How to Go on a Sugar Detox

One of the easiest types of detox is a sugar detox. Any time you’re considering a detox, it’s always for some form of better health – such as losing weight, gaining energy, or clearing the fog from your brain. Sugar is one thing that we don’t need, but that we get far too much of in our diets.

Some people are addicted to sugar. It might not be the same as a heroine or smoking addiction, but you do develop cravings. And once that happens, you tend to overindulge and consume too much of the sweet substance.

Because your body signals pleasure when you ingest sugar, it’s a habit that’s hard to break. Physically, your brain thinks you’re giving it a reward, because the pleasure center inside your mind is activated. So of course, it wants to experience that repeatedly.

Fruit has sugar in it, just like candy does, but the lack of fiber in the candy makes the sugar flood into your blood stream, giving you a quicker rush of energy. This might be why you love reaching for a candy bar whenever you’re feeling sluggish in the late afternoon.

Sugars can be hidden, too. Starchy carbohydrates get turned into simple sugars when your body breaks them down. So while you think you don’t have a sweet tooth just because you’re craving salty French fries instead of a chocolate kiss, it all reacts the same in your body.

There are different ways to do a sugar detox. You can go cold turkey, or wean yourself off. Some sugar detoxes are short, such as 3 days. Others go up to 21 days, and some even make a lifetime commitment.

If you wean yourself off sugar, then you start cutting back slowly. You might want to starts using less sugar, like 1 teaspoon instead of a tablespoon in your coffee. Or, you might eliminate one sugary food at a time from your diet, like no more donuts for breakfast.

As you wean yourself off, your taste buds will begin to appreciate other sweet flavors like fruit. Instead of the typical 22 teaspoons of sugar per day, you’ll be able to cut down dramatically and see a marked improvement in your health and energy levels.

Up your intake of proteins and healthy carbs like green, leafy vegetables. Make sure you have a snack with you on the go for whenever you have a sugar craving, especially in the beginning. I find that a protein, such as nuts, serves well as snack, giving you more energy and less sugar.

As a nice side benefit, you’ll also find that you feel the need to sleep more without the added sugar. In fact, a lot of people who have insomnia would benefit from a sugar detox. So work on getting plenty of sleep to enable you to feel alert all day long.

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