Cutting Down on Sugar:
Getting rid of the sweet stuff

The amount of sugar we eat and drink every year has soared nearly 30% since 1983. It is likely a major contributor to the skyrocketing rates of overweight and obesity in our country.

Since sugary foods, often replace more healthy foods, nutrition experts say the influx of sweets indirectly contributes to disease like osteoporosis, heart disease and cancer.

The USDA recommends no more than 10 teaspoons of sugar a day, the average American dons about 34 teaspoons, more than 3 times as much. Sugar often hides under several pseudonyms and turns up in foods that you would not suspect such as bread, crackers, salad dressing, ketchup, and mustard.

Go by the following tips to make some positive changes in your diet to reduce the sugar and health risks.

  1. Cut down slowly. Going cold turkey can set you up for failure. Instead try reducing your sugar intake by half, and then a fourth and then give it up.
  2. Go half and half. Mix half a regular soda with half a diet soda; half a carton of yogurt with half a carton of plain yogurt. Keep substituting the sugar-free until you can make the transition to all sugar-free.
  3. Grant yourself a "sugar quota" and use it on foods where it matters most. For most of us that means desserts. Don't waste it on dressings, spreads, breakfast cereals and soda. Doing this will help you lose your sweet tooth. Sugar is addictive. the more you eat, the more you crave and the more it takes to satisfy you. The opposite is also true. Train your taste buds to become accustomed to less and you'll be satisfied with less.
  4. Establish rules about dessert. Only have dessert after dinner, never lunch. Only eat dessert on odd days of the month, or only on weekends, or only at restaurants. If you have a long tradition of daily deserts, then make it a rule to have raw fruit at least half of the time.
  5. Establish rules about ice cream. Keep no ice cream at home. Ice cream should always be a treat worth traveling for.
  6. Instead of sweet drinks like lemonade or soda, try making your own "sun tea" Steep decaffeinated tea, or herbal tea in water and set a jar in the sun for a couple of hours. Add lemon and ice and enjoy
  7. Buy dietetic condiments at the grocery store. Given that 1 tablespoon of ketchup can contain about 1/2 teaspoon for sugar, buying sugar-free condiments can make a big dent in your sugar consumption. Most condiments and other packaged foods for people with diabetes are made without sugar or with sugar substitutes.
  8. The only way to know if the product that you are consuming contains sugar is to know all of sugar's many aliases or other forms. Here are some common ones: brown sugar, corn syrup, dextrin, dextrose, fructose, fruit juice concentrate, high-fructose corn syrup, galactose, glucose, honey, hydrogenated starch, invert sugar maltose, lactose, mannitol, maple syrup, molasses, polyols, raw sugar, sorghum, sucrose, sorbitol, turbinado sugar and xylitol.
  9. Look for hidden sources of sugar. Cough syrups, chewing gum, mints, tomato sauce, baked beans and lunch meats often contain sugar. Even some prescription medications contain sugar. Check the labels.
  10. If you must eat sweets, eat them with meals. The other foods will help increase salivary flow, thus clearing the sugary foods from your mouth faster and helping prevent cavities.

Information taken from Reader’s Digest website 
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Disclaimer: This information is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any question you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read.