Little Sugar Addicts . . . anybody read this?

[Rose in BC]

This book is authored by the same person who wrote Your Last Diet and is premised on the evils of sugar. I haven't read it but my sister stumbled on it and is implementing changes in her family's diet.

 

I want to do this too. We eat healthy, I cook and bake everything from scratch. Grind my own wheat. Bake my own bread. But, I know we consume too much sugar and I know one child at least who is an addict for sure.

 

It's overwhelming though. It seems like such a daunting task to remove sugar from one's diet.

[mrsdash]

I am trying to think of where the sugar is in my home. I use Stevia in my coffee. I sweeten plain yogurt with a drizzle of Agave nectar. I don't buy soda. My sweet tooth is cured with either yogurt or fruit. My dh does love his ice-cream, though. The kids don't eat much sugar. They eat ice-cream or frozen yogurt some nights after dinner.I guess the above named foods are the only sugary things around. Where is all your sugar coming from? I know there will be some candy and sweets coming up around here with holidays but once they're gone, it's back to normal.

[Rose in BC]

I bake all our cookies, granola bars, etc. but I bake often. My kids snack on popcorn and homemade baking along with yogurt, fruit etc.

 

I guess it's less me than them. I eat oatmeal for breakfast with applesauce or blueberries. They eat cereal or toast with pbj. I eat plain yogurt, again with applesauce or fruit. They eat fruit sweetened.

 

I know this sounds dumb, but how can I make them switch from cereal to oatmeal without having them pack on the brown sugar, etc. I'd say this is one of the big ones especially for my number one sugar addict (actually addict to anything artificial). He begs me to buy Mr. Noodles (which I don't) etc. because he's eaten it somewhere else and loves it.

 

And my dh is a sugar addict, for sure. He buys ice cream, chocolate, and sugary snacks. I've asked him to come on board with me on this. Of course with Christmas around the corner it will be a bit more difficult.

 

We don't drink soda. I drink only water, coffee or tea -- all plain. They drink skim milk.

 

Both my boys were adopted at the age of four and lived in homes with much less healthy dietary habits than ours . . . I guess this has contributed somewhat to their love of the sweets. One has a weight problem, the other attention span problems . . . both would benefit to some improvement.

[Jodi-FL]

the more sugar you desire. even artificial sweeteners (or natural sweeteners) affect the same part of your brain that stimulates the sweet tooth as regular sugar (or corn syrup, or fructose, etc.). If you read the book (and I've read lots of go-sugar-free books, but this is the one that explained it best to me) "Potatoes not Prozac" it's very thorough on describing what happens in your brain. The only kind of sweetener I personally can handle without the sugar reaction is sage or tupelo honey, which has the slowest insulin rate, and therefore most easily accepted by a person with diabetes, or like me, just has a reaction to sugar. both my biological parents are diabetics (type 2) and I'm trying to avoid that for myself. I find that without sweetening anything, if I'm hungry I tend to crave real food (protein with a carb, fruit, stuff like that) and never the chocolate I thought I could never give up, etc.

 

I so understand the trying to get kids to like oatmeal--try getting fresh rolled oats, not the kind in the cardboard box and make them fresh with a little honey or frozen fruit and nuts thrown in. really, truly tasty. and i've never been much of a plain oatmeal person myself. but then again, I don't have a sweet tooth anymore.

[klmama]

Those of you who have eliminated sugar - do you feel sick when you do eat it? We rarely eat sugar (I mean cane or beet sugar - we do have honey), and I've noticed that whenever we do have it everyone gets grumpy and has stomach or cold symptoms the next day. I have friends who say the same thing happens to them. Any ideas why?

[Rose in BC]

the more sugar you desire. even artificial sweeteners (or natural sweeteners) affect the same part of your brain that stimulates the sweet tooth as regular sugar (or corn syrup, or fructose, etc.). If you read the book (and I've read lots of go-sugar-free books, but this is the one that explained it best to me) "Potatoes not Prozac" it's very thorough on describing what happens in your brain. The only kind of sweetener I personally can handle without the sugar reaction is sage or tupelo honey, which has the slowest insulin rate, and therefore most easily accepted by a person with diabetes, or like me, just has a reaction to sugar. both my biological parents are diabetics (type 2) and I'm trying to avoid that for myself. I find that without sweetening anything, if I'm hungry I tend to crave real food (protein with a carb, fruit, stuff like that) and never the chocolate I thought I could never give up, etc.

 

I so understand the trying to get kids to like oatmeal--try getting fresh rolled oats, not the kind in the cardboard box and make them fresh with a little honey or frozen fruit and nuts thrown in. really, truly tasty. and i've never been much of a plain oatmeal person myself. but then again, I don't have a sweet tooth anymore.

 

.

[Rose in BC]

Now when I'm convicted to give up caffeine I can assure you it'll be ugly. Grumpy won't begin to describe me! :lol: