Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Make a serious commitment to quit
• Part 2 of 3: Shopping differently
• Part 3 of 3: Changing your eating habits
• Tips

It is now well known that too much sugar is bad for you for a variety of reasons. In addition to being overweight, too much sugar can also cause inflammation, heart disease, an increased risk of diabetes, and eventually damage your kidneys. For these and many other reasons, more and more people are choosing not to eat sugar at all. Stopping sugar is often not that easy. It is difficult to understand which types of sugar are good for you and which types of sugar can be harmful to your health. Many people probably also do not know exactly which foods contain natural sugar and which products contain sugars.By learning more about sugars and the effects they have on your body, you can live a happier, healthier life and feel like you have more control over your diet.

To step

Part 1 of 3: Make a serious commitment to quit

1. Decide whether you want to quit cold turkey either all at once or gradually. If you want to stop eating a certain food or ingredient, you will have to decide first of all whether you want to eliminate it from your menu at once, or if you prefer to eat less and less of it step by step. Whichever method you choose, there is a good chance that you will experience certain withdrawal symptoms.
   • If you are used to eating a lot of sugar, and have been eating sugar for a long time, and you stop all at once, the withdrawal symptoms can be more severe. In that case, you may want to try to cut down on the amount of sugar over the course of a few weeks.
   • If the amounts of sugar you eat are relatively small, you may be able to quit cold turkey without experiencing any symptoms.
   • If you choose to slowly cut back on sugar, make sure you are honest about the choices you make. Don't treat yourself to something sweet in between just to get your dose of sugar for the day.
2. Keep track of what you eat. Quitting sugar is not always easy. In addition, it can also be difficult and time-consuming to find foods that you can eat and drink instead of things with sugar. To get started, write down what you eat, make a diet plan, and also write down how you feel as you work on cutting sugar out of your diet.
   • Come up with a strategy and make notes in a food diary. To get an idea of ​​how much sugar you are taking in on a particular day or week, you could start by keeping a food diary. Based on that, you can plan how you want to reduce the amount of sugar in your diet.
   • Include healthy alternatives that you plan to use. You may have to try a few different things before you find something that works.
   • You can also take notes on how you are feeling, the progress you are making and any relapses you have. Keeping a journal is a great way to deal with all the stress that comes with doing this arduous task.
3. Prepare yourself for the withdrawal symptoms. As with other addictions, if you stop eating a product that is bad for you, you can experience certain withdrawal symptoms. Such symptoms are very normal, so you shouldn't be surprised if you get them. Remember that sugar is in fact a drug. And as with other drugs, if you stop taking it, you can experience withdrawal symptoms and an irrepressible urge to take it anyway. They will eventually pass, but the initial withdrawal phase can be quite tricky.
   • How long you continue to suffer from withdrawal symptoms depends on the amount of sugar you were used to consuming daily and how long you have been eating sugar. The more sugar you are used to eating and the longer you have been eating sugar, the more intense the withdrawal symptoms will be, and the longer you can continue to suffer from it.
   • Usually, for the first two weeks after you stop eating sugar, you will experience nausea and headaches, and feel irritable. Your body is counting on a daily dose of sugar, and if you suddenly omit that you will notice the effect until your body gets used to it.
   • Describe the symptoms you feel and also any positive thoughts you have about quitting sugar to help you get through the period of less pleasant withdrawal symptoms. Ultimately it will be worth the inconvenience; if you notice that your mood becomes more stable and you start to feel healthier and more energetic than when you were still addicted to sugar.
4. Make a plan for when you experience cravings for sugar. For the first few weeks, you may be dreaming about cookies, ice cream, and candy, but believe it or not, over time those cravings will disappear. In the meantime, make sure you don't give in by doing the following things:
   • Dilute sweet drinks. Mix regular soda with water or Spa red. Also dilute fruit juices and other sweet drinks with water. Keep doing this until you no longer find it a problem to drink pure water or other sugar-free drinks.
   • Take refuge in fruit. If you fancy something sweet in between, try sweet fruit instead. Good options to try include apples, pineapple, banana, and mango, as these are slightly sweeter than other fruits.
   • Opt for low-calorie options. If you're really craving something sweet, and fruit or other tricks aren't working, have something low in calories. Invariably having a snack with less than 150 calories is a smart move. Buy small, individually wrapped snacks so that you can control yourself more easily.
5. Follow a diet program or join a support group. Quitting sugar isn't easy, and support from people who are going through the same thing as you can help. So sign up for a support group or a joint program, instead of doing it all by yourself.
   • Some groups come together physically, while with other groups you only have contact via the internet. The members can motivate each other and share tips, which will make the process easier for everyone. Plus, it's nice to have people you can share your progress with!
   • Tell your friends and family what you are doing. The fact that you no longer want to eat sugar can also affect the people you regularly eat with. Explain to them why you want to quit sugar, which foods you can no longer eat as a result, and which things you can. Ask if they can help you on your way to your sugar-free life, and see if you can even persuade someone to join you!
   • By telling others that you have committed yourself to quitting sugar, you are accountable to them and they can support you. Moreover, this way you reduce the chance that your friends and family will continue to offer you tasty things with sugar.
6. Prepare for slips. Birthdays, holidays and other special occasions are usually celebrated with sugary treats, and sometimes it's nearly impossible not to participate anyway. And if you participate once, that is not bad at all. Just don't let one miss discourage you and get back to your sugar-free diet as soon as possible.
   • In your food diary, write down what you ate and why you gave in to it. Often stress or other emotional factors are the reason that you could not resist the temptation.
   • If possible, limit yourself to no more than one cookie, or one piece of cake or chocolate, so that you don't end up derailing too much. Afterwards, immediately continue with your sugar-free diet.
   • You may still have an extra craving for sugar up to a few days after the slip, so you have to be extra careful during that time to avoid the sugar.

