how quitting sugar made me nicer: Sunday Life
This week I’m (still) quitting sugar
Again, a quick note for readers of this blog who’ve been following my “I quit sugar” posts, this might seem like I’m repeating myself…I kinda did for my Sunday Life column readers. For those of you playing catch up on this topic, you can read other “I quit sugar” posts, like my interview with David Gillespie here, the reasons why sugar makes us fat here, how I quit sugar here and some breakfast ideas here.
I quit sugar a few weeks back, to see if it made me a nicer, less cranky, agitated person, and wrote about it here in this column. I got a lot of feedback asking how I actually did it, so I thought I’d do a follow-up . I’m now able to report back from the sugar-free frontline that I’m doing OK. Many studies say it takes 21 days to overcome a habit. I’m over the hump. And the subsequent dip. And off the cranky, saccharin addicted rollercoaster for good, I reckon.
In the process, though, I’ve had to be really careful I didn’t become one of those bores who reads nutritional labels before accepting a potato crisp and who quotes guilt-inducing food factoids at dinner parties. As a colleague Nicole said, “I’d rather sit next to a funeral director than someone on a diet”. I don’t know, the last time I sat next to a dieter at a dinner I got to eat her leftover cheesy potatoes and the parson’s nose from her chicken (anyone else share my salivatory obsession with parson’s noses? No…?).
That said I couldn’t help myself and have been spurting startling “did you knows” all week. How about I share some of them with you now?
Did you know a glass of apple juice contains as much sugar as a glass of coke (about 10 teaspoons)? And did you know there’s more sugar in barbeque sauce (55 per cent sugar) than in chocolate topping? Sure, we don’t eat cupfuls of barbeque sauce, but over the past few weeks I’ve witnessed just how many sauces and spreads and drinks containing added, hidden sugar I consumed in a day and it adds up to… cupfuls.
And what about this: even natural snacks contain more fructose than we can handle. A small box of sultanas is the equivalent to a kilo of grapes and contains 70 per cent sugar. Squeeze a juice and a muesli bar into a school lunchbox and it contains more fructose than in a Coke and king-size Mars Bar. The fructose molecule is exactly the same, whether in natural sultanas or chocolate and our bodies process them (or, rather, don’t) in the same way.
But the most grating crusade (apparently) I’ve adopted this week is against low-fat food. When fat is removed from a foodstuff, particularly from dairy, it’s often replaced with sugar to make up for flavour lost. Thus, did you know a small tub of “diet” yoghurt contains about 6 teaspoons of sugar? Even the ones that say “no added sugar” (“fruit juice concentrate” apparently doesn’t count)?
As I mentioned a few weeks ago, we’re designed to metabolise fat (and carbs and protein) and to be satiated by it; we have a hormone that registers fat in our bodies and tells the brain to stop eating. We’re not designed to metabolise fructose (table sugar is half fructose). Our bodies don’t detect it when we eat it, so we have to eat a stack of it to feel full. Which we do. Which is why apple juice can be more fattening than milk – we have to drink more of it to hit the “I’m full” point. Plus, unlike fat, fructose turns directly to fat in our systems.
Before you wallop me over the head with a doughnut, I’ll finally share the rather contentious way I got off my sugar addiction. I ate fat. As forward-moving creatures, we don’t respond well to being told to stop something. I tell you to stop thinking about those weird “pickled people” old ladies made with old stockings and sold at fetes in the 1980s. And my bet is you’ll think about weird pickled people. So when taking out sugar I figured it wise to add something back in. I chose healthy fats and proteins. Grilled haloumi and tea made with milk stepped in to soothe my deranged 4pm yearnings. I ordered an extra serve of calamari after dinner while everyone else had tiramisu. It got me through, I lost a bit of weight, lost all bloating and I’ve experienced true satiation for the first time in decades.
Slowly, slowly, sugar has dropped from my agitated, needy radar. I appreciate not everyone feels the need to cut sugar completely, especially in it’s natural form. Personally I had to for health reasons, but have found it’s made me a nicer person. Even at dinner parties.
Hi Sarah! Goof for you, I’m still trying to reduce my sugar consumption but it’s an ongoing thing I think
Thanks for the constant reminders to be motivated!
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You’re completely ignoring the nutritional differences when comparing juice/muesli bar snack with Coke/Mars Bar combo…from my iPhone it’s not so easy to google and post links here, but come on, really??
