28 Jun Sugar more addictive than cocaine!

Sugar although natural, is highly processed and is the most destructive substance you can eat. It is the biggest single dietary killer as it sucks minerals out of the body, plays havoc with insulin and causes obesity. Back in 2007 a revealing study titled “Intense sweetness surpasses cocaine reward” found that when rats were given the option of choosing between water sweetened with saccharin or cocaine, the large majority (94%) preferred the sweet taste of saccharin. The same preference was found with sucrose. The preference for saccharin was not overcome by increasing doses of cocaine. In other studies, bees and insects respond in a similar way.
Sugar is also more addictive than cigarettes and alcohol but the less you have the less you want. Sugar is added to so many foods for taste and as a preservative as it increases the osmotic gradient in food. This dries out the food and without water, microbes cannot survive.
Reduce your sugar

There is a high risk of diabetes, developing bad bacteria in your gut and you have a 50% higher chance of heart attack and stroke if you have high blood sugar levels. You are more at risk if you don’t exercise. In 1900 the average person ate 5kg of sugar per year now it’s increased to 75kg and it’s extremely destructive to health.

So what else does sugar do?

It increases free radicals, reduces vitamin C uptake, lowers immunity, decreases an important nutrient called nitric oxide in the arteries and stops clots from breaking down. It destroys healthy flora in your gut and makes you more open to contracting candida and parasites. Sugar feeds these nasties. It also affects the collagen in your artery walls, which makes them more rigid and less able to expand and contract; this then easily attracts plaque which blocks the arteries.

10 ways to reduce sugar

1. Eat more protein, fibre and good fat like coconut, avocado and almonds.
2. Take out white sugar, white flour and white rice. Reduce your carbohydrates generally.
3. Eat foods high in chromium which helps improve insulin efficiency e.g. eggs.
4. Increase foods high in vitamin C like berries, lemons, limes, parsley and red capsicum.
5. Eat more magnesium rich foods like buckwheat and brown rice, especially if sugar cravings occur before periods.
6. De-stress without using food. Call a friend, have an aromatherapy bath, go for a walk, indulge in a hobby or a good book.
7. Ginseng tea, and mulberry leaf tea and bitter melon in cooking help lower blood sugar.
8. The herb saffron also helps curb sugar cravings
9. Exercise using a combination of cardiovascular, resistance and stretching exercises.
10. Get everything out of the house that contains sugar. Don’t worry about the kids, your husband or your wife; it’s not good for them either! Put it all in the bin.