Is Sugar Helping You Cope During this Pandemic?
It’s currently an interesting time for the world, where we are social distancing and recommended to stay at home. It’s also a time of uncertainty – which can lead to food cravings that we do not normally have. Passing the time through baking, searching in the cupboards for comfort foods, and buying more shelf-stable yet less expensive foods can drastically change one’s current eating habits and lead to an increase in sugar consumption. While these habits may pacify time or provide some comfort during such an uncertain and unprecedented time, it is also now more important than ever to provide our bodies, minds and spirits with nutrient-rich foods as sugar can have negative effects on the body and mind. Listed below are some of those effects!
Effects of sugar on the body and mind:
In general, added sugar provides more calories without added nutrients and nutritional benefits, and it can damage your metabolism in the long run.
Eating too much sugar can also increase inflammation within the body. In turn, eating too many inflammatory foods may cause chronic low-grade inflammation. This chronic low-grade inflammation can cause serious health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer and allergies.
Now is the time to feed our body with beneficial nutrients to help combat inflammation and protect our body from illness.
Added sugar makes our blood sugar spike in the body, and when foods high in sugar make up the majority of your diet, your blood sugar is constantly elevated and puts you at higher risk for diabetes and other metabolic health problems.
High sugar consumption can also lead to a “roller coaster” effect with our blood sugar – having high blood sugar spikes followed by drops in blood sugar (or “lows”). This can also greatly impact our metabolic health and lead to inflammation in the body.
A diet high in added sugar can also lead to obesity, insulin resistance and increased gut permeability (also known as leaky gut).
Leaky gut can greatly impact your mental health, your digestive system and increase the risk for autoimmune conditions and food sensitivities.
The food you eat can change your microbiome. Many of the same foods that spike blood sugar also have been shown to wreck gut health.
When gut health is out of balance (bad gut bacteria outnumbers the good gut bacteria), this can lead to the rest of the body and the body’s systems, hormones, chemicals, compounds, etc. to become unbalanced, manifesting in unpleasant signs and symptoms.
Diets high in sugar can contribute to candida overgrowth (yeast in the body), which is linked to blood sugar problems and an overgrowth of bad bacteria.
It is important to note that added sugar in foods is typically high in fructose, which can overload the liver as the liver is the only organ that can metabolize it.
If we consume too much fructose, the fructose that is metabolized in the liver then turns into fat and if repeated excessively, this fat may accumulate in the liver and lead to a fatty liver, which in turn may lead to liver disease and other conditions.
Sugar can affect how and how much we learn and remember, and it can have a detrimental impact on our mental well-being.
Recommendations
Government guidelines advise that no more than 5%-15% of calories should come from both solid fats and sugar. The American Heart Association recommends that adult men consume <9 tsp. sugar per day (or 37.5 grams) and adult women consume <6 tsp. sugar per day (or 25 grams).
It’s important to note that natural sugars from whole foods (like milk & fruit) haven’t been linked to increased inflammation in the body. Until regulations begin to lift and a new sense of ‘normalcy’ is established, be mindful of what and how much you are consuming as it affects the body even if you cannot feel or see these effects! Let’s work on nurturing our bodies with nutrients as best as we can! Check out some healthier sugar swaps below!
Other Foods to Reach for/Bake:
Use overripe bananas in recipes, they’re especially tasty in pancakes and muffins/breads!
Cook tomatoes, carrots or onions to bring out their sweetness in a meal
Reach for fruit
If you are buying frozen fruit in order to reduce trips to the store, you can let it thaw or add it straight to smoothies or to make parfaits
Buy unsweetened versions of foods
Plain yogurt, unsweetened applesauce, fruit canned in its own juice
Buy dark chocolate (72% or higher)
Use applesauce when baking
Use fresh tomatoes in place of marinara sauce
Make homemade granola/snack bars
Make homemade oatmeal and use a blend of spices + fruit
Make your own salad dressings
Add more herbs and spices to your meals
Try savory breakfast dishes that incorporate vegetables (this will help you feel fuller longer) rather than sugary cereal!
My favorite go-to is avocado toast!
Roast sweet potatoes and sprinkle them with cinnamon and paprika
Add legumes to your dishes to help keep you full
Make homemade trail mix!
Look for whole grain options at the store
