Let’s not sugar-coat the truth. Sugar kills us on the inside, even though it looks pretty harmless on the outside. Our bodies can't cope with it. Sugar and its hidden forms have been a topic of continued controversy over the years. We’re all aware that sugar consumption for a long period of time negatively impacts brain health and cellular health.

Addiction to sugar is not surprising because the neurons in our brain that were designed to respond to natural rewards also react to addictive substances the same way. Sugar releases dopamine, making us feel good, also known as a ‘sugar rush’, and ultimately leads to sugar dependence. In this article, we will outline the different types of sugar, how they affect our bodies, how they affect their mental health, and how we can be sure to remove them from our bodies through proper nutrition and exercise. 

THE DANGER OF SUGAR AND ITS ADDICTIVE NATURE

Here’s a sugary shocker: Sugar might be as addictive as any other opioid.

Why is sugar so addictive to the point that we don't even know we’re dependent on it? Let’s examine this in more detail. The root cause of the obesity epidemic and the vast majority of chronic diseases eating away at our generations - and increasingly our children - is sugar, in all its addictive forms. Nearly all health conditions can be linked to the negative impact of sugar: heart disease, cancer, dementia, type 2 diabetes, depression, erectile dysfunction, and even skin problems. It is possible to develop an addiction to sugar that is both a behavioral one, for example, getting used to eating sugar after meals or at certain times during the day, as well as a chemical one. More often than not, we don’t even realize we’re addicted.

More than 10,000 years have passed since sugar was discovered. Known as a spice at the time, it was introduced into England via the legendary Silk Road trade routes through the Middle East. It was sold and traded together with ginger, cinnamon, saffron, and other exotic spices, only available exclusively for the rich and affluent people. According to the WHO, the average American consumes 17 teaspoons (71.14 grams) of sugar per day. This is roughly an average of 152 pounds of sugar per year, including 25 pounds of candy. Nearly one in four teenagers are pre-diabetic or diabetic due to the amount of sugar they consume every day. This is the equivalent of drinking more than two 20-ounce sodas per day. This vicious cycle of sugar consumption can most likely lead to more serious health problems and weaken the immune system. One cause for concern is that sugar no longer comes in just its common form, but is now found in disguised forms that we often aren’t even aware of.
 

SUGAR AND ITS COMMON FORMS

There is added sugar in a wide range of unexpected foods, from salad dressing to barbecue sauce, and the majority of people eat meals and snacks that are quick and processed as prioritizing convenience becomes more possible and necessary. However, these packaged or fast foods often contain added sugar in one or more forms, which makes up a significant portion of our calorie intake. But sugar hazards extend beyond just consuming the obvious junk food and candy. There are several types of sugar that are included in this category, such as white and brown sugar, honey, dextrose, maltodextrin, corn syrup, rice syrup, evaporated cane juice, glucose, fructose, modified starches and fruit juices, soft drinks, and alcohol. Besides altering your mineral balances, these refined sugars feed pathogenic bacteria, fungi, and microbes in your gut. Ingesting refined sugar, which passes through the gut lining into your bloodstream could promote pathogenic bacteria, fungus, viruses, and other microorganisms in your blood & cells while also contributing to diabetes, cancer, and neurological diseases. 

Sugar is found naturally in all carbohydrates, including fruits, vegetables, grains, lentils, and dairy products. The carbohydrates contained in grains, fruits, and vegetables are almost all broken down into glucose. Blood sugar levels can rise significantly when the body metabolizes these common sugars. Our body responds to high levels of sugar by the release of insulin. As a result, excess sugar is converted into fat by insulin. The excess fat accumulates in your body, causing you to gain weight and slow your metabolism. The consumption of too much fructose can lead to resistance to leptin, a hormone that controls appetite and tells the body when to stop eating. Within your body, sugar sets off a series of damaging chemical reactions. The presence of sugar in all forms is thought to trigger insulin production, elevate stress hormones, and reduce minerals and endogenous antioxidants such as glutathione, the primary detoxifier in our body. 

SUGAR SHOULD NOT BE PART OF YOUR DIET. HERE'S WHY.

Craving something sweet? This could likely be due to an insufficient supply of magnesium caused by physical or mental stress, or the excessive consumption of refined sugars, processed foods, or alcohol. Drinks such as energy drinks, alcohol, sodas, fruit juices, and sweetened coffee and teas often substitute for a lack of energy, exacerbating the problem overtime. Let’s break down how sugar impacts your immune system, metabolism, inflammation, abnormal brain and cellular health.
 

Metabolic Syndrome

Having a sedentary lifestyle combined with excessive body fat is associated with metabolic syndrome. It is characterized by high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and insulin resistance. All of these conditions are risk factors for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. 

Cellular Health

Having a healthy immune system and preventing premature aging are dependent on our cellular health. Being addicted to sugar is a true physiological and biological addiction, triggered by hormones and neurotransmitters that cause cravings for sugar and carbs - and uncontrollable eating as your cells are starved of energy.
 

Brain Health

Researchers believe that blood sugar swings, neurotransmitter dysregulation, and inflammation may all be reasons for sugar’s detrimental impact on brain health causing cognitive decline, lousy feeling or brain fog, and often memory loss. 