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March 27th, 2011 at 1:54 pm
I see very little nutritional value in juice that has been heated up to 95 degrees to become aseptic, which sits in tanks for two years, and then is sold to the consumer. Plus by removing the fibre we’re losing the best part and drinking pure sugar. There is nothing good for you in juice, most of the vitamin C is ADDED as a preservative.
Drink water and eat the fruit.
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March 27th, 2011 at 3:50 pm
Amen, Bec! It’s amazing how little many of us know about what actually goes into common processed foods and how they are produced. It’s quite horrifying. I just wish I had this knowledge years ago. But at least I’m doing better for my kids and will hopefully save them the health problems such as the Hashimoto’s/AI/allergy problems I am struggling with. The video “Sugar – The Bitter Truth”, while heavy on the science, is a real eye-opener from a doctor on the front line of the obesity epidemic, specialising in treating obese kids, who have been brought up on things like fruit juice, muesli bars and sultanas by their well-meaning parents.
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April 1st, 2011 at 12:35 pm
Sam its true… Im a dietitian and u may as well give ur kids coke n chocolate…juice and muesli bars r rubbish. Anything from a package takes preservatives to give it shelf life (sugar & salt are preservatives, amongst other chemicals) Cheers! Xo
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One of the things that I realised after dropping sugar out of my diet was how stable my moods had become. I was on a daily emotional rollercoaster ride before.
Sam, what Sarah is saying in making those comparisons is that the ‘health benefits’ of those foods outweigh the ultimate health detriments. When it comes to the body, sugar is sugar is sugar, in whatever form it is digested (& whatever nutrients those foods provide can be obtained in other foods that don’t mess with blood & insulin levels like muesli bars & juice do). Just because it may seem healthier doesn’t mean it is.
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My quitting sugar seems to bother people. I’d like to know why. Perhaps I am the boring dinner party guest making everyone feel guilty about their “fun” as they inhale their second slice of mud cake?
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March 27th, 2011 at 12:54 pm
I know, I get that too! My personal opinion is that if somebody has an issue/ addiction they are not ready to confront, and somebody else forces them to become cognisant through their own example, thats where the anger comes from. Its anger at themself, not you, and realization that there are parts of themself they are not ready to confront yet. I seem to have no problems eating a steak when I am out to dinner with my vegetarian friends, as they are comfortable with their choice to eat vego food. Sugar, however, seems to be something different, and I think very few people are comfortable consuming it without at least some guilt or moral issue. Otherwise, why would they be angry at somebody else’s choice?
I presume of course that you do not lecture people on it… I never do, usually dont even give an explanation. I dont find it helps though!
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March 27th, 2011 at 1:48 pm
Interesting insight! I haven’t lectured people on it either. All I’ve said is that I don’t eat sugar anymore, perhaps I should’ve just kept it to myself and just say a polite ‘no thank you’. I’ve lost 7kgs and so people have asked me what I’m doing and I just say I quit sugar. You are spot on when you say that people rarely can consume sugar without feeling some guilt, and I think this is definitely why I’m getting hostility.
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March 28th, 2011 at 5:26 pm
I’ve only told a few people because the first person who found out looked at me with disbelief and what looked to be …disgust?! She spoke to me as though she thought I was deranged. It seemed like my choice somehow offended her!
April 2nd, 2011 at 2:25 pm
It is very interesting to watch people’s reactions! I think if you are not eating junk food, you do make people feel uncomfortable, you may as well be sitting there with purple hair and a pierced nose. I was at a work meeting one morning at 9 am and somebody had brought in Danish pastries and when I said that I didn’t want one (way too early anyway even if I ever wanted a pastry) the boss exploded and asked couldn’t I let my hair down for once!! Luckily I was going to Weight Watchers at the time so I retorted, they told me about people like you at Weight Watchers and he pulled his head in. People who eat a lot of junk food don’t understand that a) you might not want to eat it for your health and b) you just don’t want it period. I think if you just nonchalantly say to friends, oh no thanks I’m not really eating sugar anymore, they get used to it, just as the people at work have! I do indulge occasionally, but only when I really feel like it! My family now also don’t turn a hair if I tell them no thanks and honestly, after most meals I can say I’m too full – a very acceptable answer for most.
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April 2nd, 2011 at 8:12 pm
I find the same with alcohol. I would accompany friends into bars – I can happily sit all night just drinking water, but you’d be surprised at how many people took it as a personal commentry on their own drinking habits. One girl actually told me that I had no right to be in the pub with my friends if I wasn’t going to drink. Best to just not say anything, that way nobody’ll know!
