Sugar, any sugar and specially too much sugar, is bad for your health – so reducing the amount you eat is always a good idea.
But how to turn down that home-made muffin or cheeky chocolate bar after doing some exercise?
Nutritionists offer advice.
Why giving up sweets makes sense
Temporarily giving up chocolate, cake and the like is a reset for our sense of taste, as how sweet we perceive the food we eat or drink to be is strongly influenced by our eating habits.
“If I constantly have sweets and sugary drinks in my diet, my sweet threshold is very high,” says Daniela Krehl, nutrition expert at the Bavarian Consumer Advice Centre in Germany.
If you cut down or give up sugar completely for a while, you will notice a change over time.
People just don’t need as much sweetness anymore.
It’s quite possible that after a fast, eating just two or three squares of chocolate instead of half a bar will be enough to satisfy you.
Or you may find that the spoonful of sugar in your tea or coffee suddenly tastes a bit too sweet and slightly gross.
After a period of abstinence, you may find you can snack with more enjoyment and mindfulness as often, we tend to consume sweets on the go without consciously celebrating them, says Krehl.
How to best approach fasting from sweets
If you have a very sweet tooth, you may struggle to give up all treats overnight.
Try scaling back your goal – you could say cut out soft drinks or a daily chocolate bar during your fast.
Or wean yourself gently off taking sugar in your coffee.
Before starting a sugar fast, look at your snacking habits.
Ask yourself:
> When do I typically have cravings?
> What do I eat then?
Next, gather ideas for substitutes.
These can be snacks that satisfy your cravings for sweets but are healthier, such as fruit, dried fruit or nuts.
“Natural yoghurt with cinnamon and vanilla is also a great way to cut down on sugar,” says Krehl.
You can also make overnight oats, by soaking oatmeal in milk, with fruit.
Or counter your cravings with activities that have nothing to do with food.
If you often feel like something sweet after lunch, you could try a phone call with a friend or a short walk for distraction.
Dealing with slip-ups while fasting
New habits are hard to maintain and maybe you had a tough day and ate a bar of chocolate by accident.
It happens.
“A slip-up like this doesn’t mean failure,” says Krehl.
It may be helpful to take the pressure to be perfect off yourself, look ahead and do better the next day.
You can prevent many relapses by doing everything possible to prevent cravings.
When our blood sugar levels are low, our bodies crave readily available energy, which is available in the sugar in sweets.
To prevent cravings from becoming overwhelming, don’t skip meals.
Instead, eat your fill at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Ideally, meals should contain sufficient protein and fibre, as these both stabilise your blood sugar levels, protecting you from cravings. – dpa
