Sugar Free Diet Question

One of my blogging buddies is doing a sugar-free week. I gather she means refined sugar. Here's a link to her dinner menu:

http://thepistachioproject.blogspot.com/2011/02/sugar-fre...

My hubby and I go on "sugar fasts" several times per year. We eliminate refined sugars, desserts and all beverages with sugar added to them. We do drink juiced fruits and veggies in moderation but do not limit fruits or veggies in their natural state.

We do use raw honey, xylitol, and stevia, but all in moderation.

We are going going to be taking a break from sugar next week, in fact! It's HARD but so, so good for your body.

Did it! It's true, I do feel much better. I don't have that fatigue that used to follow me around ALL the time. Moods are more stable ; )
If it can be picked, harvested, gathered or butchered, I eat it. No soda of any kind. And yes, it's kinda hard some times because I have a sweet tooth- no, all my teeth are sweet- I have sweet teeth! I have treats sometimes, just limit them.
I use honey or real maple syrup when I make granola and I add agave nectar to things I want to make sweet.
Does this answer your question? Hope so!

I recently just read this:
"...calculations show that an average American
eats 140 pounds of sugar per year—about 173 grams per day.
That’s one tragic sugar addiction. It’s important to know that sugar
induces hunger and cravings because it wreaks havoc on your
blood sugar levels, causing them to rise, then fall. When you eat sugar, a surge of a fat-storing hormone called insulin is released
into your digestive tract. Insulin grabs hold of this sugar and stores
it as energy—and then that excess is stuffed into your fat cells in
all of those dreaded trouble spots—like your belly. As a result,
your blood sugar levels drop, causing more hunger and cravings.
Then the vicious cycle repeats... recent
studies have shown that sugar causes inflammation in your body
that is the root of most disease. It also accelerates aging and
wrinkles... mmMost American women should consume no more than 100
calories (25 grams) of added sugars per day; most men, no
more than 150 calories (37.5 grams)..."
Read labels. If sugar, of even high fructose corn syrup, are the top 3 or 5 ingredients, don't buy it!!
Truvia is an all natural sweetener which can be added to your foods safely.

My Dr. recommended I eliminate sugar and most refined carbs during one of my pregnancies because my urine kept testing high sugar...it's true...the first few days were hard...withdrawals I think! But then, I felt great...and I lost weight...oddly enough. Heaven knows I wasn't trying...beings as I was 7-8 mo. pregnant...I felt really good tho'! I keep telling myself I should do it again...but unfortunately...I think I need a Dr. to tell me to :p.

Talk to a chemist. All matter chemistry.
This giving up sugar sounds nutty.
Saying this, I do try to avoid sweets and candy because
eating them just makes me want more.

Updated

people probably seem to feel better because they are eating less at
least for a while.

Cutting back on the sugar you add to ingredients isn't always bad. If you cut back sugar in cake mixes or brownies they won't be a s good but if you did it gradually your family will get used to the new taste and like it better.

I only add 1/2 sugar to Koolaid. I always have and it tastes way too sweet now if it's even a bit more.

Do not use artificial sweeteners, they are a health risk, every one of them has shown after long time use that they cause some serious health issue. Even the ones we thought were safe years ago are showing now that they hurt us. It's just better to go natural. Honey and sugar are processed the same and it makes no difference what you do when using them, the brain thinks sugar, even with the artificial ones.

If you want to eliminate all sugar... then you'd need to eliminate starches or some Complex Carbohydrates as well. Because once ingested, starches/and some carbs, are digested and metabolized in the body as "sugar."
Hence, Athletes, may eat pastas before a game, so that their body has added stored energy etc.

Also, each food, also has a different "Glycemic Index." And it breaks down in the body differently. Hence, not all foods are the same, not all sugars are the same. It is the Glycemic Index of a food, too.

Also, the Brain needs Glucose to function properly.
So if you cut out all sugar... that can also be very harmful.
It can also cause Hypoglycemia.
And other health concerns.

The point is: not all 'sugar' is the same.
There is added sugar and inherent sugar in foods. And even once it is digested in the body.

I would really, ask your Doctor or a Nutritionist about it, first

Just don't replace the sugars with the artificial ones. You are now creating worse health and neurotoxicity in the brain. If drinking fruit juices, look for the ones that are not from concentrate.

So I think of a sugar free diet as no sugar of any kind including the honey and such as it is all converted to the same thing in the body, just some are easier for the body, like honey. High fructose corn syrup should be removed no matter what kind of diet you are on.

Although I haven't totally eliminated *added* sugar from my diet, I've cut back significantly and, it's true, I DO feel a lot better. By *added* sugar, I mean whenever you see an ingredients list, if it says "sugar" or any word that ends in "ose" (like "high fructose corn syrup", "sucrose", "lactose", "glucose", etc), I tend not to buy it or eat it. Soda? No way, never, not even diet. I try to get my sugars naturally from fruits and veggies (thus not eliminating all sugars), and only add the processed cane sugar to my one cup of coffee in the morning. I do eat honey, but only rarely and only a little bit. I just basically avoid all other sweeteners. Now, I'm only human (and with a ridiculous sweet tooth, at that), so I DO eat the "bad" stuff, like cake, cookies and ice-cream, but only once a week on Saturdays and only one serving. During the week, I stick to fruit for sweetness. It really has helped me lose weight and have more energy. Skin looks better, too...