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December 27th, 2011 at 10:45 am
I am back on day 1 today of trying to get off sugar and caffeine too….it’s going to be soooo hard because i’m an addict but i’m having such health problems because of it. i know it’s so hard on me. i’ve been weaning down to very low doses of anti anxiety medication so tomorrow is day 1 of no caffeine and no meds. i’ve never gone live or on a blog like this before but thought this might be a good step in the right direction. wish me luck i definitely wish u guys luck!
michelle
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Hi Sarah, have you cut alcohol out all together too?
I seem to be doing ok at cutting the sugar but crave a glass of wine… which then seems to set me off craving a biscuit or six!
Thanks for the constant updates on your sugarless journey – they are inspiring!
Bx
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March 27th, 2011 at 12:16 pm
Beer and wine are fine (apart from Dessert wine) according to David’s book, Sweet Poison, so go nuts.
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April 1st, 2011 at 12:31 pm
Bubbles? Xx
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March 27th, 2011 at 3:56 pm
Most people think that alcoholic beverages are full of sugar, I assumed they were sugar loaded also before I read Sweet Poison. There are loads of alcoholic beverages that have very little or virtually no sugar.
I read this book around 7 months ago and it changed (my life) and the whole way I think about sugar and my, hm hm, poor diet choices.
I was a regular sugar junkie, confectionery choc bars from the servo, half a block of choc after a stressful day at work… that’s normal right? tsk tsk.
I have been virtually sugar free since for reading this book. I say virtually as I allowed a couple of treats to slices of Pav over christmas time and a piece of my boyfs birthday cake…. that was in early January.
I eat whatever I want I just cut out sugar my weight doesn’t yo yo I don’t need to diet or cut back on food, because my weight and appetite is stable since I cut out sugar.
I now don’t eat emotionally and my appetite is regular and not all out of whack from all the sugar messing with my insulin etc. I am never hungry or crave foods like I used to when sugar was in my diet.
I have become a huge advocate of this new “Quit Sugar Movement” I find it fascinating how much information there is on this subject.
Anyone thinking about giving up sugar should read David Gillespie’s Sweet Poison book, it’s information and influence will convince you to quit, much like the effect of Alan Carr Quit Smoking book/ideas.
Go Sarah for bringing this serious health issue to light.
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March 27th, 2011 at 5:42 pm
Well said Kylie. I totally agree with everything you say!
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Yes, it is truly amazing that all that “healthy” food makes us fat and sick. My children weren’t very happy when I stopped buying apple juice and started putting milk on the table at dinner time. But now no one mentions it. I’ve noticed that the kids seem less hungry and quite satisfied at dinner time.
Staying off sugar is definitely worth it. I’ve never felt better, and barely had cravings (this fact amazes me the most – I thought giving up all sugar would be an insurmountable challenge, and it isn’t).
Sometimes I do wonder if I’ll ever eat marmalade again. It was one of my little pleasures. I know I can eat what I like, but I actually harbour a little bit of fear over having small amounts of sugar (like on my toast in the form of marmalade). I worry that if I have a tiny bit I’ll be salivating after it again, and I really don’t want to go backwards.
Is there anyone out there who has given up sugar for a long time and found they can have small amounts? Or is this like other addictions where you really have to stay away from it? I’d love to hear from other recovered sugar addicts.
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April 2nd, 2011 at 2:44 pm
Hi Angela
I used to be a total sugar addict – used to eat a family block of chocolate every single day! Boy was my health pathetic. So having stopped the bad habits with reading and learning, going to Weight Watchers and eventually coming across David’s book, I can now have a block of chocolate sitting in the fridge (my partner actually) and it is not calling my name anymore. And, the good thing is that when I do feel like something sweet, I can have it without setting off the triggers. I can have a couple of bits and really savour it. You can only try it and see how your body reacts.
Dr George Blair-West an Australian psychologist wrote Weight Loss for Food lovers and it in it he talks about mindfulness, in which you really enjoy and savour what you eat (instead of like me guiltily gobbling the chocolate down before anybody saw me and not enjoying it as much as I should have!) Well worth the read just for that section.
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Yes I’d like to know about the alcohol thing too. I read once that the sugar in booze is ok??
Cheers!
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Thanks Sarah. Great motivation. I am with you. I printed off all the pics of the sugar cubes next to the various cokes, juices etc and put them on the notice board where I work. It is just amazing. I am really against the low fat stuff too and when you look at the sugar content it is frightening. It is also dishonest of companies to not identify the fact that the fructose turns to fat. Some pretty dodgy consumer manipulation I think.
