Breaking Your Sugar Addiction
The 4-Week Plan to Stop Sugar Cravings
-- By Lauri Watson, Registered Dietitian
That white, powdery substance just makes you feel good. You
can't get it off your mind, and you keep coming back for more. The more you
have it, the more you want it! But even when you try to stay away from it, it
finds ways to sneak into your life almost daily. What can you do?
We're not talking
about some dangerous or illegal drug here; we're talking about sugar. Although
it's considered harmless in comparison, sugar, in excess, can cause a host of
problems for a lot of us: cravings, binge eating, weight gain and heart disease
among them. According to the USDA, the average American consumed 151 pounds of
sugar in 1999—an all time high. Since then, consumption has dropped slightly
and in 2010 the average American consumed 132 pounds. (To put that into perspective,
consider that the number was just 4 pounds in the year 1700.) At least half of
the sugar we consume comes from soft drinks, fruit drinks, and sports drinks.
The rest sneaks into our diets in the form of ketchup, teriyaki sauce,
chocolate milk and the obvious sweets like cookies, cakes, ice cream and even
breakfast cereal. Surprisingly, some "healthy foods" such as yogurt
and instant flavored oatmeal can pack in 20-30 grams (5-7 teaspoons) of
unnecessary added sugar! It seems like we're drowning in sugar, and nobody is
wearing a life vest.
The American Heart
Association (AHA) recommends that we limit our daily sugar consumption to 7% or
less of our daily calorie intake—that's about 6 teaspoons (100 calories) for
women and 9 teaspoons (150 calories) for men. But that adds up fast. Just one
12-ounce can of regular soda contains 8-10 teaspoons of sugar and 130-150
calories. One glazed donut contains 6 teaspoons, and a half cup ice cream (the
standard serving size, although most portions are much, much larger) contains 4
grams of added sugar!
Why Should You Care? Is Sugar Actually Bad for You?
Well, aside from the
increased bulge around the waistline, diets high in sugar are strongly linked
to an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, elevated triglycerides, low HDL
(good) cholesterol levels, and heart disease. Sugar intake has also been linked
to depression, migraines, poor eyesight, autoimmune diseases (such as
arthritis, and multiple sclerosis), gout and osteoporosis.
Recent research has
shown that a high intake of carbohydrates, including sugar, releases a feel
good chemical in the brain called serotonin. Think of how you feel after
indulging in a high sugar meal or treat—almost euphoric, right? The high of a
sugar rush is temporary though. After a few hours—or even a few minutes—you
start to crash and you become tired, fatigued and lethargic.
Although sweet foods
are tempting and delicious to most people (blame Mother Nature for that!), the
more sugar you eat, the higher your tolerance becomes. So if you have a strong
sweet tooth or intense cravings for sugar, chances are not that you were born
that way, but that your dietary habits and food choices created the sugar
monster you may have become.
Fortunately, we can
reverse this tolerance in just a couple of weeks by cutting out sugar. Once you
have decreased your threshold, something that tasted perfectly sweet a few
weeks ago, will begin to taste too sweet to eat, and that can help you reduce
your intake of the sweet stuff.
Cutting Out Sugar: A 4-Week Action Plan
While the occasional
sweet treat won't make or break your weight loss or your health, many people
have trouble stopping after a sensible portion or saying no to sugar when it's
available. If you feel out of control around sugar, then a sugar
"detox" is a great way to reduce your cravings, eat better, and bring
sugar back to where it belongs: as an occasional treat that you consciously
choose to eat in a mindful manner, not a daily treat occurrence that controls
you.
Week 1: Identify
Sugar and Where It's Hiding
The first step in
conquering your sugar habit is to rid your pantry and refrigerator of added
sugar. Some things (think ice cream, cookies and candy) are obvious, but most
of us need to look closer at where the sugar in our diets is coming from. This
will require a bit of label reading in the beginning, but after a while, it
will become easier.
In order to cut back
on hidden or added sugar, scan the ingredients list of a food label. If you see
any of the following terms listed, then sugar has been added to the product in
one form or another and it is best left on the shelf at the store—especially if
that sugar shows up within the first five ingredients of any food product.
Agave nectar, Agave syrup, Barley malt, Beet sugar, Brown rice syrup, Brown sugar, Buttered syrup, Cane sugar, Cane juice, Cane juice crystals, Carob syrup, Confectioner’s sugar, Corn syrup, High fructose corn
syrup, Corn sugar, Corn sweetener, Corn syrup solids, Crystalized fructose, Date sugar, Dextran, Dextrose, Diatase, Diastatic malt, Evaporated cane juice, Fructose, Fruit juice, Fruit juice
concentrate, Glucose, Glucose solids, Golden sugar, Golden syrup, Grape sugar, Grape juice
concentrate, Honey, Invert sugar, Lactose, Malt, Maltodextrain, Maltose, Maple syrup, Molasses, Raw sugar, Refiner's syrup, Sorghum syrup, Sucanat, Sucrose, Sugar,Turbinado sugar,Yellow sugar
This first week is
about awareness. Reading labels before you buy—or bite. How many of your
favorite foods contain hidden sugars in the top of their ingredients lists?
Once you have
identified the sources of sugar in your diet, clean out your kitchen. Throw out
or donate all of the products that contain hidden or added sugars, including
any juice, soda, candy, sweets and seemingly healthy snacks like granola bars,
fruit and grain bars, instant flavored oatmeal and sports drinks. This may
sound drastic, but stay with me!
