How to Kick a Sugar Addiction
If you’re like me, you spent a lot of your life thinking fat was bad and sugar was no big deal. We now know that over consumption of modern forms of processed sugar, white flour and vegetable oils are the main contributors to obesity, diabetes, heart disease, depression, anxiety, autoimmune disease, digestive distress and many other forms of stress and dysfunction in the human body.
The good news is that these are diseases of malnutrition and toxic overload and the way to resolve them is to increase consumption of deeply nourishing foods that will help the body regenerate and activate more healthful rhythms.
In order to be a thriving human on planet earth, we need to be well nourished. Sugar, white flours and poor quality fats deplete the body of nutrients. Because these are a significant portion of most people’s diets, many people have been struggling with malnourishment for many years, even if they are overweight.
With a bit of mindfulness, purpose, and an understanding of modern and ancestral knowledge about what is appropriate food for humans to eat, anyone can kick a sugar-carb addiction and regain control of their lives and their health.
Sugar Busting strategies
In order to overcome sugar addiction, we have to retrain our bodies to utilize fat for energy rather than sugar and refined carbs. We have to eat good quality fats that our bodies need and eliminate poor quality and GMO fats like soy, corn, canola, rapeseed, margarine, Pam, so prevalent in the American food system.
First, begin to bring more vegetables and more good fats into your diet. Good fats to eat liberally include: Fats from healthy wild, grass fed or pasture raised animals, olive oil, olives, coconut oil, avocados, avocado oil, egg yolks from healthy chickens or ducks, nuts and seeds, and raw, full fat dairy products for those who can tolerate dairy.
Try to overload your body with the good stuff! You can never eat too many veggies (as long as you’re getting a big variety) and you really can’t eat too much fat either, as long as your carbs are in balance.
Once you have developed strategies for eating more veggies and more good fats, begin to decrease (and eventually eliminate) sugar, corn syrups, and refined flour products like bread, pasta, cookies, donuts, breakfast cereal, etc. Even the ones that claim they are whole grains should be eliminated. One of the easiest ways to make this transition is to avoid all processed and packaged foods.
Root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, beets and yucca are great options for your carbohydrate needs. Rice, whole grains and beans are ok for some people. These carbs should always be eaten in moderation and always with protein, fats and veggies during this sugar-busting protocol.
In making this transition towards more complete nourishment, feed yourself abundantly. You are aiming for three big, fat-filled well rounded meals a day with huge amounts of veggies and more fat than you are used to eating.
Finally, eat with friends and family whenever possible. Create a community of people who want to eat healthier with you. This makes it so much more fun. But even if you are trying it on your own, enjoy yourself! Make it a low stress exploration. Eating well, developing a positive relationship with food, and nourishing your amazing, beautiful body and mind is such an important form of self care. You deserve it, so enjoy!
(Originally published in the Chaffee County Times, Friday, July 21, 2017.)