The less you have of the sugar i think the less you crave it as well. Keep on letting us all know how you go. Thanks
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I know that giving up sugar will be good for me. I’m just wondering how you handle alcohol. I don’t drink every night but really enjoy a drink at the end of the week, when I’m in company or when I have a crap day. Have people given the demon drink up?
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June 16th, 2011 at 8:17 pm
Sugar is what becomes alcohol in wine, spirits etc so it’s fine to drink dry wines, champagnes and spirits such as vodka because the sugar has been fermented. Liquers are often made with 30% sugar so best to steer clear of those (though I love frangelico and still have that occasionally, despite having given up all other sugar 3 months ago). Oh, beer and original strongbow are also ok sugarwise. Enjoy!
Jo
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Thankyou for another timely post sarah.
I have been sugar free for a few months now and was feeling great. Until life happened. I spiralled back into a particularly bad anxiety/depression phase and sought out sweetness in my life via food. Needless to say it’s been a rough few weeks, and sugar only contributed to the highs and lows. I’m reinspired to kick the habit again, it’s amazing how fast your brain gets into an angsty/addiction focused place again.
I just went and reread all your i quit sugar posts. I’m back in the game!
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I too have been sugar, or more precisely, fructose-free now for 7 months (except I did indulge in a few Christmas mince pies over the festive season !) I have had so many people comment on how well I look, and ask how much weight I’ve lost. The reality is that I haven’t lost much weight at all, but I no longer have that bloating around the face and stomach, which makes my shape much better. I also feel so well – both physically and mentally. I still drink wine, and also vodka with soda water and a dash of low calorie lime. (Not every day though – I’m not a total lush !) It is so refreshing to eat “fat” again, after years of starving myself of fat in attempts to lose weight. There is no guilt associated with it now, and I always feel satisfied, despite eating far less overall than I have done for years. Yay for David Gillespie and his life-changing book. Now, if I could just find some motivation to exercise, I could be even healthier and toned !
People do seem amazed that I could quit sugar, and so many people say they don’t know how I can not eat biscuits, chocolate etc any more. Well, I can assure you I was a total chocoholic my whole life until I quit sugar. Now I have absolutely zero interest in chocolate, biscuits etc. The first 3 weeks I found really difficult – particulary with the daily headaches (mind you, we had just had the first of our two major earthquakes here in Christchurch, NZ, which was really horrible, and some of those headaches may have been stress related ?) I’ve also found people aren’t particularly interested in hearing about the quitting sugar thing, so I just keep quiet about it and politely refuse the sweet stuff, while happily indulging in the crackers and cheese etc. Mmmm …
To anyone about to undertake the challenge, I say GO FOR IT, it’s much easier than you think
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March 27th, 2011 at 5:49 pm
Lisa I have also been fructose free for about 7 months and I have lost a bit more than you (12kg) but it’s likely I had more weight to lose in the first place. I can totally relate to the part where you say people are amazed you could quit sugar. I am astounded that I did it too because like you I was a most unlikely candidate. It’s really not that hard once you lose the taste for sugar. Life is no longer a see saw of binge and guilt for me.
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I have struggled with emotional issues for years. I wake up feeling very anxious everyday. I’ve read an immense amount of information and spent an AWFUL lot of money (in the range of a very good house deposit, at least) trying to help myself. I’ve been through it all – pharmaceuticals, naturopathic supplements, herbs, extreme diets – vegetarianism, veganism (“maybe I’m taking on the animal’s fears?”), 100% raw, fasts… psychotherapy, hypnotherapy, acupuncture, kinesiology, meditation, yoga, osteopathy… psychiatry… you name it. You’d think I’d have tripped over this fructose thing sooner… I thought I’d read it all!!
Two weeks ago I started reading Sweet Poison by David Gillespe and reduced my fructose intake. A week ago I ceased it. Today (and yesterday too, and the day before that…) I woke up feeling calm. Common sense has prevailed! My mother said to me when I was a teenager – “Would you ever eat an entire case of apples? Then why would you eat a Mars Bar? They have the same amount of sugar in them!” If only I’d taken her small (probably inaccurate) analogy to heart I might have saved myself an awful lot of suffering. Society’s sugar intake is a huge issue and I’m so pleased and grateful to have found this thread.
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Thanks for sharing your journey. I’m on week 5 and I too am finding that my moods are more stable, bloating has gone and i’m no longer craving it!