Remember, you don’t
have to throw away everything that is sweet! Natural sugar, like the kind you
find in whole fruit, contains vitamins, minerals and fiber, which are lost in
the processing of juice. Milk contains naturally occurring sugars, but also
provides calcium, vitamin D and protein. So unlike soda, fruit juices and other
processed foods, whole fruit and dairy products provide us with essential
vitamins and minerals that our bodies need. Be wary of certain fruit- or
milk-based products that contain added sugars though: flavored milk, many
yogurts, fruits canned or jellied in added sugar or syrups, and the like. Opt
for unflavored skim or 1% milk, plain yogurt or Greek yogurt, and whole pieces
of fruit. Remember, we are trying to cut out the 151 pounds a year of added
sugar, not the naturally occurring sugar found in whole foods.
Week 2: Stock Your Sugar-Free Kitchen
In one week, you've
probably found lots of sugar in your diet. Some of it may have been obvious,
like those frozen waffles or lattes from the local coffee joint. But others
might not have been so clear, as sugar tends to lurk in many "diet"
foods and lower-fat foods, added by manufacturers to make their low-cal
offerings taste better.
Now that you know
what to look for (and avoid), it's time to replace the products you tossed with
sugar-free counterparts. For example, replace high-sugar cereals with a whole
grain cereal that contains little to no added sugars. Sweeten it naturally with
fresh berries or half of a diced banana. Instead of snacking on candy or
cookies, reach for a handful of nuts or some raw veggies and hummus. Replace
sweetened yogurt with Greek yogurt or plain yogurt. Look back at week one and
the foods you used to eat that contained sugar. Can you find no-sugar oatmeal?
A healthier snack than a sugar-sweetened smoothie (how about a whole piece of
fruit)? A more filling afternoon treat than that sugary "protein bar"
(such as peanut butter on whole-grain crackers)?
When choosing a
refreshing beverage to quench your thirst, keep in mind that you want to eat
your calories, not drink them. Choose ice cold water flavored with a squeeze of
fresh lemon or an orange slice. Or flavor unsweetened iced tea with fresh mint,
crushed raspberries, or a squeeze of citrus.
One tip to help you
avoid added sugar at the supermarket is to shop the perimeter of the grocery
store as much as possible. Think about the general layout of a grocery store:
The outside is home to fresh fruits and vegetables, lean meats, dairy products,
and whole grain breads and the inside aisles are stocked with cookies, chips,
soda, fruit juice, cake mixes, and other processed foods. Spend most of your
time on the outside and only go down the inner aisles for specific products,
like whole-grain pasta.
Never shop on an
empty stomach and always shop with a list. Shopping while hungry can lead you
to adding all kinds of snacks and impulse buys to your cart. Meal planning can
be a tricky task at first, but following a meal plan is an important part of
breaking the sugar addiction. It will help to keep you on track and help
prevent stopping for fast food when you don't have a game plan for dinner.
Spend a little time on Sunday afternoons jotting down some meal ideas for
throughout the week. Make a list of the food items you will need to make the
meals you wrote down and stick to it!
Week 3: Stop the Cravings
Now you really start
to put your plan into action. You’ve identified the sources of added sugar in
your diet and replaced those foods with healthier and more wholesome
alternatives. Your kitchen is now set up for success!
This week’s focus
should be on making a conscious effort to avoid sugary foods. When a craving
strikes, try going for a walk or simply drinking a glass of water. Take a hot
bath or get lost in a good book. Typically any craving will pass if you wait it
out long enough. But it's important to begin understanding the difference
between true hunger and food cravings. If you are truly hungry, a handful of
nuts or some raw veggies dipped in hummus will sound appetizing, so go ahead
and eat one of your healthy snacks. But if you're craving something sweet or a
specific sugary food, use a distraction technique.
The first week of
saying no to sugar will be the hardest, but the more diligently you stick to
your plan, the better you'll fare in the end. Even a tiny taste of sugar during
this time period can lead to setbacks.
After a couple
sugar-free weeks, your sugar threshold will start to decrease and you will find
that you no longer crave sugar or sweets as you once did. As with any lifestyle
change, the first couple of weeks are the hardest. Eventually, it will become
habit to reach for a mint tea or piece of fruit instead of juice and candy.
Week 4: Game Plan for Life
Now that you have yanked
that sweet tooth, it's time to devise a plan to prevent a sugar relapse.
Although sugar isn't necessary for health and it's perfectly fine if you want
to continue avoiding it, it probably isn't realistic for most people to avoid
all forms of sugar forever.
So if you want to
allow a little sweetness back into your life, that's OK. Moderation. Don't let
sugar and sweets become a daily habit. Instead, consider them to be special
occasion treats only. With your lowered threshold for sweetness, that shouldn't
be too hard. But if you begin to indulge too often or overindulge over a short
period of time (such as a weeklong vacation), you could find yourself back in
trouble with sugar all over again.
If you slip up, don’t
beat yourself up over it. Accept your action and decide to make a better
decision next time and move on. Continue to experiment with your new, healthy
foods and recipes. You'd be surprised at how many ways you can make treats
healthier and use far less sugar than a recipe suggests.
And remember: It
generally takes about 3-4 weeks for a new behavior to become habit, the most
important thing is to stick with it.
