Sugar 101 | 6 Great Things That Happen When You Cut Off Sugar!
- Sugar is more than just “extra calories”, its harm is MORE than just making you fat
- Combating sugar is as tough as fighting an uphill battle, but it is nothing less rewarding than winning one.
Losing pounds are great, but there are more to life.
Take a look at the 6 great reasons below – beside fitting into that 28-inch jeans – to bid sugar farewell for good.
- A healthier heart
- Say goodbye to depression
- No more energy slumps
- Starve off the bad guys in your gut
- Slimmer around the waist (sit-ups are overrated!)
- Your body uses sugar more efficiently!
- A healthier heart
In Malaysia, 1 out of 4 deaths in hospitals is caused by cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
The bad news? It’s not only the fried chicken. A 15-year study shows that people consuming 25% calories from sugar DOUBLE their chances of dying from a heart attack.
The good news? By cutting sugar off the table, you can regain your heart health as sugar, especially fructose has been proven to be associated with high levels of bad cholesterol and fats in the blood.
2. Goodbye to depression
Removing sugar is tough at first, but mentally rewarding at last.
“This doesn’t make sense; I feel happier gulping down that bubble milk tea.”
The back of your mind whispers.
Interestingly enough, research seems to show the contrary as a meta-analysis recently published indicates drinking sugar-sweetened drinks is linked to higher risk of depression.
The explanation for this includes the effect of sugar causing disturbed response in your brain that normally manages stress.
Feeling is very subjective, but it is good to ponder if the feel-good sensation is just a temporary, immediate sense of pleasure; that in the long run, the guilt and stress from potentially poor health are actually depressing.
3. No more energy slumps
It’s been half an hour after your lunch, and you are complaining to your friends how long are you gonna nap in class.
Sounds familiar?
Whilst sleeping late the night before may explain your lethargy, chances are the glass of drink you ordered in kopitiam may very well be responsible also.
Sugar gets absorbed fast into the blood, causing your body to freak out and respond quickly. This means that your blood sugar level goes through a sudden spike and a sudden dip, causing you to feel sluggish and tired.
4. Starve off the bad guys in the gut
Firstly, understand that there are good and bad bacteria that live within us (and they outnumber us).
Secondly, know that there are more emerging evidences showing how these bacteria affect us, from determining how easy is it for us to lose weight (metabolism), to how fast we fight off a flu (immunity).
Thirdly, realise that scientists find that the bad ones thrive and flourish when sugar is fed to them.
Going easy on your sugar intake improves your gut health, so you can better absorb nutrients, have stronger immunity, and so on.
Oh, and by the way, did I forget mentioning that a healthier gut means lower risk of cancer as well?
5. Slimmer around the waist
This is more than a matter of lower calories.
Sugar, in form of fructose (which is what you find especially in drinks), is more “fattening” than normal rice or potatoes that you are eating.
This is because fructose cannot be processed in blood, but needs to go through liver for processing (much like alcohol).
6. Your body uses sugar more efficiently!
Think of your body like a pump. Whenever you take in big amounts of sugar, your body need to pump it off like a plumber.
Over time, the plumber (body) gets tired and says, “I’m done! Not working anymore!”
The above phenomenon in your body is termed as impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), a fancy term to describe how your body is getting ineffective at removing sugar off your blood and putting them for your muscles to use.
IGT is the hallmark of diabetes, as it precedes a deadly condition. The good news is you can reverse it by simply reducing sugar in your diet !