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I’ve never been huge on sugar anyways, so I eat a diet that is naturally quite low in sugar. Don’t really have fruit very often, more as a treat (particularly in summer, watermelon and strawbs!). A little sugar creeps into my diet with soy yogurt (cannot have dairy, and whatever the deal is, soy works for me, so I keep eating it, though try to keep it at a minimum; less than 100g a day) over my home prepped gf bircher muesli – keeps you full all morning. I suppose my lack of love for sugar comes from not having much processed stuff as a kid – we couldn’t afford it, so I think I never really got into that addiction?!
What I do not understand is people not getting that ‘diet’ foods are laden with sugar, all it takes is a flip to the nutritional information to see that it has the equivalent calories, and more sugar carbs. This should be obvious when lollies are advertised as 99% fat free?!?! It is not rocket science, how hard is it to eat close to the source and as little processed stuff as possible. Just by doing this I find that my diet is heavily raw, and unprocessed (apart from the little bit of soy yogurt, and a few things here and there!).
Another great way to eat is intuitive eating, learning to listen to your body and what it wants. It is not easy, but I am slowly learning, and loving how I am feeling, getting in tune with my body. This has even resulted in me pushing less at the gym and giving up alcohol, and I feel a million times better for it. I am happy going with what my body wants, keeping it close to the source, it’s different for everyone I suppose!
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Hi Sarah, I don’t each much sugar as my body doesn’t like it either. I’m wondering if you still drink alcohol? I guess its the one thing I ‘miss’ when I try and go hardcore every now and then… vodka and soda doesn’t quite satisfy like a nice glass of bubbles!
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After reading Gillespie’s book late last year, I said goodbye to sugar on Boxing Day 2010. At first it was hard but as the Summer progressed I found myself wanting clean and healthy food. It’s been three months and I have lost 7 kilos, gotten rid of all my post baby belly and feel fantastic. I now cycle with the kids to school and next week will look for my first pair of size 8 jeans (I’m only 5’2). My health is great, my skin looks good and I could not ask for more. I have overcome a long 40 year addiction to sugar and will never look back – I don’t really miss it that much. I do however allow myself sugar on weekends but I find a small amount is all I need. My next challenge is to see what I can do about my underactive thyroid and my long life dependancy on thyroxine. Will I be able to get off the medication? Who knows.
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Good on you Sarah! Courage!
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I’m picking up a copy of Sweet Poison from the library today.
I’m looking forward to (trying) to be (mostly) sugar free
Thanks for the inspiration, Sarah.
x
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Hi there, after reading all of your posts on quitting sugar, I have managed to feel somewhat comforted that I am not the only one in the world that has to quit such an addiction (or though I do feel quite alone in this when I sit at breakfast with the girls and everyone is ordering coffee with honey, bircher muesli and muffins… sigh*).
I was diagnosed with Candida about 3 weeks ago now and have had quite an emotional time trying to detatch from all of the little things I forgot/denied had suagr in them; i.e Pumpkin, Carrots, Bread, Honey, Sushi rice, ALCOHOL…. Without trying to feel like it was the end of the world, I have managed to get one full week down without any sugar/simple carb of any description.. and I tell you – this is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I am wondering if there are any other Candida sufferers out there who have any super tips on delicious food to add to Sarah’s suggestions already (which have already been a huge help) The cinnamon tip is great, I often chew on the bark and it satiates your appetite! Also interested to know if anyone has cured their Candida?? and how long it took. Thank you
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I was just wondering if we’re allowed Sourdough bread if we’re quitting sugar. Love it too much to quit it
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Hey Sarah whats your take on fresh whole fruit in this picture? Do u limit ur intake? Cheers! Xxo
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I have been diagnosed with Hyperinsulinemia which has meant that I have to drastically reduce my sugar intake. My lifestyle change as I call it hasn’t been too difficult. For breakfast I have porridge, special K or Guardian cereals with LSA nut mix this makes me feel full and not wanting to snack .Fruit is still part of my diet but I can only have it at morning tea so that I have all day to digest it. Bananas I can only have once a week but the other fruits that are fine are apples, pears,oranges and mandarins. I have sourdough bread with sandwiches but always buy the one lowest in sugar. My motto now is fresh is best. Twice a week I am allowed a small sweet treat but I have found after 6 weeks and losing 10kgs as a result that I don’t crave it. It is amazing how good reducing sugar can make you feel inside and out.
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I read Sarah’s piece in Life a few weeks ago, and then I read this in the NY Times this week “Is Sugar Toxic?”:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Sugar-t.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=sugar%20toxic&st=cse
One of the points it makes is the increased use of corn syrup in foods which is … you guessed it … high in fructose.
