Kicking the Sugar Habit- Challenge

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  • heatherlee33
    heatherlee33 Posts: 113 Member
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    Wow so this got out of control
  • obscuremusicreference
    obscuremusicreference Posts: 1,320 Member
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    Wow so this got out of control

    All sugar threads do. Listen, the day I stopped putting sugar in the "bad" category is the day I stopped craving it constantly. I eat less added sugar than I did when I demonized it. And I'm not beating myself up and eating more calories than I should.

    If you feel this is necessary for your health and diet, go for it. I wish you success.

    ps You don't have any junk to wash out.
  • Blueseraphchaos
    Blueseraphchaos Posts: 843 Member
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    I had to cut out added sugar entirely for awhile in order to be able to eat it in moderation. So by all means, go for it. Just ignore any nasty comments that come your way.
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
    edited February 2015
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    This always happens because people claim to be addicted to sugar and call food junk.

    The best advice I can give you is to not withhold food from yourself - to enjoy things in moderation.

    If you can't successfully do that, then you should probably cut out extra treats for a while. I wouldn't put an arbitrary cap on your sugar intake though.

    Someone suggested therapy because you claimed to be addicted to sugar - if you were actually addicted, therapy would be an excellent idea.
  • mindy2808
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    Thanks for the well wishes! I know this is something that I need to do to snap things back into line.

  • mindy2808
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    I'm the same way I love cakes, candy, and anything sweet love chocolate so I try to do something about it and that when I saw a book called 10 day detox and that help me a lot with my sugar cravings. I did the detox and it had help me a lot with my sugar cravings. I haven't had no sweets for 5 days now. You could look into this good luck
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    herrspoons wrote: »
    elphie754 wrote: »
    whouwannab wrote: »
    I'm in!! For me it's eliminating candy, cookies, ice cream, soda - things of that nature. Starting now! I ate candy corn earlier today, so obviously i have a problem with sugar cravings! ha

    No. You have an issue with self control. Sorry to be blunt but the craving doesn't make you eat the food. You choose to eat it.

    She speaks the truth.

    OP, good luck with your plan, but I'm out.

    I too agree. It's all about free will.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    edited February 2015
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    herrspoons wrote: »
    Technically speaking, sugar is just sugar. It's not unhealthy if your intake is moderate, so it doesn't matter if you get it from fruit or cookies.

    That said, cutting back on sugar you don't really need is a reasonable way of reducing calories, which is what drives weight loss.

    Me? I'll stick with a sugary protein bar or cookie a day, just not the whole bag.

    how much sugar is considered moderate? I never bothered tracking sugar in the past and just added it to my diary yesterday because all the sugar threads made me curious. Based on the mfp limits, some days I'm way over even though I'm within my calorie goals and some days I'm under, but only by a little. Are the mfp limits accurate for what is considered moderate? Does it matter if I'm within my calorie goals anyway?
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.

    And, that's sugar moderation. But, it is only a recommendation.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
    edited February 2015
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    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.

    okay, so "moderate" is actually very low and extremely easy to exceed. I went way over moderate yesterday, specifically because of the added sugar yogurt, oh and that awesome tangerine juice i drank (28 grams of sugar). I eat wallaby australian style, mostly for the calcium and now I add chia seeds in it for fiber, but it has tons of sugar. Plain yogurt does not taste good though, so I wouldn't switch to it.

    I'm actually underweight after my weightloss though and not diabetic, so do I need to actually worry about sugar intake?

  • acheben
    acheben Posts: 476 Member
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    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.
    That guideline is only for added sugar, but there is no indication on nutrition labels of what is added sugar and what is naturally occurring sugar.

  • Jolinia
    Jolinia Posts: 846 Member
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    acheben wrote: »
    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.
    That guideline is only for added sugar, but there is no indication on nutrition labels of what is added sugar and what is naturally occurring sugar.

    That's because the cunning boogers bought our government. A simple way around that is to not eat foods with a label. Just buy from the produce and meat sections and make your own food.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
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    acheben wrote: »
    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.
    That guideline is only for added sugar, but there is no indication on nutrition labels of what is added sugar and what is naturally occurring sugar.

    sure, but i'm guessing that a lot of the sugar in yogurt with the fruit in it is added sugar. even if you consider that, these limits are very low. it would take a conscious effort to not exceed them, at least for me.

    just wondering if it matters.
  • acheben
    acheben Posts: 476 Member
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    Aviva92 wrote: »
    acheben wrote: »
    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.
    That guideline is only for added sugar, but there is no indication on nutrition labels of what is added sugar and what is naturally occurring sugar.

    sure, but i'm guessing that a lot of the sugar in yogurt with the fruit in it is added sugar. even if you consider that, these limits are very low. it would take a conscious effort to not exceed them, at least for me.

    just wondering if it matters.
    According to the AHA, going over on sugars doesn't hurt, it just isn't efficient.
    "Although sugars are not harmful to the body, our bodies don’t need sugars to function properly. Added sugars contribute additional calories and zero nutrients to food. " - AHA Sugar 101

    Their real concern is that excess sugar can lead to weight gain and then obesity.
  • Aviva92
    Aviva92 Posts: 2,333 Member
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    acheben wrote: »
    Aviva92 wrote: »
    acheben wrote: »
    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.
    That guideline is only for added sugar, but there is no indication on nutrition labels of what is added sugar and what is naturally occurring sugar.

    sure, but i'm guessing that a lot of the sugar in yogurt with the fruit in it is added sugar. even if you consider that, these limits are very low. it would take a conscious effort to not exceed them, at least for me.

    just wondering if it matters.
    According to the AHA, going over on sugars doesn't hurt, it just isn't efficient.
    "Although sugars are not harmful to the body, our bodies don’t need sugars to function properly. Added sugars contribute additional calories and zero nutrients to food. " - AHA Sugar 101

    Their real concern is that excess sugar can lead to weight gain and then obesity.

    oh okay, so if I'm underweight I'm not really going to worry about that.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    edited February 2015
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    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.

    To be fair, a decent percentage of that is fruit and milk sugar.

    To the thread in general regarding the MFP sugar allowance, you're going to see sugars from veggies, fruits, and dairy in your sugar totals in addition to added sugars. I very rarely have added sugar and yet I can come close to my total in just veggies and dairy alone (being a vegetarian, dairy is a big source of protein for me). Heaven forbid I eat 2 servings of fruit. That puts me over.

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited February 2015
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    "The American Heart Association recommends limiting intake of added sugar to 5 teaspoons for women and 9 teaspoons for men. For reference, one 12-ounce can of cola contains about 8 teaspoons of added sugar, for about 130 calories. Most American women should eat or drink no more than 100 calories per day from added sugars, and most American men should eat or drink no more than 150 calories per day form added sugars. Unfortunately, Americans are consuming 22 and 30 teaspoons of the sweet stuff each day."

    5 teaspoons = 20 grams. 9 teaspoons = 36 grams. For reference, one Yoplait yogurt with the goopy "fruit" on the bottom contains 28 grams. And it is promoted as some sort of "health" food.

    I don't think people think of "Yoplait" as health food (I like Fage plain which has no added sugar, although it has sugar, of course), but you also have to separate out the "added" sugar from the inherent sugar in dairy and fruit. I don't know how much of the sugar in the Yoplait is added.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    acheben wrote: »
    Their real concern is that excess sugar can lead to weight gain and then obesity.

    Same with the WHO's explanation of their limits: the concern is excess calories and not getting enough nutrients. So if one tracks, and knows one is eating a nutrient rich diet and not exceeding calories, no worries.