F E AT U R E S
Sugar Sabotage Are sweets keeping you from reaching your goals?
Believe it or not, sugar, morphine and drugs like heroine all stimulate the same receptors in your brain that release pleasure hormones and endorphins that signal your body to calm and relax. Does this mean we can actually be addicted to sugar like many other dangerous substances? Absolutely! Since our brains are hardwired to like sugar, we need to take control so we can stay healthy. Sugar is linked to many diseases like heart disease, diabetes and irreversible kidney damage. While indulging in the occasional sweet treat is okay, the bigger problem is when we eat sugar-loaded foods every day. Sugar is added to most processed foods, so chances are if it's convenient, it's probably not giving you the nutrients your body needs.
Would you ever sit down and just eat 22 teaspoon of sugar?
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Hopefully not, but that’s what many Americans do according to the American Heart Association. So how do we stop eating sneaky sugars? The biggest and most important step to take is to read the labels before you buy or consume anything. Sugar content is listed on every nutritional label in the form of grams. For example, a six ounce container of Greek yogurt typically has 15-19 grams of sugar, which is the equivalent of about four teaspoons of sugar, or an additional 75 calories! Every day strive to limit your total sugar intake to 24 grams if you're a woman, or 36 grams if you're a man.
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WAYS TO CURB
SUGAR CRAVINGS
1. Get enough sleep every single night. 2. Cut sodas and juices. 3. Reach for nature's candy - fruit! Add a couple of slices of mango or pineapple to meals for a sweet treat packed with nutrients. 4. If you have to indulge, have a small portion (100 calories or less). Be careful though, as sometimes it's hard to stop at one serving. 5. Keep your pantry stocked with healthy food, then when cravings hit you have to go out of your way to satisfy them. The harder it is to get a treat, the less likely you are to overindulge. 6. Buy fresh fruit often, or try incorporating dried fruit into salads for a satisfying crunch. 7. Sip on some hot tea. 8. Take a multivitamin. Sometimes sugar cravings are your body's signal of a vitamin deficiency. 9. Chew on sugar-free gum.
Sources: heart.org, diabetes.org and nih.gov FALL 2017 | HEALTH TRAXX TEACHERSHEALTHTRUST.ORG
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