Sugar was  absolutely one of my biggest struggles and it’s so frustrating because I spend so much time working out, eating well and avoiding chemicals. I still find myself sucked into sugary treats! Sometimes it’s convenience, sometimes it’s stress, or celebrations, and at night I get the biggest cravings for sugary treats. It seems, I have no will power when it comes to  those little bites of heaven.  Do you sound like me? This was me for most of my life. My health suffered with my  skin looking a hot mess, my body was so inflamed and my energy was at its lowest. 

Why do we love all the sugary stuff? Did you know that most people are eating way more of it than they need. Americans currently consume 22 teaspoons of sugar per day. That’s more than three times as much as what’s recommended by the American Heart Association.

Sugar addiction is nothing to joke about. Once you’re hooked, cravings can be very hard to fight against, leading you down a never ending movement towards obesity and other health problems. Studies are showing that in some people and animals, the brain can react to sugar very much like it can to drugs and alcohol. That’s why when you initially cut added sugars from your diet, you might feel deprived for a few days. “When your body is overloaded with waste, you feel more uncomfortable when not eating that food,” Fuhrman says. “It’s like stopping coffee.”

Besides research showing that amazing not-so-innocent sweet tooth could be doing serious damage to your health, leading to weight gain, high blood pressure and cholesterol levels and an increased risk for diabetes. Matter of a fact, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, author of The End of Dieting, says eating too much sugar should be considered just as dangerous as smoking cigarettes. “A diet with sugar and high glycemic index foods promotes all the leading causes of death in America,” he says. “I don’t see value in cutting out sugar for a few days and then going back to eating it, but I do see value in cutting it out permanently.”

Why It’s Hard to Quit Sugar

The promised benefits from a sugar detox include losing weight, higher energy, better sense of well-being, and more. Who wouldn’t be tempted by that, right? Sugar detoxes can be potentially harmful.  Did you ever avoid sugar or some other food group for a period of time? Remember how miserable it was? Remember impatiently waiting for it to be over?

Have you tried to stop eating sugar and fell flat on your face?

The goal should always be to adopt new, simple habits you can sustain long-term, not to suffer a miserable lapse in time. Start cutting back. Eliminating foods slowly. keep a food journal. Make a plan and have a goal.

Don’t drink your calories. You can start by drinking more water. If you had water add a splash of lemon or you can try some sassy water.

Sassy Water

 

FOODS TO EMBRACE

The food we can eat. Instead of going through groupings, it might be easier to just do a broad list of food. Items such as fresh fish and meats (preferably organic, pasture-raised beef, free-range chicken and turkey, pork, and lamb) are all in.Avocado, eggs, brown rice, quinoa (with limits), vegetables (all on the lower carb scale), green beans,  seaweed, tomatoes, goji berries, nuts (aside from cashews), unsweetened almond butter, seeds, olive oil, coconut oil, ghee,  lemon and lime, vanilla (from the vanilla pod), vinegars (sherry, white, red), and unsweetened chocolate are all fair game.

• Avocado (very high in fat, so I’m including it here)
• Avocado oil
• Almond oil
• Beef tallow, preferably from grass fed cattle
• Butter: try to find organic sources
• Chicken fat, organic
• Duck fat, organic
• Ghee (butter with milk solids removed)
• Lard such as organic leaf lard (make sure it is NOT hydrogenated)
• Macadamia Nuts
• Macadamia oil
• Mayonnaise (most have carbs, so count them. Duke’s brand is sugar free.)
• Olives
• Olive oil, organic
• Organic coconut oil, coconut butter and coconut cream concentrate
• Organic Red Palm oil
• Peanut Butter: make sure to use unsweetened products, and limit due to Omega 6 content.
• Seed and most nut oils: Sesame oil, Flaxseed oil, etc. These are higher in inflammatory Omega 6 fats, so limit amounts, and don’t heat them.
• 85-90% dark chocolate can be used in small amounts, or use Chocoperfection low carb chocolate

 

• Meat: beef, lamb, veal, goat and wild game. Grass fed meat is preferred, as it has a better fatty acid profile.
• Pork: pork loin, Boston butt, pork chops, ham.  Look out for added sugar in hams.
• Poultry: chicken, turkey, quail, Cornish hen, duck, goose, pheasant.  Free range is better if it’s available.
• Fish or seafood of any kind, preferably wild caught: anchovies, calamari, catfish, cod, flounder, halibut, herring, mackerel, mahi-mahi, salmon, sardines, scrod, sole, snapper, trout, and tuna.
• Canned tuna and salmon are acceptable but check the labels for added sugars or fillers. (Exception: Avoid breaded and fried seafood.)
• Shellfish: clams, crab, lobster, scallops, shrimp, squid, mussels, and oysters. (Exception: imitation crab meat. It contains sugar, gluten and other additives.)
• Whole eggs: These can be prepared in various ways: deviled, fried, hard-boiled, omelets, poached, scrambled, and soft-boiled.
• Bacon and sausage: check labels and avoid those cured with sugar or which contain fillers such as soy or wheat.  Specialty health food stores carry most brands of sugar-free bacon.
• Peanut butter and soy products such as tempeh, tofu and edamame are good sources of protein, but they are higher in carbohydrate, so track them carefully.
• Whey protein powders, plus rice, pea, hemp or other vegetable protein powders. Be aware that whey protein is insulinogenic (meaning it causes an insulin spike) in the body, so if you having trouble losing weight or getting into ketosis, limit amounts or avoid whey.

 

• Alfalfa Sprouts
• Any leafy green vegetable
• Asparagus
• Avocado
• Bamboo Shoots
• Bean Sprouts
• Beet Greens
• Bell peppers*
• Bok choy
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cabbage
• Carrots*
• Cauliflower
• Celery
• Celery root
• Chard
• Chives
• Collard greens
• Cucumbers
• Dandelion greens
• Dill pickles
• Garlic
• Kale
• Leeks
• Lettuces and salad greens (arugula,  Boston lettuce, chicory, endive, escarole, fennel, mache, radicchio, romaine, sorrel.)
• Mushrooms
• Olives
• Onions*
• Radishes
• Sauerkraut (watch for added sugar)
• Scallions
• Shallots
• Snow Peas
• Spinach
• Sprouts
• Summer squash*
• Swiss chard
• Tomatoes*
• Turnips

 

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Have a great day!

 

http://www.ketogenic-diet-resource.com/low-carb-food-list.html