Four Week Sugar Detox: Intro

Gluttony is an emotional escape, a sign something is eating us.

-Peter de Vries (1910-1993) American editor and novelist.

Is breaking the sugar habit similar to kicking an alcohol habit?

In a recent report, a San Francisco research team claimed that sugar is an addictive substance and should be regulated like alcohol. According to the report, processed sugars, especially HFCS, are much like a drug that triggers biological responses leading to overconsumption and multiple physiological lifestyle ailments such as diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Whether you agree with health statistic reports or not, the fact remains that the average person eats upwards of 150+ pounds of sugar per year, both knowingly and surreptitiously. 

If you feel the need to drastically cut down or totally eliminate sugar from your diet, this four-week program can help achieve a “sugar-free” way of life. The first week of actually going sugar-free will be the hardest. If going “cold-turkey,” you may actually experience some of the same withdrawal symptoms as alcoholics, depending on degree of addiction.

According to the online site livingstrong.com, mild to moderate psychological withdrawal symptoms from alcohol are almost identical to sugar withdrawal symptoms of a sugar addict found at Vanadia.com:

• Jumpiness or nervousness
• Jitters/shaky hands
• Irritability or easily excited
• Emotional volatility, rapid emotional changes
• Anxiety & depression
• Fatigue, foggy thinking
• Strange dreams

As it is with kicking any habit, even a tiny taste of sugar during the delicate first couple of weeks can lead to setbacks and binging. If able to get over the two week hump with no relapses, the desire threshold will start to decrease to the point it becomes routine to reach for a piece of fruit or a cup of tea instead of Cola and a cookie. By the fourth week of this program, don’t be surprised to see and feel incredible changes once you're completely de-toxed from sugar.

Potential side effects:

• Sustained energy throughout the day
• Weight and water weight loss
• Clearer skin and eyes
• Lessening of allergy symptoms
• Better sleeping patterns
• More focus
• And many other healthy symptoms of being sugar-free

The mission, if you decide to accept, is to be constantly aware of daily total sugar intake, and as with other addictions, take it one-day-at-a-time.

 NOTE: The next four blogs will examine each step individually.