Sugar Overload

As a nutrition lover and advocate, I have recently been reading quite a few books on the topic of nutrition in general.  Books to inspire me and answer some of the questions I have been wrestling with lately.  One of those questions has been, "how much sugar is too much for our family?"and, "what are the health effects from eating too much sugar?"

I have always been a huge advocate of eating most everything in moderation... and eating a plant-based diet (NO, I am NOT a vegetarian).  Some people could misinterpret my "moderation" policy to be an excuse to eat bad food, more often.  I would argue.  Allowing myself to eat most everything in moderation frees me of the guilt and food obsessions our culture is neck-high in and that plagued me about ten years ago and sent me into an eating disorder.  I choose whole, real food 95% of the time... the other 5%, I give myself a little room to have fun.  I have not climbed on board that trendy train of cutting out entire food groups from my diet.

Even though I'm a proponent of eating most everything in moderation.  I recently began to wonder if sugar should even have a place in that discussion...

Right now, I am reading the book, What to Eat by Marion Nestle.  Her chapters on sugar are eye-opening and riveting, even for someone to read who is merely curious about nutrition.  She points out our cultures obsession with sugar and how it is literally everywhere we turn... at the checkout stand in the grocery store, at the doctors office, at nearly every receptionist desk, front and center in the window cases in the coffee shop, handed out to children everywhere a parent turns.  This is not to mention the square-footage of shelves in grocery stores devoted to processed foods PACKED with sugar.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I recorded a 60minutes that had a segment on the toxic affects of sugar.  Of course we decided to watch this recording on Easter night... after our 3 year old had acted like a crazy person and had a major melt down, in our opinions, due to too much sugar.  I would highly recommend everyone take a look at this clip.  It talks about what Doctors, researchers and scientists are finding in regards to the negative effects sugar takes on the body, and why this is turning into an epidemic in today's society.

Some of the information I already knew:

• Sugar is a huge contributor to conditions such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.  About 75% of these conditions are preventable.
• On Average, the typical American eats 130 pounds of sugar each year.  That breaks down to eating about one-third pound of sugar every day!
• Neuroscientists also have seen that sugar is more addicting to the brain than originally thought, causing it to respond as it would to cocaine or alcohol.
• Sugar acts like drugs or alcohol in regard to the response of the brain's reward region.  The more you eat it, the less you feel the reward or pleasure from eating it... you can build up an intolerance to it's effect.  Therefore, people have to start eating more and more sugar over time to get the same reward or pleasure response.

Other pieces of information were new to me or I had heard rumors of:

• Cancer researchers are finding that certain cancers/tumors (such as breast and colon cancers) have insulin-receptor sites - which in layman terms, means that it takes up glucose (the energy from the food we eat) and causes itself to grow, yes grow.
• Nutritional biologists are finding strong evidence that sugar (especially sugar in the form of high fructose corn syrup) in the diet is proving to increase the LDL (bad or unwanted) cholesterol in the blood, which increases a person's risk for heart disease and stroke.  The LDL forms in dangerous "clusters" called small dense LDL, which leads to plaque build up in the blood vessels and is associated with heart-attacks. 

Seriously, please take 14 minutes to watch this.

To say it plainly, I was on a mission to decrease and limit our family's sugar intake after watching this... I decided to gather all the candy, desserts and sweets in the house and dump them in the garbage.  First I took a picture.

Honestly, for being educated in nutrition and for being an active wife/mother in regards to what we eat... I was shocked to find SO much candy, cookies and sweets in various spots in our house.

I didn't need any more convincing that I was contributing to my family's health in a negative way.  Beside the fact that I was overly-tired of my 3 year old asking for "treats" multiple times a day.  One of my favorite blogs made a simple, yet obvious point: they really aren't "treats" anymore, right?

I recently read this post on the above blog, and this mom made another great point: I'm not being mean to my kids or depriving them by cutting out their "treats" and sugary processed foods... especially when everywhere else they go, sugar will most definitely be offered to them: birthday parties, every holiday in general (Easter, Halloween, Christmas, etc), the doctors office, grandma and grandpa's house, after-game "snacks", the list could go on and on.

I think I've always been adverse to doing anything in extremes ever since overcoming my eating disorder... whether it be in regards to food, alcohol, exercise, etc.  Once you've tasted pure obsession and damaging control and then how it feels to finally be relaxed and in balance, it's not in the least bit tempting to go back to anything remotely close to the old habits and routines.  However, coupling that experience with my education and nutritional background... it's impossible for me to ignore decisions that impact my and my family's health.  That's the really exceptional thing about nutritional education, decisions become linked to health and what you are doing to the inside of your body... instead of being merely focused on what you look like on the outside.  That being said...

Our family is taking a drastic stand against sugar.  I'm reading labels constantly, noting the grams of sugar in each serving, changing what my grocery list looks like (by not buying the sugary crackers my kids love or the salad dressing that I can do without) and trying to come up with non-processed alternatives for us to eat... moving us more in the direction of eating real food and less sugar.

Take a peek in your pantry and cupboards... what kinds of sugary foods are hiding in there?

If you took a picture, like I did, what would your picture look like???  Please share yours with me!

Green Soup Goodness

My husband and I love soups, so it's safe to say that I'm always on the hunt for great soup recipes. I stumbled upon this Green Soup with Ginger recipe at my local grocery store. I know, I know... the grocery store? This grocery store is a NW version of Whole Foods so it gives it a little more credit to suggest recipes, don't you think?

Anyway, this store actually has a table in the produce department that contains little recipe cards with suggestions on how to cook with different kinds of produce. I love being able to include dark, leafy greens in as many meals as possible throughout my week. This was a perfect opportunity to combine healthy cooking with our love for soups.

I loved this recipe for it's ability to stand alone, with no need to add anything, and for it's use of purely fresh ingredients. The ginger and lemon juice, in particular, make it phenomenal. I did, however, add meatballs to it when I served it as leftovers so it was a more complete meal in regards to protein. Vegetarians could add some sort of bean or firm tofu to increase the protein amount.

This recipe calls for lot's of dark, leafy greens which are loaded with health benefits. Leafy greens are full of vitamins, minerals and disease fighting phytochemicals. They are rich in fiber, which is an important nutrient for weight loss and maintenance, they help lower cholesterol and blood pressure and help keep blood sugar at a more even level. Greens such as chard (in this recipe) are exceptionally high in calcium, which is vital to maintaining strong teeth and bones and lowering ones risk for osteoperosis. The calcium in chard, along with the potassium it contains, also aids in blood pressure management. Leafy greens are also particularly full of vitamin C, vitamin A, antioxidants, folate and vitamin E. Do you love them as much I do yet?

Bon Appetite!