It also discusses how this impacts on insulin in the body.
It’s interesting and timely to see a piece from the US on all this, and it supports what you’ve been saying Sarah.
Hope your resolve is still going strong!
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PS Hey Sarah, BTW, you might want to clarify your “byline” which states “this blog makes life better, SWEETER”… that would be glucose only perhaps
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If you don’t want to crave sugar, you need to eat saturated fats.
If you want to understand fats, you need to read this article:
http://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats/526-skinny-on-fats.html
Pretty well everything you have been told by the mainstream media, including many so-called health sites is WRONG. The above article explains what the research really says.
And what does it say? Saturated animal fats, butter, cream, coconut oil are not only good for you, they are essential for proper brain function, and good mental and physical health. Saturated fats are nutrient rich and have anti-viral, anti-microbial and anti-bacterial actions. They also stabilise your blood sugar.
Butter, for instance has anti-microbial actions – it fights against pathogenic microorganisms in the intestinal tract. Butter also contains arachidonic acid which is important for brain function and prostaglandin production. It is full of important trace minerals including manganese, chromium, zinc, copper and selenium (a powerful antioxidant). Butter provides more selenium per gram than wheat germ or herring. Butter is also an excellent source of iodine – essential for healthy thyroid function. When butter comes from cows eating green grass, it contains high levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a compound that gives excellent protection against cancer and also helps the body build muscle rather than store fat. I could go on.
The important phospholipids that form the membranes in all of our cells are made of mostly (half or more) saturated fatty acids. This is especially true for parts of our brains where more than 80 percent of the phospholipids carry half of their fatty acids as saturated fatty acids.
Vegetable oils, in contrast, are full of free radicals and other toxic breakdown products from their high temperature industrial processing. Vegetables oils and margarines weaken blood vessels and prematurely age your body. Margarines lower your IQ. Not surprising since they contain, amongst other horrors, hexane and other solvents, bleach and soy protein isolates which contribute to thyroid dysfunction. They are nutrient poor. Hydrogenated fats are to be avoided at all costs.
The summary of what’s good and what’s bad is below. The page also links to many articles regarding fats and cholesterol based on the scientific and medical research, not advertising, marketing or uninformed speculation and opinion.
http://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats
BTW Saturated fats do not give you high cholesterol. Cholesterol is not the bad guy. It is the body’s repair function. Attacking cholesterol is like attacking the fireman that comes to put out the fire.
Basically, the whole hypothesis that saturated fat causes high cholesterol is based on a few flawed studies where the fats that were used were described as saturated fats, but were in fact hydrogenated oils. What most people ‘know’ about fats are ‘facts’ they have gleaned from the advertising and marketing of the highly subsidised vegetable oil industry. Unfortunately the falsehoods have been repeated so often that most people accept them as truths.
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If you don’t want to crave sugar, you need to eat saturated fats.
If you want to understand fats, you need to read this article:
http://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats/526-skinny-on-fats.html
Pretty well everything you have been told by the mainstream media, including many so-called health sites is WRONG. The above article explains what the research really says.
And what does it say? Saturated animal fats, butter, coconut oil are not only good for you, they are essential for proper brain function, mental and physical health. Saturated fats are nutrient rich and have anti-viral, anti-microbial and anti-bacterial actions. They also stabilise your blood sugar.
Butter, for instance has anti-microbial actions – it fights against pathogenic microorganisms in the intestinal tract. Butter also contains arachidonic acid which is important for brain function and prostaglandin production. It is full of important trace minerals including manganese, chromium, zinc, copper and selenium (a powerful antioxidant). Butter provides more selenium per gram than wheat germ or herring. Butter is also an excellent source of iodine – essential for healthy thyroid function. When butter comes from cows eating green grass, it contains high levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a compound that gives excellent protection against cancer and also helps the body build muscle rather than store fat. I could go on.
The important phospholipids that form the membranes in all of our cells are made of mostly (half or more) saturated fatty acids. This is especially true for parts of our brains where more than 80 percent of the phospholipids carry half of their fatty acids as saturated fatty acids.
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CONT>>>
Vegetable oils, in contrast, are full of free radicals and other toxic breakdown products from their high temperature industrial processing. Vegetables oils and margarines weaken blood vessels and prematurely age your body. Margarines lower your IQ. Not surprising since they contain, amongst other horrors, hexane and other solvents, bleach and soy protein isolates which contribute to thyroid dysfunction. They are nutrient poor. Hydrogenated fats are to be avoided at all costs.
