This article was originally published in the Daily Mail.
More and more academics and medics around the world are leading the charge by quitting sugar and cutting back on carbohydrates, as research highlights the destructive impact on health of high blood sugar levels.
The sugar-free message forms an important part of the ‘clean eating’ and Paleo movements, which are gaining popularity among the rich and famous. However, unless you have a personal nutritionist on speed dial, it can be difficult to contemplate living your whole life without sugar, eating far fewer carbohydrates than is the norm.
If you know you are addicted to sugar, and worry about the power it has over you, aim to reset your body. Keep sugar cravings at bay by sticking to the weight-loss version of the sugar-free eating plan for eight weeks, regardless of whether or not you have weight to lose.
This plan keeps total carbohydrates at 50g per day (or up to 120g if you’re very active). If you relax your control too soon and let sugar and refined carbohydrates creep back before your system has truly settled, you run the risk of undoing the good work already done.
For the rest of us, it is just useful to think of the diet plan as a great starting point. Once your weight or cravings have settled, you can think about building on this plan to create a long-term blueprint that suits your life and your body.
After a few weeks without sugar, your body should start telling you what it needs to remain healthy — signals that will no longer be masked by sugar cravings and unexplainable hunger.
Watch out for cravings, mood swings — often caused by intense highs and lows in your blood sugar — or weight gain. These are signs that your carbohydrate intake might have crept up and could do with a little adjusting.
To find your ideal level, gradually increase your carbohydrate intake by 5g per day while monitoring your weight, hunger and cravings (see chart on the final page for 5g carbohydrate comparisons).
The ideal sugar-free plan would keep you below 120g total carbs per day, and for your major source to be non-starchy fruit and veg.
Originally posted in: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-3679763/Meat-free-feasts-packed-vitamins-beware-sugar-fruit.html#ixzz4dPXe6PNB
NOTE: Please consult with your health care practitioner before making any changes.
“The Sugar Free Revolution was started to expose the addictive and toxic properties of refined and processed sugar and carbohydrates in our diets, and help people just like you to break their addiction, lose weight, and feel incredible again!”
– Karen Thomson, Founder of The Sugar Free Revolution