How to Give Up Sugar

Sugar is the cause of a host of different ailments, and everyone knows that it is highly addictive and tough to give up. The main problem is that sugars give our body a quick source of energy, so we get lazy and no longer need to convert more nutritional food into energy. Giving up sugar can be very tough, since it's virtually everywhere in our society. Here are some tips on how to give it up and change to a healthier diet.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Lots of self-control
• Lots of alternative snacks as substitutes for sugary ones (see ideas in article)
• A place to write down goals (journal or diary)

1. Sugar is a tough habit to break. Most of us have first-hand experience with this. A good way to start is to set realistic goals. One needs to train the body to get used to making real energy from real food again. Therefore, step number one should be something attainable, such as "I will no longer drink sodas, starting tomorrow." This will vary depending on how much sugar you are accustomed to having in one day. Don't worry about the kinds of sugars yet, or processed foods with sugar. You can tackle that later. If you are highly addicted to sodas, start with an easier step, such as "no more dessert after my lunch." The important thing is to find something easy to give up in the beginning.

2. Once you have attained the first goal, move to a more challenging item. Instead of skipping one dessert each day, skip all desserts or resolve to have sugar only at noon and 3pm. These are only ideas, and it is up to you to come up with a plan that works. Congratulate yourself on attaining your first goal and be sure to reward yourself with anything BUT sugar or food!

3. The most difficult part of giving up sugar is what comes after the most obvious sources are eliminated. Unless you read labels constantly like I do, you may not be aware that many foods contains sugar, even ones we least suspect. Examples are ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and crackers. At this point in your efforts, you must read all labels, and there is no getting around this. The bright side of this will be that you are more informed about what you put in your body. You will learn about how all kinds of foods affect you. Set your goals for eliminating foods that have sugar, one step at a time.

4. If you are having trouble, don't worry if you give in. That just means that the goal you set was too tough, and you need to adjust it accordingly. Eventually, to get your body to completely stop craving sugar, you must give up not only all refined sugars, but also simple carbs such as white flour products and pasta. Just substitute those for healthier versions, such as whole grain or sprouted breads or spelt pasta. It that isn't your cup of tea, there are plenty of other alternatives. One trip to a health food store, and you will find your next new favorite healthy snack!

Tips & Warnings

• When starting this, phase out all sugar products at home. This means get ready for those cravings by keeping a large enough variety of snack foods that do not have sugar, or if you need to start more slowly, only those with reduced sugar.
• Sugar substitutes do not help. Forget about switching to diet sodas or other artificially sweetened foods to break your habit. Those substances are also addictive and can actually cause you other problems not to mention the fact that they could even make you gain weight!
• If you need to break the habit more slowly, a way to do this is to first substitute natural sugars for the highly refined ones. This means instead of grabbing a cookie out of desperation, grab some raw honey. Atleast your body will recognize the nutrients. Fruit is a great nutritional energizer, as well as molasses and maple syrup. You will still get a burst of energy but it won't take so much of a toll on your body.
• Keep healthy snacks in your purse, at your desk at work, in your car, and where you sit and relax at home. Force yourself to grab what you have. Don't give in to vending machines... keep telling yourself that it is bad quality food made with cheap ingredients, and that you will feel so much better with great nutrition.
• When you know you will be faced with sugary foods, such as at the movies, take snacks with you. Always be one step ahead.
• Of course, anyone with serious health issues should first consult a doctor. I am not a doctor, but a person with experience in dealing with this issue. I can only make these suggestions to those who do not suffer from health issues such as diabetes, etc... There are plenty of natural practitioners who can help resolve other more serious health concerns.
• If you tend to fall back on old habits, decide to really make a change and stick to it by writing your goals down, and BE SPECIFIC. Then, make sure that you aren't tempted. It's very hard considering there is Starbucks everywhere, for example.

[gurso27]

on 9/21/2009 good ideas! i should try this out!

[veronica1987]

on 9/21/2009 thanks for sharing

[FrazzledNanny]

on 4/6/2009 Great article on giving up sugar. 5*

[p-mari]

on 12/11/2008 The naturally occuring sugars contained in milk and fruit for example are much more easily digested by the body than the processed sugars found in sweets like cakes and icecream. If your're cutting out sugar from a fatloss point of view keep the fruit to a maximum of 2 pieces a day (approx 1 cup = 1 piece) and opt for lower GI fruits like apples so you dont get a sudden craving for more. No dont give up natural sugars, these are needed for essestinal bodily processes and ruling them out often results in cravings.

[jessotron]

on 3/26/2008 Oops, last comment got cut off, but you get the idea. Good article and thanks for the tips!