15Apr
Sugar: The Silent Villain
For me, sugar is the #1 thing that causes the most health problems. I can attribute so many physical and mental ailments to excess sugar consumption in my own life. Sure, I can avoid sugar by laying off baked goods and soda. That’s pretty simple. But do you know where sugar hides in your food? Even if you read your labels to look for sugar, you may be missing how much is actually in your food.
Sugar goes by so many other names. Sucrose, dextrose, high fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, maltose, barley malt, and corn sugar are just a few of the pseudo-names that companies use to mask added sugar. Even natural sugars like honey and real maple syrup can have detrimental effects on the body if consumed too much. But what happens when we eat sugar?
First of all, sugar lights up your brain just like cocaine or heroine. Your body has the same kind of satiated reaction when you consume sugar. However, once the sugar wears off, or you “come down” off the sugar high, you are left craving the next fix. It becomes an addiction, one I had to break myself. I’ll be honest, it was worse than quitting smoking. It downright sucked. I have now been off sugar for more than 2 years and my overall physical and mental health are so much better. No more migraines (I had them 4-5 times per week!), menstrual disfunction, repeated sinus infections, digestive issues, inability to lose weight, and my skin look so much better!
So what’s the first step you should take? The first thing to understand is that substituting out “sugar free” products isn’t the way to go. Sugar substitutes are just as bad, if not worse, than sugar. They have their own list of health problems associated with them. The best thing you can do for yourself is to read labels. Be diligent at knowing what is in your foods. And try to stay away from as much packaged and processed foods as you can. When in doubt, skip it. You might miss out on a treat or free office food, but your body will thank you for it.
Need more in depth information or help kicking sugar? Book a free consultation with me! Click HERE to get started today.
