Experiment Update: Some Added Sugar

It has been almost two weeks since I started my "No added sugar" experiment. Let me just tell you that it only lasted for 3 days as absolutely no added sugar. On day 4 I decided that I wanted to put that 6 grams of sugar in my coffee...plus I had a small piece of paleo pumpkin bread at a friend's house which I am sure had some kind of sweetener in it.

I did not, however, let that completely derail me. I decided that no added sugar was a bit harsh, so I modified my plan. Now my goal is focusing less on sugar directly and more on processed food as a whole.

My goal: only one processed food item a day. So far, other than one day last week (date night), I have done it! I found that cutting back on just added sugar still allowed me to eat some breads, crackers, chips and the like as much as I wanted. The great part about focusing on consuming less processed foods in general is that not only am I cutting back on added sugars but also salt and other additives.

So you may be wondering what I mean by "only one processed food item a day". Let me give you some examples of food items I may choose: bread to make a sandwich, pancakes for breakfast, granola to mix in my plain Greek Yogurt, cornbread to go along with my chili at dinner, tortillas with my fajitas, tortilla chips and salsa for a snack, rice cakes as a vessel for my peanut butter. Again, those are just examples of the choices I have to make every day. I can choose just ONE of those. So, to further that example the following is what I ate yesterday:

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and oats

Snack: Yogurt and granola (here is my one processed food)

Lunch: Leftover Pesto Chicken, roasted sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli

Snack: Peanut Butter and carrot sticks

Dinner: Cajun Shrimp and Rice with snow peas

Snack: Apple slices and Sun Butter

My outcomes so far: My headaches went away after I switched to the processed food focus from the added sugar focus. I am eating far more fruits and vegetables than I used to because I am replacing some of my starch/carb snack foods with them. My energy levels seem to be up as I am much less tired this week than I have been for the past several. I am not having sugar cravings like I was for a while there after coming off of my competition prep diet. My mood even seems to be a bit lifted. And my added sugar intake is still far lower than it was just a few weeks ago. Most days I am staying under 30grams of added sugar but there were a couple of days where I have had as much as 40grams (it really all depends on how many cups of coffee I drink in a day).

So, overall this seems to be working well for me. I think I am going to try to make it a perminent healthy living strategy. I would love to know if anyone else is willing to give it a try and see how it makes you feel!

Experiment in Progress: No Added Sugar

On Saturday night I decided on a whim to stop eating added sugar. So, no teaspoon of sugar in my coffee, no honey in my tea, no bread, no cereal, no Starbucks, no halloween candy, no sweets, no treats, no flavored yogurt, just oil and vinegar on my salads...

My initial goal was to go for a week without any added sugar in my diet. I have now gone for two days. I made it through a halloween party and trick-or-treating without indulging. Honestly, the hardest part so far is not having a spoon of sugar in my coffee. That is what may keep me from making it to a week!

I wanted to try it just to see how hard it would be and also because I felt like I have been eating too much processed food and too much sugar lately. I am also interested to see what I feel like without eating any added sugar.

So far this is what I have eaten:

Breakfast Sunday: scramled egg whites with spinach in cocounut oil plus oats cooked with sliced apple and cinnamon.

Lunch Sunday: Chicken cooked in salsa, rice and roasted green beans

Dinner Sunday: Homemeade Chili, popcorn popped in oil, a few plain potato chips. (Halloween party)

Snack Sunday: Carrots dipped in peanut butter, a handful of almonds

Breakfast Monday: Scrambled eggs in coconut oil, 1/2 of an apple and a clementine

Snack Monday: Plain Greek Yogurt with dry oats and strawberries

Lunch Monday: Salad with Romaine lettuce, ham slices, cheese slices, carrots, and bell pepper all topped with a mixture of mayo, mustard and cider vinegar. (This was delicious! It tasted like a ham sandwich turned into a salad.) And a side of corn tortilla chips.

Snack Monday: Banana, Rice cakes and peanut butter

Dinner Monday: Hommade Chili

Snack Monday: Sun Butter and Apple Slices

I would say that I am definitely eating more fruits than I normally would and maybe a little bit more vegetables as well.

How I feel so far: Pretty good other than a bit of a headache that comes and goes. However, that could be related to parenting 2-year-old and 4-year-old girls more than a lack of added sugar!

I will let you know how long I am able to hold out and of any other changes I see in myself. Does anyone else want to try completley cutting out added sugars? Let me know! I would love to have others try it with me!

Sugar: How much is too much?

Since I talked about cutting back on sugar, you may be wondering how much sugar is ok to have and how much is too much to consume. Today I want to shed some light on what sugar in moderation really means and looks like.

In both adults and children, WHO recommends reducing the intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake.

The above statement was taken directly from the World Health Organization's Guidline: Sugars Intake for adults and children.

That means that if you are eating 2,000 calories a day, less than 200 calories should come from added sugars. That translates to less than 50 grams and less than 12.5 teaspoon of the sweet stuff. If you are only eating 1,500 calories a day that knocks your numbers down to 150 calories, 37.5 grams and 9.4 teaspoons.

The American Heart Association takes an even harsher stance against sugar and recommends that adult women have no more than 24 grams (6 teaspoons) of added sugar a day and adult men no more than 36 grams (9 teaspoons).

As a comparison, the average American consumes 22 teaspoons (88 grams) of added sugar every day. We have our work cut out for us to reduce that by about 75%!

The information about how much the average american currently consumes comes from an amazing graphic that I found. It pinpoints exactly what is going on with current sugar consumption in the U.S. I love that it ends with "sugar is as addictive as cocaine." We need to kick the habit and reclaim our health!

Let me give you an example of what a day's meal plan might look like for a woman aiming to hit the recommendations set forth by the American heart association; no more than 6 teaspoons of added sugar a day:

**Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs, 1 slice whole wheat toast, 1 tsp butter, 1 medium orange, 1 cup of coffee with 1 Tbs. half and half and 1 tsp sugar

**Snack: Kind bar, 1 medium apple

**Lunch: Grilled Chicken Salad with 2 Tbs. low fat raspberry vinaigrette dressing and 1/2 ounce walnuts.

**Snack: afternoon pick me up coffee with 1 Tbs. half and half and 1 tsp sugar. , snack bag of pretzels, Plain Oikos Greek Yogurt Cup and 1/2 cup fresh strawberries

**Dinner: Chicken and vegetable Teryaki stir-fry over brown rice.

**Total Calories: 1,438 Fat: 53 grams, Carbohydrates: 158 grams, Protein: 97 grams, Sugar: 56 grams, ADDED Sugar: 26 grams

So as you can see, this menu is very low in processed foods. That is the only way to keep the added sugar content where it should be. There is no room for sweets, sodas or really any extras at all. I tried to include flavored yogurt, but that added 11 grams of sugar! If you follow the guidelines set out by the World Health Organization, you can trade out the plain yogurt and fresh strawberries for strawberry flavored yogurt and still be within their reccomendations.

Of course it is fine to have more sugar ocassionally, but this is what your menu should look like the majority of the time as far as sugar content goes.