So back to my inspiration for tonight's post. For those of you just starting out on your gut healing journey, I feel your pain and frustration. When I go back to that time in my mind- that time of "time to eliminate practically everything from your diet," I quite literally feel the energy get sucked right out of me. It's truly draining to even reminisce. Stick with it. The mind-body connection is tremendously powerful. Don't let your thoughts get the best of you. You don't want that cookie, I promise.
Let's talk about the different kinds of sugars:
Dextrose, fructose, and glucose are all simple sugars. The difference between them is how your body metabolizes them.
Sugar alcohols such as xylitol, glycerol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and erythritol, are neither sugars nor alcohols but are used as sweeteners. They're completely absorbed by the small intestine and cause sexy problems like bloating, the d-word (diarrhea), and flatulence.
Sucralose or Splenda is an artificial, chlorinated sweetener, A.K.A. aspartame- which is currently in 75% of all foods on store shelves and the cause of 95% of adverse food reaction reports made to the FDA. Check out my blog post on aspartame HERE.
Agave syrup is a fraud and I'm exposing it. It's highly processed and usually contains about 80% fructose. They shouldn't even call it agave because by the time they're through producing it, the product it is nothing like the innocent plant it once was.
Honey is only completely natural in its raw form. So, buy raw honey. Buy raw, LOCAL honey if possible. It helps with seasonal allergies. For the record, 75% of honey purchased at the supermarket isn't real honey.
Stevia has been a Godsend and it's a completely natural sweetener made from the South American stevia plant.
Did you know that eating fructose is WORSE than eating fat?
Here's why...
Fructose elevates uric acid in your body, which elevates your blood pressure and causes damage to your kidneys. (Side note- those who are prone to kidney stones: it's super important to watch your sugar intake. Oops.) Increased uric acid also leads to chronic low-level inflammation which can lead to heart attacks, stroke, and cancer. Fructose really is a bastard though and I'll tell you why. It tricks your body into gaining weight. It literally fools your metabolism by turning off your body's appetite control system. It does not suppress the hunger hormone, ghrelin, or stimulate the satiety hormone, leptin, which results in you eating your face off and developing insulin resistance.
Another scary thought- the more sugar you eat, the better your body gets at absorbing it. The more sugar you absorb, the more damage you cause (Mercola.com, 2010). Just don't do that to yourself.
Check out more information on the toxic effects of sugar and alternative, natural sweeteners using these links. Also watch Dr. Lustig's "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" via YouTube below.
Harmful effects of sugar on mind & body
141 reasons why sugar damages your health
Dangers of sugar
Slideshow- truth about sugar addiction
Dangers of fructose
Natural News- harmful effects of sugar and choosing natural alternatives
Stevia
"Fructose: This Addictive Commonly Used Food Feeds Cancer Cells, Triggers Weight Gain, and Promotes Premature Aging."Mercola.com. N.p., 20 Apr. 2010. Web. 20 June 2013. <http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/04/20/sugar-dangers.aspx>.