HOW TO BREAK UP WITH ADDED SUGAR

WE TALKED A little about sugar in the Frenemy Foods section of the Hanger Management chapter, and for good reason—it’s one of those foods that wants you to think it’s fun and awesome, but that can actually make you feel, well, pretty awful. For people who really struggle with feeling like they’re addicted to sugar, it can even feel like an unhealthy codependent relationship.

There’s no question that sugar isn’t doing us any favors. Excess intake of sugar has been linked to weight gain and obesity as well as depressive symptoms and poor psychological health.⁵³ However, it’s not just as simple as “eat less sugar.” It’s not always clear what types of sugar we should avoid and how to actually go about reducing our sugar intake in the context of a diet where we may not even be aware of all the different places it’s coming from.

What’s the Difference Between Natural and Added sugar?

Naturally occurring sugar is the sugar that is naturally present in foods: think fructose in fruit, lactose in dairy, glucose in starchy vegetables and grains. Even though natural sugar is natural, we don’t want to overdo it. That said, because you’re eating it as part of a whole food, other nutrients like fiber can help buffer the breakdown of that sugar.

Added sugars are sugars added to food to make it sweet. Just keep in mind that on a food label, you may see sugar listed under a wide variety of names. For example, anything with an “-ose” at the end. Maple syrup, brown rice syrup, cane sugar, and so on. While they certainly sound more natural, they still count as added sugar because they’re being added. Stevia and other noncaloric sugar alternatives could also be considered added sweeteners, but we’ll get to the reason I recommend limiting these too.

Added sugar is the type you want to keep to a minimum. While it adds taste and provides calories, it doesn’t actually provide any vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients we need to function.

How Much Added Sugar Is Too Much?

Like all carbohydrates, one gram of sugar provides four calories. That may not sound like much, but over the course of a day, a week, all those tiny amounts can really add up. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which is developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Agriculture (USDA), recommends that adults limit added sugar to no more than 10 percent of their daily calorie intake—about 200 calories or 50 grams for someone on a 2,000-calorie diet. As a dietitian, that still sounds like a lot to me. That’s more than 12 teaspoons!

The American Heart Association is a little more conservative, with its recommendation to cap added sugar at no more than 100 calories per day for women and 150 per day for men—so 6 or 9 teaspoons, respectively.⁵⁴

Even then, less is still more. With sugar, the more you have, the more you tend to want. And, unfortunately, artificial sweeteners and sugar substitutes are not a sustainable workaround. While we may not have established which ones are the worst or exactly how bad for us they are, there hasn’t exactly been any research showing that they’re actively good for us or have health-promoting properties.

The main reason I discourage relying heavily on artificial sweeteners, though, is more psychological. While they may not have the caloric impact of sugar, they sidestep the underlying issue, which is dependence on and craving for sweetness. If we continue to condition ourselves to expect a high level of sweetness, how are we ever going to feel satisfied with foods that are naturally (and more mildly) sweet?

I went through a freaky experience in my mid-twenties when I decided to cut out diet soda. It started as an experiment—all I did was switch to seltzer for a few weeks. What I soon found, though, was that I could no longer stand the pink packets I used to add to my coffee. Flavored yogurts started tasting way too sweet. Baked goods made me sick to my stomach. As someone who was used to wanting to eat dessert and all manner of sugar-free crap, it was baffling—it was like my sweet tooth had fallen out. Had my heavy-duty artificial sweetener use been behind it all along? I didn’t even need to know the answer; I just felt so much better that I never wanted to go back.

So How Do I Break Up with Sugar?

T here are a few different ways to reduce your intake of added sugar. You can make a clean break and cut out all forms of added sugar, or you can do the slow fade. Some people will want to get super strict about it, whereas others may choose to draw the line in a different place. Here are some steps to follow.

• Identify where the added sugar in your diet comes from. A piece of cake on your birthday or a planned-for holiday treat is one thing—sugar creeping into your yogurt or your cereal, not to mention pasta sauce, marinades, frozen meals, and wholesome- sounding snacks is a whole other ball game. That’s not playing fair; that’s just sneaky.

• Get real with yourself about how much of it you’re eating. I know I threw some numbers at you earlier as a ballpark figure, but you’re the expert on you. Do you feel like your sugar intake is in a realistic place, or do you want it to be lower?

• Decide where to draw the line. Be honest with yourself about what you can and can’t be moderate with. Some people can have five M&Ms and then put the bag away. Other people have to finish the whole thing.

• Take sugar off the pedestal. This one is easier said than done, but practice telling yourself that it’s just a food. That sugar is just a molecule. Wanting or eating it does not make you good or bad—and if you make a choice that doesn’t support your goal, forgive yourself and move on. Resist the “I’ve blown it” mind-set and focus instead on what choices will help restore some balance and positivity to your day.

• Educate yourself. Read labels, check ingredients. Scope out other options and keep track of what you like that suits your needs and preferences.

• Find new favorites. Rather than focus on restriction, look at this as an opportunity to try new things and experiment. For example, try out some new products and recipes that provide lots of flavor without added sugar.

• Make it easy. If you’re trying to reduce your sugar intake, get it out of your house. If you know that going cold turkey is just not going to work for you, then gradually step it down. You can focus on cutting out one source at a time or try going halfsies on sweetened and unsweetened versions of products like yogurt and cereal. Shift the ratio as your taste buds adjust over time. Another approach is to gradually decrease the number of sugar or sweetener packets you use in your coffee.

Choose Your Moments

Have sugar when you truly want it. Enjoy and then move on. Know what you can and can’t be moderate about. Resist the urge to judge yourself. When you make room for what you truly love by skipping the stuff you don’t, it can help you feel satisfied and keep you on track for the long haul.