The summary of what’s good and what’s bad is below. This page also links to many articles regarding fats and cholesterol based on the scientific and medical research, not advertising, marketing or uninformed speculation and opinion.
http://www.westonaprice.org/know-your-fats
Saturated fats do not give you high cholesterol. Cholesterol is not the bad guy. It is the body’s repair function. Attacking cholesterol is like attacking the fireman that comes to put out the fire.
Basically, the whole hypothesis that saturated fat causes high cholesterol is based on a few flawed studies where the fats that were used were described as saturated fats, but were in fact hydrogenated oils. What most people ‘know’ about fats are ‘facts’ they have gleaned from the advertising and marketing of the highly subsidised vegetable oil industry. Unfortunately the falsehoods have been repeated so often that most people accept them as truths.
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What is up with the photo accompanying this post? It would easily fit in with the “thinspiration” pictures on pro-anorexia blogs. Not cool.
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May 26th, 2011 at 1:43 pm
Hi RY, I think she’s ‘sposed to look like a drug addict racking up lines of “sugar dope” rather than be an image of what you look like if you don’t eat sugar… Bx
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Parson’s nose!!!! The best part besides the wings. Back off Sarah or I,ll fight you for it.
Seriously tho. Ive just been diagnosed with Hashimoto disease and while doing some research I stumbled across your website. I was feeling so down and depressed but you have put a smile back on my face. Thank you. As for quitting sugar now I feel like I have a chance. You have been able to share your personal journey in such a way as to provide some REAL help and encouragement to battlers like me. Im not going crazy, only my thyroid is. LOL
Cheers Jillymck
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I have found all this sugar-free discussion so fascinating. About 3 months ago, just after my fiftieth birthday, I suddenly got fed up with my weakness for sweet stuff and also decidedly fed up with the accompanying weight. Having no faith in my ability to “cut down” I decided to “cut out” sweet stuff. Not knowing any of this fructose info, all I thought I was doing was cutting out the unnecessary and indulgent excess. To overcome the cravings I ate dry roasted nuts for a while, but soon lost most of the need for those too. I also on the whole felt less hungry. Anyway, the bottom line is I have lost 7kgs with what seems to me very little effort. I have increased my exercise but not by much. This is the first time I have ever dieted and It has left me feeling intolerably smug. I don’t know what all this dieting palaver is all about. Like I said, intolerably smug!
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June 3rd, 2011 at 7:58 pm
That’s EXACTLY my story. You have a friend in smugness.
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June 5th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
Good for you Philip. I for one would like to slap your intolerably smug face !!!!! I immediately felt demeaned when I read your post and the one replying to it. All you had to do was cut out ‘unnecessay and indulgent excess’. REALLY !!!! Wow how simple was that. I wonder why none of us on here have thought of that and given it a go. Silly silly me, I will just pop off and do that and BINGO my Hashimoto disease will disappear, my chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia will fade away, my arthritis will be no more, my rapid AF will be a thing of the past and my PTSD and its accompaning emotional trauma will be gone.
What a thoughtless and yes, intolerable post. Even if it was tongue in check it demeans the huge physical and emotional effort most of us put in 24/7 to lose weight and get our various afflictions under control. If you have nothing positive and upbuilding to say then DONT POST. We who are having a real battle dont need your demeaning and damaging comments. And that goes for Eatsrootsleaves as well who was too cowardly to even leave a name.
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June 6th, 2011 at 4:23 pm
Jilly, I am indeed sorry that you took such offence at my post, I certainly wasn’t aiming to be in any way hurtful. What I’m not sorry for though is taking some joy in my own success.
It was a very unexpected and welcome surprise and one I feel entitled to take some pleasure in.
I do wish you success in your own journey.
