Combat Sugar Stress: Easy Tips for Healthier Living

It’s time to take control and combat sugar stress, and we’re here to help!

The other week, we discussed how the three forms of stress, physical, chemical, and emotional, cause or re-cause your Neuro-Structural Shifts. The Chemical Stressors really stood out for most of you. So, as we head into the holiday season, or as we like to call it, the Cold & Cookie Season, a time when we often indulge in sugary treats, let’s talk about the impact of one of the most prevalent chemical stressors that impact our health: SUGAR.

Sugar in our foods comes in two ways: naturally occurring and added sugars. Unfortunately, from a biochemical perspective, the body cannot differentiate between these two types of sugars because they are chemically identical.

Naturally occurring sugars, found in whole foods like fruits and vegetables, are accompanied by essential vitamins, minerals, and, most importantly, fiber. Fiber plays a crucial role in lessening the sugar’s impact on insulin spikes by slowing down the digestion and absorption of sugar in the body.

In contrast, added sugars are intentionally included during processing or preparation, often to enhance flavor or extend shelf life. Processed foods lack the benefit of fiber to reduce the impact of sugar on your insulin production, as well as essential vitamins and minerals.

When we think of sugar in our diets, we often think of added sugars like candy, cookies, and soda drinks. But this is only part of the picture. Dietary sugar also comes from carbohydrates in foods such as fruits, vegetables, dairy products, rice, cereal, bread, pasta, tortillas, alcohol, etc. Your body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose, a form of sugar that serves as a primary energy source.

While fruits and vegetables are a healthy source of carbohydrates because they include fiber that allows them to break down more slowly and aids in digestion, the carbohydrates found in processed foods, bread, cereal, pasta, oatmeal, rice and dairy are purely sugar, high in calories, with very few other nutrients. When you’re not feeling your best, remember the last couple of meals and see if these foods/sugars are causing your chemical stress.

Signs of too much sugar in our diet include:

• Weight gain: One of the first symptoms, usually around the abdomen
• Hunger: Excessive hunger, cravings for snacks or sugary foods
• Skin changes: Acne breakouts, skin tags, or darkened skin in the armpits, back, or sides of the neck
• Fatigue: Lethargy, lack of energy, or feeling tired
• Difficulty concentrating: Difficulty focusing or lacking motivation
• Mood changes: Feeling anxious or stressed, experiencing mood swings or irritability
• Heart disease: High blood pressure and High cholesterol
• Eye issues: Changes in vision, sensitivity to light, diabetic retinopathy
• Inflammation: Joint pain, stiffness, tightness, Neuro-Structural Shifts
• Nervous system stress: High cortisol
• Hormonal changes: Increased Estrogen
• Poor sleep: Unable to stay asleep, tossing and turning at night
• Weaker Immune System: frequent colds/ flu’s, ear and throat infections
• Digestion Issues: stomach aches, IBS, bacteria overgrowth like SIBO
• Consuming too much sugar can lead to type 2 diabetes and many other diagnosed conditions, including:
• Chronic high blood sugar (hyperglycemia)
• Prediabetes
• Obesity
• Metabolic syndrome
• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

So, what can we do?
Avoidance is key: Just Say No 😊

• Stick to foods from nature: Eat fruits and veggies with protein and healthy fats
• Choose whole foods with fiber: for example,
• Oranges over orange juice
• Dates over candy
• Don’t eat like a little kid 😜
• Take walks to metabolize sugar after a meal
• Incorporate Intermittent Fasting
• Have two tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil with breakfast daily to stabilize blood sugar
• Have a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar before or after a high-sugar meal to stabilize your blood sugar
• Read your ingredient labels for hidden added sugars
• Swap this for that:
  • Soda —> Sparkling water
  • Pasta—> Spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles
  • Bagel & cream cheese —> Eggs and fruit
  • Fruit juice —> Whole fruit & veggie smoothie
  • Toast —> Sweet potatoes slices
  • Rice—> Riced cauliflower
  • Potato chips—> Sweet potato chips or plantain chips made with avocado oil or coconut oil

If you feel overwhelmed or unsure about making healthy dietary changes, remember, you’re not alone. Our team is here to support you. Check out our blog post on intermittent fasting here. Talk to the front desk about more healthy swaps or to schedule a Nutrition Consultation with Dr. Karo. Together, we can reduce those chemical stressors and improve your health.