Thursday, November 6, 2008

Get The Sugar Out: 501 Simple Ways to Cut the Sugar Out of Any Diet

What a wonderful book! It provides insight on sugar that I was unaware of. As I continue to read this book, I am realizing that my eating habits are horrible. I am feeding my body more sugar than I realized. Sugars are hidden in so many foods which are not even imaginable. And, to control my craving of sugar is not an easy task to accomplish. This is why this book is so wonderful to read. It discusses the most simple ways to cut sugar out of any diet. It provides the basic tips on low sugar shopping, cooking, and dining out, and brand-new information on the truth about artificial sweeteners. Here are a few of the tips in the book:
  • Cereals are one of the top places you need to watch for sugars. Look for cereals that are whole-grain with 3 grams of sugars or less per serving if possible.
  • In 1 cup of milk there's 11 grams of sugars, so go easy using it.
  • Hold the salt for a couple of reasons. First, too much salt in the diet can cause sugar craving.
  • Pass up the ketchup, a little something that seems so innocent but is really a sugar monger in disguise. In fact, ounce for ounce, ketchup has more sugar in it than ice cream!
  • Avoid eating sweets between meals. Try instead more substantial mini-meals.
  • Granola may seem like a health food, but its sugar content often puts it in the same league as many desserts.
  • A cooked sweet potato is a great way to satisfy your sweet tooth. Full of fiber and nutrients, sweet potatoes also have another unexpected advantage: They rank only 48 on the glycemic index.
  • Eating your baked potato with a little butter, high-quality oil, sour cream, or low-fat cream cheese is better for your blood sugar than eating it plain. This is because it is a very high inducer of insulin. But, eating fat or protein with your potato will slow down the insulin response and keep your blood sugar steadier.
  • Diet drinks are dangerous and definite no-nos even when you are trying to avoid sugar. Not only are aspartame-sweetened drinks believed to deplete the body of chromium, a mineral important for proper blood sugar functioning, but storing these drinks in hot places may cause the aspartame in them to break down into toxic chemicals that can cause a multitude of health problems.
Additionally, the book has holiday coping strategies, desserts made with fabulous fruits, satisfying cookies, soup basics, meaty matters, how to be menu savvy when eating out, and the top ten tips.

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