Have you heard? Sugar is the new fat. We’ve been brainwashed into thinking that fat is bad, but as it turns out its sugar, not fat, that makes you sick and overweight.
The facts are in, sugar in all its forms is the root cause of the obesity epidemic and most chronic diseases including heart disease, cancer, dementia, type 2 diabetes, depression, and even acne, infertility and impotence.
With how addictive sugar is it can be difficult to kick the habit. If you want to lose weight or improve your overall health, we strongly recommend considering eliminating sugar from your diet!
To help you detox from sugar, below are ten tips courtesy of Dr Hyman, who created The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet.
1) Make the decision to detox from sugar – you’re only a few days away from better health.
2) Go cold turkey – There is no way to handle a true physiological addiction except to stop it completely. Go cold turkey. Trying to lose weight? Stop all forms of sugar, all flour products and all artificial sweeteners.
3) Don’t drink your calories – Any form of liquid sugar calories is worse than solid food with sugar or flour. Think of it as mainlining sugar directly to your liver. It turns off a fat storage machine in your liver, leading to dreaded belly fat. You don’t feel full, so you eat more all day and you crave more sugar and carbs. Stay away!
4) Power up the day with protein – Consider starting the day with whole farm eggs or a protein shake. Use nuts, seeds, eggs, fish, chicken or grass-fed meat for protein at every meal. A serving size is 4-6 ounces or the size of your palm.
5) Eat unlimited carbs – Yes, that’s right. Unlimited carbs. These vegetables are carbs, and you get to eat as much as you want: the broccoli family (cauliflower, kale, collards, etc.), asparagus, green beans, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, tomatoes, fennel, eggplant, artichokes, peppers, etc. What’s out are potatoes, sweet potatoes, winter squash and beets — just for 10 days. Also skip grains and beans for 10 days.
6) Fight sugar with fat – Fat doesn’t make you fat, sugar does. Fat makes you full, balances your blood sugar and is necessary for fueling your cells. Along with protein, have good fats at every meal and snack including nuts and seeds (which also contain protein), extra virgin olive oil, coconut butter, avocados, and omega 3 fats from fish.
7) Be ready for emergencies – You never want to be in a food emergency when your blood sugar is dropping and you find yourself in a food desert such as an airport, the office, or in a maze of convenience stores, fast food joints and vending machines. You need an Emergency Life Pak. Here’s are some ideas of what to put in yours: almonds, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, salmon jerky or turkey jerky, a can of wild salmon and unsweetened wild blueberries.
8) Swap distress for de-stress – If you are stressed, your hormones go crazy. Cortisol goes up which makes you hungry, causes belly fat storage and leads to type 2 diabetes. Studies show that taking deep breaths activates a special nerve, called the vagus nerve, that shifts your metabolism from fat storage to fat burning and quickly moves you out of the stress state. And all you have to do is take a deep breath.
9) Reduce inflammation in your body – Inflammation triggers blood sugar imbalances, insulin resistance, pre-diabetes, and type 2 diabetes. The most common source of inflammatory foods other than sugar, flour, and trans fats are gluten and dairy. We often crave the foods we’re allergic to. Without them we feel lousy and want more. Quit gluten and dairy for ten days. Getting off them isn’t easy, but after just two to three days without them you’ll have renewed energy, relief from cravings, and will see many of your common symptoms disappear.
10) Get a good night’s sleep – Getting less sleep drives sugar and carb cravings by affecting your appetite hormones.
