From the very moment you first tasted sugar, feel good endorphins flooded your brain and boosted your mood. As time goes on, it takes more sugar to replicate that feeling and without even knowing it, many of us are consuming the equivalent of 53 heaping teaspoons of white sugar every day! We want to help you live a happy and healthy life, and one way to do that is to reduce your sugar intake. Here are our tips:
Reduce Sugar-Filled Drinks
Do you drink any soda throughout your day? What about a sports drink after exercise? Soda, energy drinks, and even sports and fruit drinks have added sugars, and some studies have found they account for 44% of the added sugar in the American diet. Drinks that claim to be healthy often have a shocking amount of added sugar, so keep tabs on the drinks that are a regular part of your diet. Swapping out a few secretly sugary drinks can have a huge impact on your health.
Some alternatives include:
Sparkling water
Flavored water
Unsweetened Herbal or fruit tea
Coffee
Take A Detour On Desserts
Desserts are certainly tasty, but they don’t do a whole lot when it comes to nutritional value. White refined sugar is often referred to as the anti-nutrient because not only does it not provide your body with nutrients, it can actually pull from nutritional stores. Sugar will cause your blood sugar to rise, then crash, which will leave you feeling tired and craving more (you guessed it) sugar! If you are craving something sweet after dinner, you can often curb that craving with healthier choices such as:
Protein packed ice cream (like Halo Top or Enlightened)
Baked fruit
Fresh fruit with whipped cream
Flavored greek yogurt (just watch the added sugars!)
Dark chocolate
Dates
If you can swap out sugar-filled desserts, you will help reduce sugar in your diet while adding important vitamins, fiber, minerals, and antioxidants that your body needs to be healthy.
Stop The Sauce
Sauces and condiments might seem like an innocent way to add more flavor to your food, but many of them have a surprising amount of added sugar. Take ketchup, for example, which has as much as one teaspoon of added sugar…in one tablespoon. Here are some flavorful alternatives:
Pesto
Herbs and spices
Yellow mustard
Chili peppers
Vinegar
Go For Full Fat
You might think the foods with the low-fat labels are the healthier options, but many of them have added sugar and full-fat versions are actually the better choice. Fat helps you to feel full for a longer period of time, and it may reduce the amount of calories you consume in each day. By monitoring your diet and making smart choices, you will be on the right track for reaching and maintaining a healthy weight.
Have questions about other ways to adjust your diet? Just ask during your next chiropractic appointment, or contact us today!
