Would you give up added sugar for 21 days? Hmm...

Adubmarie87
Adubmarie87 Posts: 41 Member
edited November 2014 in Food and Nutrition
This story ...http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/07/year-of-no-sugar_n_5084561.html
has me thinking very hard about sugar and what it does to your body.

They say that it takes 21 days to start a new habit. Congrats to this family! I think this is important to note because sugar is EVERYWHERE! Even the little mundane snacks. I know the holidays are coming up but December 1st --> I am going to try this. I figure why not. :o I know so many people with diabetes 2, hypertension and a slew of other chronic illnesses that could be slowed down (or never happen) because of sugar. :(

I think this can ultimately help me lose the weight that has barely moved and help me clear my brain. Honestly, I have been raised with sugar. Parents couldn't afford the healthy stuff. I am not well to do at all but food, at least to me, should be nourishing as well as enjoyable. It should be your medicine as well as a way to get your gears going. I hopes this reaches someone. Thoughts?

Replies

  • Unknown
    Unknown
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  • Chief_Rocka
    Chief_Rocka Posts: 4,710 Member
    Glad to see this very important topic finally being discussed on MFP.
  • Adubmarie87
    Adubmarie87 Posts: 41 Member
    Haha. It was on Realfarmacy originally but this was an interview.
  • Adubmarie87
    Adubmarie87 Posts: 41 Member
    Thanks Chief_Rocka, this is a topic dear to me. My parents are both amputees of diabetes. Still eating sweets. :(
  • 2lhasas
    2lhasas Posts: 18 Member
    I gave up sugar some time ago. The first 2 weeks are the hardest because you crave it. After that, you don't crave it or miss it and I found my appetite decreased significantly. It is shocking how many foods have added sugar. Darn near impossible to find things like salad dressing and pasta sauce without it.
  • Blueseraphchaos
    Blueseraphchaos Posts: 843 Member
    That family did nothing but chest during their year of "no sugar," lol, it was pretty atrocious to me to read about the stuff they actually did.

    Having said that, there is a ton of hidden sugar in processed foods, very true, and i think we would all do well to attempt to limit that stuff....i actually bake most of my own bread, i make my own salad dressings, taco seasoning, pasta sauce, flavored yogurt, and all kinds of stuff just so i can avoid all the added sugar.
  • 2lhasas
    2lhasas Posts: 18 Member
    Blueseraphchaos wrote: »
    Having said that, there is a ton of hidden sugar in processed foods, very true, and i think we would all do well to attempt to limit that stuff....i actually bake most of my own bread, i make my own salad dressings, taco seasoning, pasta sauce, flavored yogurt, and all kinds of stuff just so i can avoid all the added sugar.

    Absolutely. I find that after removing sugar from my diet I am now eating mostly whole foods. Overall, I feel much better eating this way.
  • kr1stadee
    kr1stadee Posts: 1,774 Member
    But.. sugar is found in fruit, veggies.. lots of items. How does one give it up?
  • RoseyDgirl
    RoseyDgirl Posts: 306 Member
    you don't give up natural fruits, veggies. The idea is to give up processed foods and refined sugars. no more items with corn syrup, white sugar, honey, maple-syrup. ... but fruit and veggies are healthy and acceptable.
  • RoseyDgirl
    RoseyDgirl Posts: 306 Member
    I think it's really doable to take 21 or 30 days without. I did it with my 30 day whole foods challenge and I felt really good doing it. Now, I've added honey, maple syrup, and my yogurts back into my food plan and am not as strict - but, I still try not to take in to many foods with added sugars in them.

    A week before you start the challenge, begin cutting back on your sugary foods so that you don't have as bad of a detox process would be my first recommendation. A week before, I limited myself to only having yogurt, or lunchtime oyster crackers in my soups...

    And then when you begin the challenge, realize that if you drink sweetened coffee - you will have to cut back on that too... so, you may face caffeine and sugar withdrawals simultaneously. But it was worth the effort if only to be able to say that you can attest to having will power once those first few weeks are done. And the cravings really do become much more controlled once all the sugar is out of your system.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    kr1stadee wrote: »
    But.. sugar is found in fruit, veggies.. lots of items. How does one give it up?
    But... the article addresses that. They gave up ADDED sugars.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,148 Member
    No. I don't have a medical necessity to give up sugar, added or not.
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    No, but I have given up most processed foods with empty, sugary calories.
    My diet of fruits and veggies is unaffected.
    And for Thanksgiving, FORGET-ABOUT-IT! >:)
    I plan to binge like a government mule on anything and everything.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    50sFit wrote: »
    No, but I have given up most processed foods with empty, sugary calories.
    My diet of fruits and veggies is unaffected.
    And for Thanksgiving, FORGET-ABOUT-IT! >:)
    I plan to binge like a government mule on anything and everything.

