There’s loads of talk about quitting sugar at the moment. It’s becoming more and more apparent just what sugar does to the body. And it’s not the odd slice of cake or chocolate bar that’s really the problem, it’s the fact that the majority of us (even if we don’t think we are) are reliant on sugar.
There’s no question that the majority of us use sugar as a crutch, and not to mention all the hidden sugars that we’re consuming (think low fat goods, tinned soup, white bread etc).
The reason I’m posting this today is I stumbled upon a pretty cool little video from TED lessons about how sugar affects the brain. I’ll pop the video on the end of this post – it’s well worth a watch and only 5 minutes out of your life.
But I also wanted to briefly share what sugar really does to your body. I’m going to admit, I’m just starting out on trying to eliminate sugar from my diet, it’s something that’s been talked about a LOT during my studies with IIN and it’s not easy, but the facts, really do speak for themselves.
The thing is with sugar and this is something that’s been apparent to me for a while is that whilst it’s as dangerous and addictive as hard drugs, it takes a slower approach when it comes to damaging our health. You don’t sit down with a bucket of haribo one night and die straight away from your sugar binge, it’s a slow, destructive process that only really shows itself when the damage is done (i.e obesity and diabetes).
So here are 3 things that sugar is doing to our bodies…
Sugar increases fat storing. Insulin is one of the most important hormones in the body for when it comes to weight loss. When we eat sugar this causes a spike in blood sugar levels (hyperglycemia). Of course if we’re exercising we can burn that off but if we’re sat at our desk or watching tv then it will turn to fat.
Sugar disrupts normal brain function. Mood swings, energy dips, depression, anxiety…are all affected by sugar intake. The brain is made mostly of fat and although runs on glucose it gets “shorted out” with too much sugar. So decrease sugar and increase fat intake to see a difference in your moods.
Sugar decreases your overall health. Too much sugar will lower your overall immune system, increase destructive inflammation, lead to essential mineral deficiencies in the body, feed bad bacteria growth in your gut (all health starts in the gut) and other scary stuff.
I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure I need any more reason to cut back on sugar.
Here’s that video I was telling you about earlier…
Here’s another interesting snippet about how sugar hides in plain sight by Robert Lustig…
im currently making a real effort to avoid any non natural sugars and it’s made a huge difference in my motivation levels and overall well being
It does make a huge difference. I think you crave it less too which obviously, when you don’t crave sweet stuff as much you’re much less likely to stick your hand in the biscuit tin.
good post very informative, i hate to say it but i’m addicted to sugar especially sweets!
you’re not the only one x
I tried giving up on my sugar in my cup of tea once and started to get headaches , I know its not good for me and I do need to cut down , i do keep trying
have you tried bulletproof coffee? if you up your fat in take (avocado, butter etc) then you should find your blood sugars stabilise a bit and you won’t get the head pain.