7 effective ways to quit sugar
Sugar is an easily digestible refined product that is not of particular value to the modern human body. The consumption of sugar in food is based rather on a psychological dependence, caused by the desire to pamper yourself with something tasty, and later on biological, due to the body's need for glucose as a result of large releases of insulin into the blood. Such a cycle of insulin and glucose with a constant increase in the portions of sugar is not harmless and can cause cardiac disorders, a decrease in immunity, the development of hypoglycemia, and then diabetes mellitus. The only way to break the vicious circle is to eliminate sugar from the diet. How to do this with the least loss - we will consider below.
Find the cause of your addiction
Digestible carbohydrates are the most readily available source of serotonin (the "pleasure hormone"), which the body needs to fight bad moods. Having got used to the use of sugar as a way to overcome stress, the body becomes dependent on the next portion of sweet, like a drug. According to statistics, more than 50% of those with a sweet tooth experience a psychological dependence on sugar, and refusal from it is accompanied by a strong "brittleness". Having realized the reason for his need for sweets, it is easier to switch to getting serotonin from other sources (from sports, hobbies, communication with pleasant people): a person realizes that only habit is the cause of his discomfort, and changes it.
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Observe the diet
So that the body, which needs glucose, does not prompt to fill its deficiency in the simplest way, it is recommended to eat at least 4-5 times a day in small portions. This will eliminate the occurrence of severe hunger during the day and reduce the likelihood of a breakdown with a snack of something sweet. During the period of sugar refusal, breakfast is mandatory - with a full stomach it is much easier to keep from snacking, especially if the morning meal contains protein products (cheese, fish, cottage cheese) that cause long-term satiety.
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Eliminate sources of sugar from your diet
Its main sources in the daily diet are sweets, cookies, and chocolate. Determine what you use most and stop buying it. The share of sugar in products such as ketchup, sausage, mustard is acceptable, but if a person wants to give up sugar as much as possible, it is worth reducing the number of such products in his menu.
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Enrich your diet with complex carbohydrates
Unlike easily digestible, complex carbohydrates do not cause a sharp increase in sugar levels, being digested for a long time in the stomach and promoting a slow flow of glucose into the blood. Such products fully satisfy the body's need for carbohydrates as the main suppliers of energy and exclude the appearance of hunger and cravings for sweets for 3-4 hours after a meal. Sources of complex carbohydrates are whole grain cereals, legumes, vegetables (tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, onions, eggplants, cabbage), wholemeal flour products, etc. It is recommended to include them in the diet at least twice in the morning, with special restrictions no.
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Switch to fruit
Fruits are the most valuable source of sugar and can completely replace refined products. Although fructose is, in fact, a sugar of natural origin, it is safer to make up for the lack of carbohydrates with its help, if only because insulin is not required to assimilate fructose. When giving up sugar, doctors recommend switching attention to fruits, dried fruits and honey - they increase blood glucose levels to a lesser extent and fully satisfy the body's need for sweets.
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Avoid sugary drinks
Avoiding sugar in its traditional form and confectionery, many people make the mistake of continuing to consume soda, packaged juices, sports drinks, sugary tea and coffee. "Liquid calories" are insidious: for example, 0.5 liters of lemonade contains about 15 tsp. sugar at a conditionally safe product rate of 6 tsp. per day. According to doctors, 1 liter of soda drunk per day increases the risk of developing acquired diabetes in children by 60%, and in middle-aged women by 80%.
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Change gradually
Refusal from sugar should not be accompanied by physical or mental discomfort exceeding the permissible limits - dizziness, trembling in the limbs, depression. In the first two cases, it is recommended to consult a doctor: feeling unwell may be a sign of metabolic disorders, which, with a sharp restriction of sugar consumption, first manifested themselves or worsened. It is more correct to switch to a healthy diet gradually, observing the changes in the body. If the lack of sugar in food causes a prolonged depression, apathy, it means that motivation is not strong enough, it is difficult for the psyche to cope with changes. Gradually reducing the proportion of sugar in the diet will make the transition from a "sweet life" to a healthy one less painful and more successful.
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Maria Kulkes Medical journalist About the author
Education: First Moscow State Medical University named after I. M. Sechenov, specialty "General Medicine".
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