    As it is in the article too. The family just cutout all the crappy refined processed sugars. Pretty much as you did.
    And I did.
    Enjoy thanksgiving!
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Adubmarie87 wrote: »
    They say that it takes 21 days to start a new habit.

    That's apparently a myth. What I've noticed, from personal experience, is that regularly doing something new usually does "take," whereas just not doing something doesn't really build a habit. That's why I like to think of positive changes and not simply avoiding things. IMO, creating unnecessary fear about something (like sugar) really isn't particularly helpful or a smart way to approach nutrition.
    sugar is EVERYWHERE!

    If you mean (as it seems you do) "added" sugar, that's not really so, and may speak to a broader issue with how you choose to eat (vs. what I'm assuming your goals are) than just avoiding the demon sugar.
    I am not well to do at all but food, at least to me, should be nourishing as well as enjoyable. It should be your medicine as well as a way to get your gears going. I hopes this reaches someone. Thoughts?

    I agree that food should be nourishing as well as enjoyable. That's why I try to eat a nutritious diet that focuses on nutrient-dense foods (like vegetables), adequate protein, etc., and why I personally prefer to cook from whole foods, for the most part. IMO, if you focus on getting good nutrition overall, there's really no reason to obsess about avoiding the sugar in balsamic vinegar or silly things like that (if this is the same family I've read about before) as you will be eating an overall healthy and satisfying diet.

    So many people who post here about sugar seem to assume that if you don't give up "added" sugar (or even cut way down on fruit, sometimes) that you are eating calorie dense, sugary foods 24/7. It's like it's all or nothing, with no sensible effort to just improve the diet overall. After all, it does little good to freak about the sugar in ketchup if you still don't eat any vegetables or get anywhere near the protein you should.
  • Fruitylicious03
    Fruitylicious03 Posts: 301
    Mm. I doubt this counts. But I finished my first week of no sweets. But I'm adding it back in after 21 days, after I've broken the bad habit of eating so much at once. So I'm by no means giving it up forever.
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »
    50sFit wrote: »
    No, but I have given up most processed foods with empty, sugary calories.
    My diet of fruits and veggies is unaffected.
    And for Thanksgiving, FORGET-ABOUT-IT! >:)
    I plan to binge like a government mule on anything and everything.

    As it is in the article too. The family just cutout all the crappy refined processed sugars. Pretty much as you did.
    And I did.
    Enjoy thanksgiving!

    How do I let my body know the difference between the "crappy refined processed sugars" and the naturally occurring sugars? I'm afraid my body won't know the difference if I don't have some kind of sign to let it know.
  • BombshellPhoenix
    BombshellPhoenix Posts: 1,693 Member
    Never!!!
  • KylaDenay
    KylaDenay Posts: 1,585 Member
    Only if I had to for medical reasons. If not then nope.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    jofjltncb6 wrote: »
    Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »
    50sFit wrote: »
    No, but I have given up most processed foods with empty, sugary calories.
    My diet of fruits and veggies is unaffected.
    And for Thanksgiving, FORGET-ABOUT-IT! >:)
    I plan to binge like a government mule on anything and everything.

    As it is in the article too. The family just cutout all the crappy refined processed sugars. Pretty much as you did.
    And I did.
    Enjoy thanksgiving!

    How do I let my body know the difference between the "crappy refined processed sugars" and the naturally occurring sugars? I'm afraid my body won't know the difference if I don't have some kind of sign to let it know.

    Dunno. I know. And I know my body reacts differently. That's all that's important to me.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    This content has been removed.
  • bethleahnutrition
    bethleahnutrition Posts: 9 Member
    If you are going to give it up for 21 days and then binge on sugar for a long time after, it would't be worth it! Creating habits that allow you to indulge occasionally is a great way to achieve balance in life. That said, it can never hurt to cut sugar out, so go for it!

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