It’s must be so devastating for you when one tells you to quit sugar!! That heavenly feeling and satisfaction that you get after having delicious chocolate pastry, chocolate, halwa or even sweet coffee is definitely like no other! But then what about the effects it has on our body? Let’s start counting them!
Insulin
Sugar causes insulin spike in our bloodstream thus inducing fat storage in the body. It inhibits secretion of the hormone that sends our brain the signal to stop eating as the stomach is full. So you end up overeating because you don’t realize you are full although you are. When you eat anything high on refined sugar the bloodstream, there is a rush in your bloodstream. That rush gives you immediate satisfaction but at the cost of a crash that follows immediately. This crash makes you feel tired and leaves you in a state where you would crave for more sugar and the vicious cycle thus goes on.
The satiety hormone
It also interrupts with the secretion of satiety hormone. Thus you end up eating more than needed for satiety as the signals to the brain get delayed. Another hormone that it impacts is the happiness hormone. So the instant gratification that you get out of eating sweet dish is gradually leading to unhappiness and anxiety.
Now all these facts do not boil down to quitting sugar completely! No lock comes without a key so there are numerous solutions for relishing sweet taste buds while keeping it healthy. Let’s explore few:
To start with, completely quitting sugar isn’t a universal and absolute way to be healthier. Every food item has its own importance in our bodies. Certain organizations recommend 20 grams of sugar per day for women and 36 gram for men to be in healthy limits.  But this accounts for the total consumption. The mistake you commit is to overlook the sneaky sources and leave them unaccounted! Some surprising examples are- Bread, milk, whole wheat bread, whole grain cereals, granola.
-
Proteins
Eat a lot of proteins for breakfast. Protein takes time to digest and keeps stomach full. Having a good and protein-rich breakfast makes you eat significantly fewer calories in subsequent meals. The nutrition from protein and the total calorie consumption that it decreases makes it a great way to keep blood sugar in control and also lose weight.
-
Honey
The refined sugar that we eat is obtained from natural sources by several industrial processes that rip off all the vitamins and minerals from natural sugar and leave behind sugar that has zero nutritional value and 100 percent calories. While metabolizing this sugar the cells use up their mineral and micronutrient store thereby depleting it. Honey is a natural source of sugar that contains a number of nutrients and not empty calories which make it a great choice. Besides glucose and fructose, honey contains at least 60 substances beneficial for human bodies like Potassium, Magnesium, Sulfur, Copper, Sodium, and Iron.
-
Coconut sugar
      Coconut sugar is obtained from the sweet sap of coconut palm tree. It is very less processed as compared to refined sugar. Additionally, it contains Zinc, Potassium, Calcium, and Iron. Inulin- an ingestible carbohydrate that nourishes the good bacteria in our body, is one component of it.Â
 4. Dates
Since time and again dates have been regarded as a great source of iron. It sure comes packed with other nutrients like Vitamin B6, Manganese, Niacin, Copper.
 5. Maple syrup
     Maple syrup is obtained from the sap of maple trees. It’s a vicious and sweet liquid high in antioxidants. It also contains minerals like Potassium, Zinc, Manganese, Iron. But it is quite high in sugar as compared to other alternatives, yet better than the white one.
 6. Stevia
       A shrub found in the United States, extract of Stevia has been found to act as a great natural sweetener. It has no calories or not associated with any kind of weight gain. But it is not of significant nutritional value as the leaves lose their nutritional value in the form that is available for use in the market.
It is an inseparable element of our daily food. Neither is it possible nor advised to completely eliminate sugar from the diet. Careful tracking of the amount of it in the food that we eat and choosing alternatives wisely is a great way to keep away from harmful effects of it.