Refined Sugars, Artificial Sweeteners Begone!

As part of my ongoing attempt to embrace whole foods and say adios! to processed and packaged crapola, I've been paying close attention to our sugar intake. Let me say right here and now: This Is Not Easy. Why? Because I LOVE sugar. Love it. I've been known to eat sugar straight out of a bag when I needed a fix. As a child, I drove my mom crazy by sneaking boxes of jello, packets of hot chocolate, jars of marshmallow cream, and eating them in the raw. I love "crap" candy: Bubble Gum tape, Everlasting Gobstoppers, Runts, Spree, Red Vines, Good n' Plenty, Red Hots, Atomic Fireballs...if it's full of artificial substances and dyes and tastes sweet, I'll most likely eat it. Truth be told, there are few sweet foods I won't indulge in...I can't actually think of one off the top of my head.

So you get my drift. Sugar + J = Ecstasy

Which is why it's been so hard for me to make a complete break from it. But, as you can see by my obvious sugar addiction, it's a step I REALLY need to take. Perhaps you do too? I think it's safe to say we all could benefit from less sugar.

Why Sugar is Bad

Let me clarify a critical point: not all sugars are created equal. Refined and artificial sugars have no business in anyone's body. But there are quite a few naturally derived sugars that metabolize better and wreak a lot less havoc in your body. But even those sugars, as with much in life, should be taken in moderation.

So back to why refined and artificial sugars are bad for you. Well, there's the obvious rotting teeth deal. And the whole diabetes thing. Let's not forget obesity. To be more specific, sugar has NO nutritional value whatsoever. It also depletes the body of enzymes, minerals, and vitamins (especially, it turns out, B-vitamins which can impact moods, memory, and sleep regulation). Most interesting to me are the studies showing how refined sugars suppress the immune system. The amount of sugar found in two sodas is enough to do the trick. Refined sugars can cause a 50% drop in the ability of white blood cells to engulf bacteria. This immune suppression can last for up to five or six hours after eating or drinking heavily sugared foods. Kind of scary when you remember stress also suppresses the immune system and most of us tend to crave sugar when under pressure...no wonder we all get sick around the holidays or when things are going badly at the office! But we're not just talking about catching a cold or flu, people. Sugar has some unpleasant ties to cancer and tumors...or I should say insulin does (which tends to increase when the body has more sugar than it needs).

Many people get the refined sugar = not good for you thing. But then they turn around and start drinking and eating products (note how I said "products" and not "food") filled with artificial sweeteners. Hey, been there, done that. I used to figure it was a good way to get a sweet taste in my mouth without all the bad stuff. Unfortunately, the laundry list of diseases tied to artificial sweeteners (even the newer ones) include cancer, weight gain (!), MS, Parkinsons, seizures, and migraines (I didn't have the heart to link to the studies for each disease but feel free to do a Google search on your own, they aren't hard to find).

Oh, a quick aside: refined sugars are kind of sneaky in that they frequently wear disguises. Aside from that big bag of white sugar in your pantry, it typically hides in packaged foods under the following pseudonyms: sucrose, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, and maltodextrin. Take a peek at your bread, canned goods (but maybe consider dumping the canned goods because of BPA. I'm just saying), frozen foods, yogurts, dessert items, granola bars, cereals. You'll find sugar lurking...unless, of course, you've already gotten wise to it and started buying products without it.

So What Now?

How does a recovering sugar addict break the habit and still get some enjoyment out of life? Good news folks! You don't have to give sugar the big heave-ho 100%. You just have to be willing to investigate the alternatives and do what you can to reduce your sugar intake (cutting back in recipes is a great start).

The very best sweeteners are those that occur in nature: rapadura (AKA sucanat AKA raw cane sugar), pure maple syrup, honey (honey can be sneaky as it does sometimes get listed as a refined product...be sure to check that out) , or molasses. I've started experimenting with these and can say I'm a big fan of sucanat (which isn't a surprise because it tastes a lot like brown sugar -- yum) and use it frequently when baking. Maple syrup and honey are also excellent. Natural sugars actually contain vitamins and nutrients (calcium, magnesium, potassium, iron) that get stripped out of refined sugars. Your body also tends to process these sugars better because they are in their natural state. But keep in mind, sugar is sugar. Even natural sugars can mess with your glucose levels if taken in excess...so still a good idea to include them in your diet in moderation.

As for reducing....get in the habit of 1) changing the sugar and 2) cutting back the quantities in recipes. You'll be pleasantly surprised how frequently you can do this and not notice a damn thing in terms of flavor or sweetness. No one but me knows that when I make cookies and cakes at home, they are heavily reduced in sugar quantity. But everyone asks for more!

For a great place to look for reduced-sugar and alternative sugar recipes, you can't beat this site.