How long have you been mindlessly eating white sugar? Did it start when your grandma let you stick your wet finger into the sugar bowl, or gave you sugar cubes or rock candy for a treat?
Sugar is more than just a treat that adds weight. It’s a habit that's bad for us in many ways. It fuels cancer cells and leads to diabetes. Sugar also causes inflammation and many other health problems. (1)
Nobody is saying that you should cut out all sweets. But there are healthier ways to sweeten your food, including using raw honey and 100% pure maple syrup.
The problem is…white sugar is hidden in so many of the foods we eat that the amount that we're taking in without realizing it is shocking. (2)
The average American takes in 152 pounds of sugar each year!
Tweet6 Steps to Avoid Hidden White Sugar
1. Avoid processed foods and choose whole foods instead.
When most processed foods are made, sugar is added. Instead of choosing foods in boxes, bags, and cans, choose fresh fruits, produce, meats, poultry, and fish. Make your own tomato sauce using fresh tomatoes.
Eat whole fruit instead of drinking cartons of juice or fruit snacks with added sugar. Make your own salad dressing where you can control both sugar and fats.
2. Choose unflavored yogurt.
Flavored yogurts have a lot of hidden sugar. Choose plain yogurt and add your own fruit. Add crunch by stirring in chopped nuts, sunflower seeds, or flax seeds.
If you need more sweetness, stir in a teaspoon of raw honey or 100% pure maple syrup.
3. Make a rule and stick to it.
Cutting out all sugar is a recipe for disaster, as forbidding yourself anything will make you want it more.
You’re better off setting a limit on sweets, and maybe only at a certain time too. That may mean you only have dessert once per week.
You can help yourself skip sugar by having plenty of fresh fruit in the house and eating it when you want something sweet.
Another way to help yourself is to keep sugary snacks out of the house. Ice cream in the freezer or cookies in the cupboard is too big a sugar temptation.
4. Use Stevia.
One tool for cutting back on sweets are natural sweeteners like Stevia. Stevia is better for you than white sugar and can even be used in baking.
5. Treat yourself to dark chocolate.
It’s hard to feel like you’re being deprived when you’re eating dark chocolate. It is a low-sugar sweet that has many great health benefits. (3)
My favorite guilt-free way to indulge in chocolate is Cacao Bliss. I use it every single day!
6. Cut out alcohol if you can, and if you can’t then cut out mixed drinks.
Alcohol has a lot of sugar, so it’s best to cut it out entirely. If you don’t want to eliminate it, stick to wine or spirits mixed with water or club soda. Soda and juice are both loaded with sugar.
White sugar is everywhere in the standard American diet, but you can cut down the amount you consume drastically by taking these steps.
You might also like:
Top 6 Replacements for Deadly White Sugar
5 Sweeteners to Use Instead of Sugar
THIS Sweetener is WORSE than White Sugar
Yours in health and happiness,
Danette
P.S. Please share this with your friends and family who are looking for ways to avoid sugar. Have you ever felt like you were addicted to white sugar? Comment below!
