This week we had a community viewing of a documentary entitled “That Sugar” hosted by the Green Connections Network.  It was a brilliant coverage of what happened when a perfectly healthy Australian soon-to-be father decided to do an experiment.  He had been clean of sugar in his diet for 3 years prior to the 60 day experiment. Then he decided to reintroduce sugar to his diet and the results were astonishing.

What Happened After Adding Sugar to his Diet After 3 Years Without It?

The twist is that Gameau didn’t splurge on sloppy nosh such as cheeseburgers, chips and sundaes – in other words food everybody knows is bad for you.

Gameau consumed the typical Australian’s 40 teaspoons of sugar a day, maintained exercise, the same kilojoule intake of his regular diet and – the clincher – only ate foods perceived to be healthy. This includes cereal, smoothies, muesli bars and low-fat yoghurt. The kind of products at the heart of advertising campaigns built on extolling their supposed virtues, using faux science and deceptive packaging.

These are items that we typically tuck into our kids lunch boxes with a clean conscience.  What happened was quite shocking from the size of his waist to his irritable moods and insatiable cravings for more sugar.

Here again is where it is so important for us to do some homework and not just follow the brilliant advertisements that the producers create to market their products as healthy.

Tips for Reading Food Labels

A close friend and gifted holistic nutritionist, Shawn Nisbet was present to share some tips on reading food labels before the film and to answer questions following. Here are a few notes taken from this event to share with you.

When Reading a Food Label, Remember That:

• 4 gm of sugar = 1 tsp.
• Our body can safely metabolize at least 6 teaspoons of added sugar per day.
• We are consuming over 3x that amount. The majority of the excess sugar becomes metabolized into body fat – leading to all the debilitating chronic metabolic diseases many people are struggling with.

What is High Fructose Corn Syrup?

We’ve gone from 20 teaspoons of sugar per person per year to about 150 pounds of sugar per person per year. That’s a half pound a day for every man, woman, and child in America. The average 20-ounce soda contains 15.75 teaspoons of sugar, all of it high fructose corn syrup.

Why is High Fructose Corn Syrup Bad For You?

When you eat sugar in those doses, it becomes a toxin.  As part of the chemical process used to make high fructose corn syrup, the glucose and fructose — which are naturally bound together — become separated. This allows the fructose to mainline directly into your liver, which turns on a factory of fat production in your liver called lipogenesis.

This leads to fatty liver, the most common disease in America today. This, in turn, leads to diabesity — pre-diabetes and Type 2 diabetes. So, high fructose corn syrup is the real driver of the current epidemic of heart attacks, strokes, cancer, dementia, and of course, Type 2 diabetes.

Information courtesy of Shawn Nisbet.

How Can You Reduce Your Sugar Intake?

To reduce our sugar intake, we were reminded to shop the outside isles of the grocery store and leave out the middle ones filled with processed foods.  If we keep our food choices as close to whole or natural as possible, it would have a huge positive impact on our well-being.

Sugar in Moderation is Key

We have just come off Halloween and are entering the holiday season which is filled with sugar laden items of every description. It does not mean we cannot enjoy some treats in the coming weeks however we may feel a whole lot better if we kept it to a few!

Every change begins with us.  Let’s look after ourselves better, choose where we spend our dollars and then watch how that ripples out to those around us and finally to the producers of our products.  If we stop buying the junk, they’ll produce what we are actually looking for.

There are 2 upcoming opportunities for you to have fun and learn from.

“How Not to Gain Weight Through the Holiday Season”

Tuesday, November 22, 2016 (7:00 – 9:00 pm).  Doors open at 6:30 pm
St. Andrews Valley Golf Course in Aurora.  4 Pinnacle Trail just 600 m east of Yonge Street
Stress is an unavoidable part of life but that doesn’t mean it has to affect your health, performance or weight in a negative way.  Learn what stress is, what your particular stresses are and how you can decrease the stress in your daily life.  Everyone is welcome. RSVP today to shawnnisbet@hotmail.com
Please bring a non-perishable food item(s) in celebration of the season – admission is free.

Newmarket/EG Women’s Wellness Circle

“Nourishing Winter Foods and Soups to Stay Healthy Throughout the Season”.
Thursday, November 24, 2016 from 7:00 – 9:30 pm.
Sharon Hope United Church, 18648 Leslie Street
Nourishing our immune system plus a wonderful Q & A period afterwards.
Cost $20/person.  All Women Welcome!  RSVP to karen@in-side-out.com
Let’s celebrate the coming holiday season in a way that leaves us feeling happy, healthy and vibrant! Please feel free to share your comments here.

It’s great to share and learn from each other. I would love to hear from you. You can connect with me by email or telephone, or click the contact tab at the bottom of the screen if you are reading this post on the website. Don’t forget to join in the conversation on Facebook too!

To our health & wellbeing,

Karen