but doesn’t recognise that you’ve eaten, so the hunger doesn’t go away.
“Fructose provides no nutritional value and isn’t metabolised in the brain. Your body converts it to fat, but doesn’t recognise that you’ve eaten, so the hunger doesn’t go away.”
Sugar can feel addictive and you may feel dreadful in the first few days of quitting it, as your body detoxifies. However, it’s worth it, because your metabolism will heal and you should feel significantly better after the first week.
How to reduce your sugar addiction?
1. Eat a balanced diet and three meals a day
The meals should be comprised of adequate protein and healthy fats to reduce your likelihood of reducing sugar addiction. You can add a little more fat than usual to your meals for a few days, as healthy fats are wonderful for reducing sugar cravings.
2. Stay hydrated
Drinking water helps to reduce hunger and squeezing a little lemon or lime juice into the water can help to fight sugar cravings. Sugar and carbohydrates increase the production of hunger hormones. Therefore, you are likely to feel more hungry than usual for a few days after reducing consumption.
3. Get enough sleep
People who don’t sleep enough have higher levels of hunger hormones in their body and are more likely to overeat or eat unhealthy foods. It is so much easier to prepare healthy meals, exercise regularly and generally look after yourself when you’ve had enough sleep.
4. Switch to healthy snacks
Having a healthy snack mid-afternoon may prevent you from sugar addiction. Examples of healthy snacks include nuts and seeds, a protein powder smoothie, hummus or guacamole with vegetable sticks or a boiled egg.
This article first appeared in Thrive Magazine and is reproduced here with permission.