Sugar is so rooted in our diets, it may seem impossible to find a way to live without it. If you are trying to slim to improve your health, sugary food can easily be avoided.
Lifestyle bloggers Jordyn Muirhead and Cara-Lisa Sham share their tips on how to live a sugar-free lifestyle.
Jordyn Muirhead
“Sugar is in almost everything these days; even savoury foods, such as bread, have sugar in them. We have become so reliant on sugar - from having that dessert after dinner, sugar in our breakfast cereal and with coffee or tea in the morning; to a chocolate bar as a snack, sweets, pastries, doughnuts etc.
“A little sugar every now and then is okay, but as sugar and glucose build up in your body, it is stored faster than it is metabolised and the excess glucose forms fat and cholesterol.
"As the risk of diabetes and obesity increases, so do many other minor symptoms and disorders”, she said.
Jordyn’s Tips:
* When going to the shops do not buy anything containing refined sugars (chocolate, sweets, peanut brittle, ice cream, flavoured popcorn, some tomato sauces). If you don’t buy it, you won’t have it in your house and you won’t be as tempted to go to the shops and buy sweets.
* Buy a healthier sweetener as an alternative you can add if you desperately need to. Things like xylitol, honey, stevia.
* Use natural fruits and sweet vegetables to curb your cravings, for me strawberries do the trick quite well. You can also use these in recipes to add natural sweetness.
* Drink more water and eat more whole foods prepared at home. They will fill you up and leave less space for sugary items.
* Eat healthy fats such as avocado, nuts, coconut oil. They may help sugar cravings.
* Beware of too many high sugary fruits. You don’t want to overload your system on fructose. Some of the best fruits are avocado, blueberries, raspberries and strawberries.
Cara-Lisa Sham
We can indulge in a sweet treat now and then, but when we over-consume sweet treats it’s a problem - something that’s easy to do when sugar is added to many processed foods, including breads, cereals, yoghurt, juices, and sauces.
On average, people consume about 22 teaspoons of added sugars a day, which is way over the six teaspoons we should consume.
Sugar has also been scientifically proven to be as addictive as cocaine, and has created for us a significant craving.
Sweetness is the first taste humans prefer from birth. Carbohydrates stimulate the release of our feel-good brain chemical serotonin.
The taste of sugar also releases endorphins that calm and relax us, and offer a natural “high”. Sweets taste good too, and when we reward ourselves with sweet treats, this can make cravings even worse.
Cara-Lisa’s Tips:
* Combine foods. If the idea of stopping at a cookie or a baby candy bar seems impossible, you can still fill yourself up and satisfy a sugar craving, too.
I like combining the craving food with a healthful one.
I love chocolate so sometimes I’ll dip a banana in a chocolate sauce or I mix some almonds with chocolate chips.
* Reach for fruit. Keep fruit handy for when sugar cravings hit. You’ll get fibre and nutrients with some sweetness. Stock up on raw nuts and seeds, goji berries and cacao nibs.
* Balance your blood sugar levels. Sugar cravings can also be due to insulin spikes which affect hunger and cravings. When we eat, we want to ensure the foods consumed have little or no effect on our blood sugar levels.
Opt for lots of vegetables, leafy greens, whole grains such as brown rice, quinoa, lentils, chickpeas, lean proteins (preferably chicken or fish), and healthy fats such as nuts, seeds, nut butters, coconut oil, olives and avocados.
Eating healthy fats is a brilliant way to feel sustained and to keep your blood sugar levels stable.
* Eat regularly. Waiting too long between meals may set you up to choose sugary, fatty, foods that cut your hunger. Instead, eating every three to five hours can help keep blood sugar stable.
Choose protein, fibre-rich foods like whole grains, legumes and fresh vegetables.