If you've made a vow to cut sugar out of your life, it may not be as easy as drinking black coffee and skipping dessert. Any prepackaged food you buy from the grocery store, whether it's sweet or savory, may include added sugar. Consult a doctor before starting a new diet plan, especially if you have health concerns.
Add More Spices
If your food seems flavorless without all of the added sugar, pump up the volume with spices. Ginger, allspice and cinnamon are sweet-tasting spices that may make your oatmeal or plain yogurt taste sweeter. Adding a handful of raisins to your meal may also help tame your sweet tooth without giving into the temptation of sugar -- just make sure the storebought raisins do not list any added sugar on the label.
Read the Label
If you purchase a variety of prepackaged foods at the grocery store, many of the foods you buy may contain sugar. Watch for disguised sugar -- although the product's label may not list "sugar" as an ingredient, it might use the words "sucrose," "high fructose corn syrup," "fructose" or "dextrose." Although sugar may be called a variety of different names, it will still cause your blood glucose levels to spike up and drop back down again, just like cane sugar.
Make Sweet Substitutions
When your body has been acclimated to eating sugar every day, it may be challenging to break the habit. If you've been eating a sugary cereal every morning for breakfast, switch to a whole-grain cereal with no added sugar. Add your own sweetener by sprinkling a handful of strawberries, blueberries or bananas onto your breakfast.
Salad dressings may pack in a lot of hidden sugar that you don't even know you're eating. Use a small drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of lemon juice on your salad instead for the same flavor without all of the added sugar.
Eat Fruit for Dessert
You may crave sweets the most after eating dinner, especially if you've become used to eating a scoop of ice cream or a cookie after dinner. Instead of banishing all sweet things from your refrigerator, choose naturally sweet foods, like fruit, that do not have any added sugar. Enjoy an ice pop made from 100 percent fruit juice, or pour orange juice into an ice cube tray and place it in the freezer to make your own. Munch on frozen fruit to give yourself a sweet, cold treat without any added sugar. Stay away from canned fruit that is packed in syrup. That syrup is just another word for sugar.
Member Comments