Eliminating White Bread and White Sugar

It is a good thing. I do not eat any of those, mostly because I am allergic to gluten and corn and those products have it in it. Also those products create yeast in the body if eaten too much of it, which most people do. Yeast or candida causes many health issues, so you are better off without it. There are healthier choices to substitute for those things.

I'm a little disappointed in a lot of these responses. I've also eliminated all of the things in your list, replaced them with whole wheat versions. To me, health is more than calorie intake. I'd rather go over my calorie limit with healthy foods, high in fiber, etc than be under my calorie full of sugar and refined, manufactured food.

It's all personal choice so take all of our opinions with a grain of salt and listen to your body. I totally support what you're doing though, because I've done the same thing and feel so much better.

I'm a little disappointed in a lot of these responses. I've also eliminated all of the things in your list, replaced them with whole wheat versions. To me, health is more than calorie intake. I'd rather go over my calorie limit with healthy foods, high in fiber, etc than be under my calorie full of sugar and refined, manufactured food.

It's all personal choice so take all of our opinions with a grain of salt and listen to your body. I totally support what you're doing though, because I've done the same thing and feel so much better.

There isn't significant difference in nutritional value when going from white to wheat to affect health. Lots of people misinterpret that whole wheat is MUCH better when it comes to nutritional value.
Personally I like the taste of wheat bread over white, but when it comes to rice, it's always going to be white.

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I did not totally eliminate them. I just avoid them as much as I can. And whenever I can, I use coconut sugar instead of white sugar.

What color is coconut sugar?

Brown, like brown sugar.

Ah, so it must be healthy!

;-)

But wait! Donuts are brown.

Hello MFP world,

I am starting on a new diet where I am not going to be eating white breads, white sugar, white pastas, white potatoes, or white rice. I am eliminating these from my diet. I am needing to know how well others have done with something like this and offer any advice or recipes/snacks to have with a diet like this. Thanks so much!!!!!

Instead of mashed potato, I put a cauliflower through the juicer, discard the juice and put butter and/or cream, salt and herbs in the pulp (line the pulp catcher with a plastic bag).

This can also be frozen into single servings which I heat up by throwing in the microwave. Instant mash!

I also use this instead of rice in curries (but without the butter/salt and herbs).

I have little tupperware container salads instead of sandwiches. Sometimes those 'salads' are grated cheese, sliced roast beef and aioli. No lettuce or leaves.

And every week I boil up 10 or so eggs that are kept in a bag in the fridge at work - a little salt and they make an excellent snack!

In the "I hate it when people on MFP say" thread, someone said they hate it when people say to substitute cauliflower for things in recipes... I had no idea what they were talking about, I had never heard of it. I guess now I have. Interesting. Is that even remotely like mashed potatoes? I can't stand cauliflower, so I obviously won't be doing that, I'm just curious. It kind of made me gag a little thinking about it. What's wrong with mashed potatoes?

In the "I hate it when people on MFP say" thread, someone said they hate it when people say to substitute cauliflower for things in recipes... I had no idea what they were talking about, I had never heard of it. I guess now I have. Interesting. Is that even remotely like mashed potatoes? I can't stand cauliflower, so I obviously won't be doing that, I'm just curious. It kind of made me gag a little thinking about it. What's wrong with mashed potatoes?

This is always my question. I like cauliflower a lot, and eat it a lot (usually just roasted with some olive oil). I also like potatoes a lot and eat them a lot (not quite as much, I suppose). Mainly also roasted with some olive oil (yeah, I'm boring), but I sometimes mash them. When I'm eating them with roasted chicken (the best way, IMO, although steak is also nice with them), I basically mash them up plain or sometimes with some garlic and skim milk, because I mix them with the meat and don't need butter too. My guess is that cauliflower plus butter and cream (depending on the amount) and juiced to remove some of the fiber wouldn't actually be a nutritional improvement to the potatoes (especially roasted potatoes with the skin) or remarkably less in calories (butter!), so it just feels like some kind of demonization of the potato to me.

I am not actually bugged by people making chocolate cake or whatever out of cauliflower, but as a cauliflower lover I find it odd that people think the highest and best use of the vegetable is to mimic other things. And as someone a little picky about texture cauliflower mashed just doesn't sound appealing, even though potatoes are fine that way. (I admit this is weird of me, though. I also hate shredded carrots, although I like normal carrots.)

For me, eliminating most refined sugar was the best thing I ever did because sugar is truly empty calories, in the sense that it does absolutely nothing to fill me up.

And when you are cutting calories, you want to eat foods that fill you up, otherwise you will fail at weight loss.

A two egg ommelette with a little cheese, sautéed onions and mushrooms for breakfast keeps me full for a long time. Two donuts or a pastry with orange juice (OJ is loaded with sugar) does nothing to keep me full. Calorically, they are about the same.

But maybe that's just me.

I'd agree with you that eggs are more filling. But every now and then, I just want a donut. Now, I fully understand that I cannot have a donut every day. But conversely, I don't want to think I can never have one again, either.

I said MOST refined sugar.

I think that's what many people are telling her, though. Sure make different choices most of the time, but there's no reason to subject yourself to an arbitrary "no white foods" rule. I am fine mostly not eating certain things because I know that I can eat them. If I had told myself at the beginning of the ride that I couldn't have something, I guarantee you, I would have got off a long time ago. Because the taboo would make me want it and then when I had it I'd feel like I "failed."

Self control.

Which I have in spades when I don't make unnecessary rules for myself.

I stopped eating white bread and most sugar without even thinking, to be honest. There are some great wholemeal breads out there that taste far better than white, and the sugar thing was easily cut down, first with sugar-free drinks, then down to half a teaspoon in my tea (from two).

You find that as you eat less sugar, your sense of sweet changes, and you realise just how incredibly over the top the things you used to eat were in terms of sugar content. If someone makes me a cup of tea with a whole teaspoon of sugar now, it's ridiculously sweet to me.

As for pasta etc? Good luck. It's the one thing I haven't been able to substitute yet. Not having a buttload of money to try different things instead doesn't help, either.

I'd rather go over my calorie limit with healthy foods, high in fiber, etc than be under my calorie full of sugar and refined, manufactured food.

False dichotomy is false.

Meh. It's a valid belief.

There's nothing valid about the belief that it can only be one or the other.

:laugh: if you say so.

Logic says so, but I can see why that might b baffling to you.

I prefer to stay sane and energetic, there is absolutely no reason to go on crazy diets that wear your body down. If you establish a healthy fat range to keep your hormones in check and other associated functions, enough protein to maintain lean body mass, and simply adjust your carbs accordingly you will have plenty of energy and not destroy your body. If you want your body to completely melt your muscle mass and do praise Allahs to some false low carb Deity, go nuts.