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Jilly i think maybe uve taken the comment the wrong way…not sure? I just cant see or understand how u can b so upset by that comment…im a dietitian & have bn on the weight/ PCOS journey myself & i think u can make it as emotional/hard or as enjoyable/spiritually&personally “growing” as u choose…i have a very wholistic approach to all of this &i now realise after many yrs of personal experience& now professional, that the food/exercise components are only a piece of the puzzle.. Anyway.. If u wld like any assistance or support on your journey, pls b in touch.. Sincerely, BridgetJane
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Interesting response Jilly. I have actually had the same experience as Philip and Eatsrootsleaves, ie I have recently tried to cut down on the biscuits, chocolate, icecream and cakes that I eat – all of which are clearly “unecessary and indulgent excess” as Philip describes it. I have lost some weight too. Does that make me intolerably smug? I think it’s great that Philip has posted about his experience and good on him for breaking his habit of eating indulgent treats. Perhaps if Philip had the variety of illnesses that you suffer from – and I’m sorry that you have those health problems – he too would not have found it as easy to lose weight. But he isn’t you. I think we all should be able to comment on our own personal journeys as Philip has done and I don’t think he was denigrating other people’s experiences. I’m fascinated that you would find his positive experience “demeaning and damaging”. Methinks you’re being a touch sensitive…but each to their own. Good luck battling your own health challenges. And congrats Philip for losing that unwanted weight!
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Hi Jilly
I too think that you are being a bit sensitive, and a lot of the sweet stuff we indulge in is unnecessary and indulgent. Maybe what Phil is referring to as the unnecessary indulgences is soft drinks every day, cakes and biscuits every day, lollies every day. Our systems are just not meant to take that amount of sugar. I used to be a massive sugar addict and coupled with an extremely unhealthy diet was always tired and feeling nauseous. Now I eat a very healthy diet, I have gotten over my cravings, but I still indulge once or twice a week. It can take a long time to overcome being a sugar addict as well because your brain is telling you one thing but your body completely overrides it, so you eat sugar, beat yourself up, it can be a pretty bad cycle, it took me years not just a few weeks or months! And even now, if I open a bag of lollies (my major weakness), I don’t stop at one!!
And I reckon it’s ok to feel smug if you have overcome an addiction it doesn’t denigrate what others are going through on their own journey. I too wish you the very best with your health challenges as many of us who comment here have had our own to some degree or another.
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About time. I havn’t studied up on sugar vs fat BUT for the longest time now I have been a huge believer that fat is good sugar is bad!! This for me is just due to the fact that my body feels so full after eating good fats and after eating sugar I feel truly terrible but still can’t stop eating it once I’ve started, I get a sugar hangover about an hour latter (in every sence of the word HANGOVER) I go so far as to tell friends and strangers who go on crazy diets to NEVER cutt fat from their diets but avoid sugar. I eat what I want when I want good fats and the bad ones also and don’t have a weight problem, but when I reintroduce sugar into my daily diet I notice a weight increase!!
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Hi Sarah,
. After this I began to introduce it again and now I am back to square one, eating it by the truck load. My question therefore is will I ever be able to eat it again in appropriate amounts?
I have read David’s book (I thoroughly recommend it!) and I gave up sugar for 2 months. This was an absolute miracle when you see how much sugar I can eat
Thanks,
Shaunagh
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Love love love all the insight so many people have on this topic. I am always keen to try new ways to help my body be in tip top shape. After sluggling it out in the gym & shedding a whopping 20 kilos, this sugar free thing I am certain will help me maintain my year of hard work (rather than spending 2 hours a night at the gym & being drink free) I am a firm believer in everything in moderation, but after sugar hangovers & the cravings! I am only into week 2 & terrified, but I am already starting to feel a difference & sugar free dark chocolate – has definately been a god send!
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I’ve noticed the milk I buy has 12 grams of sugar in it. What kind of milk do you drink because the cows milk has sugar in it? Thanks!
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Hi – thank you, thank you! This is amazing! A few months ago, I gave up all forms of sugar for 2-months. It was amazing. Truly. I felt all of the benefits you listed and more. Too bad for me that I didn’t listen to myself and began eating the food my daughter left on her plate so as not to “waste” it… Hmmm… logic? Not until I read your posts did I even question why a 2 year old has a diet so high in sugar – because it seems like all she’ll eat? Come, come.
My question to you is – think young children can make a similar change? Luckily, she loves cheese, but seems to want to subsist on it, raisins, and crackers and with Halloween yesterday, was in heaven with all the treats! Can you recommend a website or book geared toward young children? I’d LOVE to get her started on the right path as soon as possible! Thank you again for all of this information!
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One of the great things for me is that I’ve rediscovered my love of cooking, especially baking! Now that I have to make EVERYTHING myself I am much more ‘aware’ of all my shopping/cooking/eating choices. Apart from one cake, everything I have made has been perfect made with exactly the same volume (rather than weight) of dextrose in place of ‘normal’ sugar (sucrose). My spiced peach jam is simply divine! Spread on home-made bread with lashings of real butter – Heaven!!!
We’re making icecream and tomato ketchup this weekend….
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