Part 2 of 3: Shopping differently

1. Always read the labels. If you don't want to eat sugar, you have to pay close attention to what you buy in the supermarket, because many products contain sugar.
   • On the label with information about the nutritional value of the product, you can read how many grams of sugar you get with each serving. Only then you often do not know whether it concerns natural or added sugars.
   • Do your shopping as consciously as possible! You probably expect that there are added sugars in something like cookies, but you might not know that sugar is often added to processed foods and seasonings, such as salad dressing, bread and tomato sauce. Therefore, read each label carefully and do not buy products with sugar in them.
   • Read the ingredients list to find out if any of the foods you eat have added sugar. Always remember that sugars are sometimes mentioned in the nutritional value table, even though no sugar has been added to the product. Products such as plain yogurt without flavor and, for example, apple syrup, both contain sugars that occur naturally in the food.
   • Added sugars include white sugar, brown sugar, beet sugar, cane sugar, molasses, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, agave syrup, concentrated fruit juice, and many others.
   EXPERT TIP

   Replace added sugars with natural sugars. Added sugars are mixed with foods to sweeten them and contain no nutrients of their own. With the sugars that naturally occur in fruit and dairy products, you get vitamins, minerals and fiber at the same time, making them much more nutritious.

   • Natural sugars are, for example, fructose (as in fruit) and lactose (as in milk). All types of fruit and fruit-based products (such as apple syrup and raisins) and all types of dairy products (such as yogurt, milk and cottage cheese) contain variable amounts of natural sugars by themselves.
   • You can make all kinds of healthy changes in your diet by eating products that contain natural sugar instead of added sugar. If you feel like something sweet, choose things that are sweet in their own right, such as fruit or yogurt.
2. Avoid products that have been highly processed. Sugar is almost always added to processed and packaged foods to improve the taste and texture and to extend the shelf life of the product.
   • Frozen products, packaged snacks and snacks, canned soups, sauces, salad dressings and marinades often contain added sugar. If you can, try to make some of those things yourself from now on.
   • If possible, always choose the unsweetened and pure varieties, without flavor. Take plain yogurt, for example, or fruit spread instead of jam. Flavored products usually contain added sugars.
   • Even fruit often contains a lot of sugar when processed. Fruit juice no longer contains any fiber and the water that makes you feel full has also been removed. If you eat fruit, eat it whole, whole.