Disease & Inflammation

The inflammation in the body contributes to blood sugar imbalances, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and pre-diabetes, all of which are cancer risk factors. Sugar-rich diets and inflammatory foods can increase your body's production of androgens, oil, and inflammation, which also contribute to skin problems. 

HOW TO KICK SUGAR FROM YOUR DIET FOR GOOD

A cellular heart-healthy lifestyle starts with keeping track of the amount of sugar you consume, in both common and hidden forms. Without an understanding of how much sugar is consumed in an average day, it’s difficult to make steps to remove sugar from your diet. First look at the obvious contenders: candy, sweet beverages, and desserts with added sugar that are high in empty calories. Next up are the hidden sources, where sugar intake can skyrocket if not careful: dressings, sauces, dips, bread, yogurt, cereal, granola bars, on-the-go snacks, and other beverages. Here are a few things you can do to get rid of sugar, reverse symptoms, and supercharge your body to repair itself from long-standing sugar addiction.

Protein and Fat

Make sure your body is running on pure and fresh foods. Include protein like organic high-protein vegetables, legumes, eggs, and grass-fed meat in your meals. Add healthy fats like organic olive, avocado, flaxseed, safflower, coconut, butter, and a variety of low-carb vegetables to your diet. Whenever possible, include eggs, fish, grass-fed meat, or nuts/seeds in your meals as well.

Veggie Delight

You can include non-starchy veggies in your diet. These include vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, kale, collards, lettuce, brussels sprouts, asparagus, green beans, spinach, cucumber, tomato, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, fennel, eggplant, artichokes, kale, and peppers.

Kick the carbs and sweeteners

Reduce or eliminate carbs from your diet - bread, milk, popcorn, potatoes, pasta, corn, soda, cakes, and cookies. They almost always have hidden sugar in them. Even sugar in the form of - liquid sugar, artificial sweeteners, flour (even whole-wheat), increases cravings, slows metabolism, and results in fat storage. Avoid trans fats, hydrogenated oils, and monosodium glutamate. 

Movement & Exercise

A regular resistance training regime creates a "trained" metabolic demand for constant glycogen availability and storage (so well-trained power muscles remain capable of responding quickly). Glycogen (stored blood sugar) is used by muscles during resistance weight training. In order to synthesize & store glycogen, blood sugar (and water) must be converted to glycogen, decreasing blood sugar and reducing the amount of blood sugar available for fat storage and heart levels. Having lower blood sugar levels also significantly reduces the risk of neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, diabetes, skin ailments, degenerative diseases, and bacterial, viral, fungal, and/or other infections that feed on blood sugar. As soon as you begin an intense resistance training program, your blood sugar levels will start dropping. Make sure you start slowly. Clinical trials have shown that weight training and endurance training can bring fasting blood sugar levels to very low levels, especially in pro athletes.

Movement and exercise are also the only ways to pump the body's lymphatic system. When the lymph system does not flow properly:

1. Nutrients don't reach cells efficiently
2. Toxins accumulate in lymph tissues and nodes, and
3. The immune system cannot properly function 

This is due to the fact that all lymphatic activity takes place through muscular contractions. Moderate exercise is absolutely beneficial for a person's body and health, and is essential to reduce the risk of chronic and other degenerative diseases, and to treat minor ailments.

Control your cravings

If you feel you crave sugar constantly, don't worry. It's a common problem. Firstly, here's why you crave sugar in the first place. And how you can stop it.

1. Stressful lifestyle: If you’re experiencing physical and emotional stress and living a sedentary monotonous lifestyle, it can lead to cravings. Food is often used as a replacement for comfort, specifically those high in sugar. Take steps to remove any triggers or sources of stress in your daily life - work, home, kids, finance. 
2. Not enough water: Dehydration is a prime source of binge eating and sugar cravings. When the body lacks adequate fluid intake, glycogen can be hard to metabolize. Use a water monitor, an app, or use a bottle that marks how much water you’ve had every day to stay on track. 
3. Filling up on carbs: The carbohydrates we eat every day, like wraps, granola, or even pasta and lentils, are broken down into glucose (the main source of energy), which remains in our bloodstream if we’ve developed insulin resistance. Make sure you increase the amount of protein in your diet, eating protein at every meal, and limit carbohydrate consumption.
4. Digestion issues: Our digestive system is a complex makeup of microorganisms, bacteria, and proteins. It’s not meant to overwork, as its constantly fighting the bad bacteria we ingest when we load up on sugar and carbs. Foods like goat yogurt, kefir, apple cider vinegar, and kimchi are rich in probiotics and good bacteria we require for our digestive tracts to stay clean and healthy. Staying away from refined foods, processed foods, sugar and alcohol will support a healthy microbiome. 

Add Personalized Supplements

Sometimes you may try to eat healthily and get the recommended nutrition every day, only to discover that it isn't working. In order to maintain a smooth level of energy flow and stable production of dopamine and neurotransmitters, supplements may be required to optimally fuel, repair, and detoxify your body. Honed's personalized programs are designed to support your body from where it is today. By starting with nutritional testing, we understand the vitamins, minerals, and micronutrients your body is missing, often leading to sugar cravings and an uneven energy burn. For more information on how to take back control of your health and supercharge your metabolism, start here. We’re the next-generation wellness company combining proven science-based diagnostic testing with lifestyle analysis to optimize your health journey.