5 Reason Ditching Sugar Intake Can Benefit Your Mental Health
The reality is 90% of Americans have sugar daily, attention spans are shorter than ever in history so Let's get right to it.
- Sleep Sugar impairs sleep like nothing else, people can even sleep after consuming caffeine but sugar on the other hand affects so many biological processes. This includes our calcium levels leaving our muscles in a state of mini micro spasms (restless legs) we’re often ‘restless’ and unable to sleep. Sleep is essential to continued repair from whatever we put our bodies through that day! Did you grow up in a genera of how cool it was to sleep so lift? Yes no? I'm not sure where that came from but let me set the record straight.. it's not cool and definitely doesn't help you age well!
- Depression Studies show sugar affects the body in the form of increasing the likeliness for depression, depressed thoughts, activities and the like. Sugar creates unnatural highs leading to even more unnatural lows creating a viscous cycles that ends up involving more sugar, the pancreas, adrenals and brain to name a few major organs. The brain and adrenal organs alone have much to do with our mental well-being. The adrenals regulate our stress and energy and are in a constant state of regulating homeostasis. When we tax them by consuming sugar and substances that add to their work load it creates more exhaustion and eventually adrenal burnout. The brain plays a role in our body in every way. When we’re not mentally clear everything is impaired. We don’t think clearly, our decision making is reduced, our moods are altered which effects relationships and that alone can take on a tailspin of its own leading to binge eating (more sugar? Certainly you wont be binging on celery!), anxiety, stress and depression.
- Anxiety For our over thinkers, stressors and hyper aware individuals, listen up. Sugar can intensify these symptoms/ responses by causing a surge of adrenaline leading to hyperactivity and a hyper-reactive responses. Ever notice someone (it’s easy to see in children) overreact to a situation (we call it a melt down), or they are overly whiny. What about the people some would consider jittery. Sugar intensifies all of this and generally it’s not positive. Studies also show sugar causes blurred vision, fatigue, confusion and can make objective thinking even more of a challenge with a moderate to high sugar diet. All of which leading back to and increasing anxiety.
- Learning and Memory. The chronic inflammatory effects of sugar in the brain and entire body causes deterioration systemically. Just like an inflamed ankle will impair our ability to function; move, run, and jump. Inflammation on the brain impairs it’s ability to function and support the entire body as a whole, because the brain controls our body and bodily processes. This can causing delayed memory and learning. Think of the children. Think about yourself do you actually think more clear after a snickers or whatever snack you may reach for? I have felt this and I purposefully do not eat chocolate before I need to write and focus, it makes me sleepy and low functioning. Dr. Mark Hymen wrote nearly 10 years ago research was correlating Alzheimers and sugar disruption… learning/memory/ etc.
- Endocrine disruption We know sugar impairs our pancreas which is more generally understood as insulin resistance leading to diabetes. Frequent consumption of sugar and high-sugar foods may increase the risk of pancreatic cancer by inducing frequent postprandial hyperglycemia, increasing insulin demand, and decreasing insulin sensitivity. With that statistic, its important to realize pancreatic cancer is one of the fastest and deadliest cancers, with the lowest survival rates. Less than 10% live beyond a year. So let’s protect this organ by eating cleaner!
Ok, so you’re saying … sure, Jolene easier said than done ! But I promise you kicking this deadly damaging habit is easier than you think.
I’m not special. I’m just going to share with you a few tips that have helped me reduce my sugar cravings to completely eliminating my sugar addiction.
#1 Focus on other foods. Sure you’re working to avoid sugar but the more you think about avoiding it the harder it will be. Where your attention goes… your attention flows. So think of other things. When you’re in the midst of a craving, have a preplanned thing to do. Some people do pushups, squats, go for a short walk, listen to music, engage in any other activity other than walking to the snack spot, cupboard etc. Need other foods to grab? First start with water. Drink a glass of water. Want an added boost, add some vitality citrus fresh essential oil to it (use glass or stainless steel container) For food, if your’e truly hungry and you aren’t in the posting to make a solid meal, grab an orange, handful of almonds or edamame, make a protein smoothie.
Click here to see my favorites and also some delicious recipes!
#2 Drink 100 oz of water. Already do that? Great! Add another 15oz. The more water we drink the more we flush our kidneys cleansing the blood of sugar. A few of my favorite things to add to my water for flavor and health benefits are vitality drops, citrus fresh & peppermint essential oils. Store bought flavored water is not the same and ‘natural flavors’ aren’t always what they seem. And essential oils are not all created the same. 99% have added ingredients not suitable for ingestion. Young Living is different. I've been taking their oils internally for 20+ years.
#3 More veggies less carbs. The more carbs you eat the more carbs you body will crave (its that viscous cycle, remember). Here are few ideas that work for us. Always have your veggies clean and ready to chop. Have red, yellow or orange bell peppers, celery (chopped into bit sized pieces) baby carrots seedless cucumbers at the ready! When they’re clean and ready to cut, grabbing a healthy snack couldn’t be easier. I peel our cucumbers, celery is chopped into bit sized pieces, and bell peppers chopped into slices. I use this tactic for my youngest while I’m making dinner. I just put a dish of veggies in front of her colorful as can be and she eats them up with no fuss!
#4 Eat plenty of healthy protein. Protein keeps us full longer which in and of itself begins to eliminate cravings. Grab some heathy organic chicken and marinate it in a plastic bag with Italian dressing, grill, air fry, bake or simmer in a cast iron pan. Whatever easiest, I prefer it grilled. Make more than you need so you have some for a quick go to when you’re hungry and have no time to prep something.
Following these tips will no doubt make some healthy changes in your day to day living. You’ll feel, mentally stronger, more refreshed after sleeping, more alert, stronger etc. What do you have to loose? Try it for a month. I recommend you write down your weight, and basic body measurements for a true comparison. You’ll be amazed!
If you're in need of a bit of a fast track and need some extra support faster than the changes you'll see with dietary efforts consider my Top 5 products for brain health. In my journey from secret sugar junkie to now... the thing I didn't realize would improve so greatly is my focus and brain health. My memory recall, my reaction time (catching a falling object like a ninja..) has increased drastically. These are the supplements I use.
Until next time friend!
Just remember: progress over perfection.
You have all the time in the world until you don't, so let's use the present time to do our best !
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