A lot of people love sugar and you’re probably one of them. In fact, you need to have anything sweet after every meal. However, sugar is not only addictive, but too much of it is not good for your body and your health. With this, you may want to start breaking the habit, so you can kick these empty calories out of your diet. While you may think it is difficult, stopping yourself from grabbing a chocolate bar is actually easy with these methods:
1. Know Your Enemy
You probably find reading nutritional advice very boring, especially when it concerns obesity. Even if you are not obese, it is still important that you are aware of how to eat healthy. When you know how much sugar there is in your favorite snacks, you would definitely eat something else.
Unfortunately, manufacturers of candy bars and the like avoid giving such information to the public. After all, this could mean losing their customers and profits as well. As a consumer though, the first step to curbing your sugar cravings is to know whether you are addicted to sugar or it’s just a matter of self-control. Knowing and admitting this is an addiction is always the first step to take.
2. Stop Drinking Sweet Beverages
Average people are said to consume as much as 70,000 calories of liquid sugar every year. That’s equivalent to 40 pounds and you know these numbers are terrifying, especially if you are prone to diabetes. The same thing goes to those who want to eliminate belly flab. Instead of drinking sugary beverages that don’t contain fiber, drink water. If this bores you, choose seltzer water or coffee and tea – the unsweetened versions. Go cold turkey for two weeks and you’d be surprised at the results.
3. Eliminate Sugar-Filled Junk Foods
Candy bars, cookies, ice cream, and cakes are so heavenly that you probably don’t want to stop eating them. However, it is time to stop since these foods have almost 80% added sugar in them. Instead of these processed snacks, go for fresh food for two weeks. The hard part is to eliminate them completely, so rather than stopping yourself from consuming them all, choose the one that you really can’t resist first. Whenever you feel the need to eat something sweet, opt for fruits instead.
4. Decrease Refined Food Intake
If you have done two to three above, give yourself a pat in the back. You probably noticed that you have lost some serious amount of fat in the body. The next part of the process is to reduce your intake of simple carbs or refined foods, such as white pastas, crackers, and white breads. Do the same as number three where you decrease your consumption one by one for two weeks. You don’t have to completely eliminate them from your diet; reducing your normal portions will do the trick.
5. Don’t Be Fooled by “Sugarless” Products
Some products in the market today that say they don’t have the sweet stuff could still hide sugars in their ingredients. Some of them are disguised in other names, so unsuspecting consumers remain oblivious to the sugar they eat. There are also products that use simple carbs instead of sugars, but these don’t matter because simple carbs act just like sugar when consumed.
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6. Stay Motivated
You should always pay close attention whenever you have the cravings. Don’t be afraid to indulge every now and then, but make sure you don’t drive yourself to the addictive edge. Remember that sugar is a pervasive toxin that can contribute to a number of diseases, including cancer, depression, Alzheimer’s, osteoporosis, arthritis, heart disease, and of curse diabetes. If you yearn for a sweet snack, always turn to fruits. The good news is that once you have eliminated your sugar addiction, you will actually find fruits to be really sweet and satisfying.
Life without sugar is not hard as you may think it is. Once you know the health risks associated with eating too much sugary foods and sipping on a lot of sugary beverages, you could find the inspiration to stop craving for sweets that don’t offer you any good.
This article was originally published here