The nutritional message that no one wants to hear

Well, I won’t keep you in suspense. The message has to do with sugar.

You may be thinking that everyone knows that sugar is bad. And that seems to be true. But not everyone stays away from him. And that is a problem, or at least a problem that is waiting to happen.

Not connecting the dots

When I was training to be a life coach, one of the instructor trainers was 40 to 50 pounds overweight. One day she said, “I’m addicted to sugar, but that’s fine with me.”

This woman clearly did not link her sugar addiction to her weight or any of the health problems she had. That’s what I would call not connecting the dots.

Cravings that never go away

I get newsletters with articles on sugar cravings that “never seem to go away.” The various authors present themselves as experts in nutrition. As a solution, they usually recommend products, which you can buy! – that tastes like chocolate and takes away sugar cravings.

Apparently, whatever these experts do with their daily meal plans doesn’t stop cravings from coming back.

Fact: Sugar cravings definitely go away over time, potentially permanently, so it’s a red flag for me if a nutrition ‘expert’ doesn’t know how to make that happen for themselves or clients.

Fall in love with sexy and sneaky sugars

The list of these is quite long: agave nectar, coconut sugar, maple syrup, fruit (yes, fruit), fruit juice, honey, monk fruit extracts, date paste, and more.

It wouldn’t be surprising to find that someone who uses these sneaky sugars is addicted to them or has cravings that never seem to completely go away. After all, they are sugar.

Which brings us to Paleo menus

I’m on a lot of lists and often get Paleo dessert and treat menus that use some of the sneaky sugars above. They are delicious, they tell us.

My wisdom on this is simple: “Delicious” is suspect.

And sugar is sugar. That’s definitely not what anyone wants to hear, but it’s true.

Fruits and vegetables

What can I say? I wish people would stop grouping these two together. It makes them look equally healthy, and they are not.

Fructose, the sugar in fruit, is a particularly harmful sugar. In fact, it’s what makes sucrose (half fructose, half glucose) the garbage we know it to be. In enlightened science, all researchers seem to know this. If only the rest of us were willing to accept that!

A couple of servings of fruit a day is probably fine for most people. A serving is ½ cup or 1 medium fruit.

However, some fruits can trigger an addictive reaction in some people. Self-awareness and self-honesty are key survival tools, and far better than following any conventional push toward trend sugars.

I had to change my message

Several months ago, when I joined a women’s networking group, I made the mistake of presenting myself as a sugar addiction expert in my 30-second speech. It led to nothing but fear. People are afraid of dealing with sugar addiction, most likely because they know what happens when they run out of sugar for a long period of time.

But I’ll end with this important message because it really matters more than ever:

• Sugar is at the center of the obesity epidemic. Not fat, not oversized.

• Sugar increases appetite.

• Sugar leads to the consumption of extra fat. Many foods high in sugar contain fat. Fat also makes sugar taste sweeter, so foods with sugar and fat encourage overeating and calories can add up quickly.

• Sugar can increase blood pressure. More than salt.

• Sugar can increase serum cholesterol. More than fat.

• Sugar can increase triglycerides. More than fat.

• Sugar can cause type 2 diabetes. Yes, it can.

• Sugar can contribute to mood swings, anxiety, depression, and other mood problems.

• Sugar can interfere with optimal brain concentration and work productivity.

I contend that it can be easy to give up sugar if you know how, and get rid of cravings in the long run.