Sugar Junkie

The title was just to get your attention... this is a touchy topic. Sugar is everywhere, in almost every food product and has been for a while now. No one really wants to hear why this sweet, white substance can be compared to an addictive drug and I don't blame you. It's passed around the workplace, hidden in goodies, bars and lollies and if you don't accept the offer, the pressure begins.

It gets you through the day and we all look forward to the hit. Similar to why a smoker doesn't really want to hear about how damaging smoking can be for your health... Sugar is the legal, addictive, widely abused, affordable and most easily accessed "sweet poison" of our time.

White sugar is made from the tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum, native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of Asia or the sugar beet plant of the genus Beta vulgaris. Like salt it has history dating back to around the 8th Century, with raw sugar trade from Asia to the Middle East but this is disputable.

Glucose is the form of energy the human body was designed to run on. Every cell in your body from skin, liver to brain, in fact, every living thing on this Earth uses glucose for energy.
Simple carbohydrates are also called simple sugars and are chemically made of one or two sugars (monosaccharides and disaccharides). How long the chain determines if it's a fruit sugar (fructose) or table sugar (glucose) rice malt and honey (maltose) etc. These are digested very quickly by the body providing a quick energy boost.

Complex carbohydrates (starches) are made of three or more linked sugars. Grains, breads, pasta, rice, legumes and some vegetables contain complex carbohydrates. These take longer to digest, resulting with a slower energy release.

Insulin is how your body controls blood sugar levels. When your blood sugar is too low, your body signals hunger. As a result of the hunger signal, you eat and the food is converted to glucose, through the digestive process, which boosts the blood glucose levels and gives you energy.
Refined sugar is detrimental to health because it causes your body to release a large surge of insulin. This seems fine but it places a consistent burden on the pancreas, encourages the body to store fat (especially around the mid section) and causes cells to become insulin resistant. Insulin resistance is when the hormone insulin, becomes less effective at lowering blood sugars. Consistently high insulin levels, results in crashing blood sugar levels. This causes more sugar cravings to get your blood sugar back up and you more energy, only to be let dow again if you continue eating unnatural sugar. Basically, the more refined sugar you eat, the more reliant you are upon it to keep you going and the more damage it does to your body. Risk factors being type 2 diabetes, weight gain, headaches, cavities, mood swings, osteoporosis (poor mineral absorption), addiction, candida, allergies, insulin resistance and poor immunity. Sugar consumption has been linked with cancer...

Whose crazy idea was it to put sugar in everything!?

Let's put it into perspective...
Anything processed or highly refined  is less healthy or simply unhealthy, depending on what and how it's made. Refined white and "brown" sugar, high fructose corn syrup , agave, and artificial sugars (chemical sweeteners) are all highly processed ingredients. I hate to be unpopular but these are best avoided...

Ok, so what are your alternatives...

Artificial Sweeteners??

Sucralose (Splenda), Saccharin, Aspartame, Maltitol and Sorbitol are the most commonly used in food products "diet" drinks, "lite" yogurts and ice creams, "low-carb" and "low-sugar" products, even toothpaste and mouth wash.

These sugar substitutes have been linked to the following, although some not yet conclusive.

*Potential cancer risks
*Negative effects on the liver, kidneys, and other organs and toxicity

*Stimulating cravings

*Gastrointestinal problems

It's a wonder this stuff is in food... really.

I feel we're in a lose-lose situation. On one hand we have white sugar and co. (at least a food product) bombarding our health yet the artificial sugar arena has us risking as much, if not more!

Natural Sugar Goodness :))))

Finally, something fun to write about.

I don't think all sugar is bad for your health, that would be a silly idea, considering it's the body's preferred fuel source but I think you need to be picky with what and how much sweetness you need. Keep in mind people that exercise more, naturally need more fuel to burn off.

Stevia- This is the best no calorie sweetener but you need to get used to it because it's around 300 times sweeter than sugar. Stevia is a herb that has been used as a sweetener in South America for hundreds of years.

Fruit- Suprise! you couldn't possibly ask for a better alternative than the real deal. You can use fruit as a snack, smoothie, juice or in your cooking. Think medjool dates, figs, sultanas and other dried fruit for your baked goodies and any ripe berry, melon or tree fruit to munch on. Fruit is made for the body, I have no questions about it.

Honey- Local, raw honey has amazing health benefits and it's sweet and easy to use but don't over do a good thing. A tablespoon a day on your muesli is enough.

Maple syrup- A highly mineralised and unique flavour, easy to use. Great in cooking and making chocolate. Again, this isn't to be used and abused...

Coconut sugar- instead of the "brown" stuff sold in the shops. Much nicer flavour too.

These natural sweeteners will still affect insulin levels (except the stevia extract), the idea is to wean off the white sugar and replace it sparingly with these. However, fruit contains fibre, water and minerals and is a complete food, natural, untouched and ready to eat. Keep in mind that increasing your exercise will allow you to burn sugar/ energy more effectively and in a perfect world you'd like to get most of your sugar intake from fruit only- it has been done.

Other complex carbohydrates such as basmati or brown rice, whole oats, buckwheat, barley, spelt, root vegetables, whole grain, rye and sourdough breads are also fine. I swear by them...

Love
Ulyana...