Part 3 of 3: Changing your eating habits

1. Do not eat sweet snacks or desserts. One of the most common and visible sources of added sugars is the sugars in products such as candy, cookies, cake, pie, ice cream, pudding and other treats and desserts. Most people know that these products contain large amounts of sugar. Leaving them alone can save a lot of sugar in your diet in one sitting.
   • As we explained above, you can choose to stop eating such products all at once, or to cut back gradually.
   • If you want to do it all in one sitting, you may not be interested in healthy substitutions. If you decide to quit sweet treats step by step, you can make it easier on yourself by making a plan with some healthy alternatives that are naturally sweet that you can take throughout the day.
2. Make tasty sugar-free alternatives. Sweet snacks brighten up any eating pattern. If you're trying to quit sugar, you'll find it helpful to find alternative treats that are low in sugar, or that are naturally sweet, so that you have an excuse for times when you crave something sweet.
   • Make use of fruit. For dessert you can take a bowl of fresh fruit with a little cinnamon if you like. And if you still like a little sugar, you can eat the fruit with a little bit of vanilla custard or yogurt, or dip it in melted dark chocolate (after all, it contains little sugar).
   • If you like sweet pastries such as cake, pancakes or sweet breads, there are several sugar-free baking techniques you can experiment with. In many recipes you can use, for example, banana, cooked, mashed sweet potato or pumpkin, or raisins to sweeten your baked goods in a natural way.
   • If you don't like to cook, or don't have time to make things yourself, you can buy snacks with little sugar. For example, you can resort to products suitable for people with diabetes or other diet products. Keep in mind that such products often contain more artificial sweeteners.
3. Drink less alcohol. Alcohol also contains sugar. In addition, it contains no useful nutrients at all. Therefore, if possible, stop drinking alcohol altogether, or opt for the non-alcoholic options or the options with "light" on the label.
   • There is a certain amount of sugar in all types of alcoholic drinks. This does not only concern sweet cocktails or mixed drinks such as rum-cola.
   • If you feel like a beer, choose an alcohol-free or light beer, so that you get less sugar and fewer calories.
   • And if you fancy a glass of wine, make a "spritzer." A spritzer is a mix of wine and Spa red. That way you only get half as much sugar and calories per glass.
   • If you like to drink cocktails or other sweet drinks, to save on sugar and calories, order a drink mixed with Spa red or soda without sugar, instead of regular cola or tonic.
4. Opt for natural sweeteners. If you plan to eat some sweet foods, opt for foods with the most natural sugars, and avoid the more highly processed options.
   • Try honey, agave syrup, molasses, or maple syrup to add some sweetness.
   • These sweeteners are all natural and often even contain vitamins and antioxidants.
   • If you use these types of sweeteners, just make sure that they are not combinations. For example, some products are sold as honey, when in fact they are a mixture of honey and corn syrup. So only buy products such as honey and maple syrup if they are 100% pure.
5. Order wisely if you eat in a restaurant. When you eat out, you quickly eat hidden sugars unnoticed, because the dishes do not come with a nutritional value table on the basis of which you can make your choice. You can always ask the waiter what exactly is in a dish, but it's often better to make sure you have a good strategy for ordering a meal with as little sugar as possible. Try the following tricks for eating sugar-free out of doors:
   • Ask if they can only make your salad with oil and vinegar, instead of a ready-to-eat dressing. Always ask if they can serve the dressing separately.
   • Ask if they can prepare the main courses without sauces or gravies that might contain added sugar. Always ask if any sauces can be served separately.
   • When in doubt, order steamed vegetables, or grilled meats, fish or chicken without other ingredients, instead of pasta, casseroles or stews with a lot of different things in them. Look for the simplest options on the map. They should contain little or no additives.
   • Choose a bowl of fresh fruit for dessert, or don't have dessert at all.
6. Beware of artificial sweeteners. As more and more people abandon sugar and become more aware of their health, scientists have developed all kinds of artificial sweeteners and low-calorie sugar substitutes. Aspartame, saccharin, sugar alcohols, and other sweeteners on their own produce all kinds of other side effects, and can ultimately even be bad for your heart.
   • Studies have shown that if you try to eat less sugar, the sweet taste of different sugar substitutes can make you feel like sugar even more.
   • Avoid processed products that have been sweetened with artificial sweeteners, such as diet drinks and any other typical snacks that state they are sugar-free, such as candy, ice cream, cookies, etc.
   • You can recognize artificial sweeteners by names such as aspartame, acesulfame-K, saccharin, neotame, sucralose, maltitol, sorbitol and xylitol. Avoid products with these ingredients, if possible.

Tips

• If you suddenly get really hungry for sugar, eat some fruit instead of fruit juice or a snack with sugar. The fiber will make you feel full (so you won't be tempted to eat more), and the natural sugars will make you less likely to reach for sweets.
• Do not overeat, even if you eat good and healthy things. Too much of a good thing is bad in the end!