Trick or Treat? 🎃 5 Step DIY Sugar Detox 🍭

What's scarier than Halloween ghosts and goblins? 👻

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the MAX amount of added sugars you should eat in one day are 9 tsps for men, 6 teaspoons for women, and LESS 6 tsps a day for anyone under the ago of 18.

TRIVIA 🎉

On Halloween, guess how much sugar the average child consumes??

About THREE CUPS of sugar, which is about 144 teaspoons of sugar!!

THAT IS 24 TIMES MORE THAN RECOMMENDED BY THE AHA 🚨

Not only will this knock the immune system out (watch how many people get sick these next few weeks...), but it also leads to a whole host of health issues. #KeepingItReal

Now of course Halloween is a holiday, but as a nutritionist I wanted to take this special time as an opportunity for a public service announcement. 😘

I love and care about you and want you to have OPTIMUM health.

Part of optimum health is cutting back on sugar.

But it tastes SO good!

I know, trust me, I have been there too.

Are you aware that the average American consumes about 152 pounds of sugar a year!

That breaks down to roughly 22 teaspoons a day for each person in America.

Thats 3.7 times more than the AHA recommends for women and 2.4 times more for men.

In essence, we eat A LOT of sugar.

High sugar intake has been directly related to obesity, type 2 diabetes, dementia, depression, ADHD, acne, heart disease, infertility, and impotence.

The sad truth is that all sugar addictions aren't just an emotional disorder - sugar cravings are a biological disorder, fueled by the body’s hormones and neurotransmitters. (>>>Good news, we can fix this!!) 🎉

Not-So-Fun-Fact:

Sugar is heavily subsidized by the government and it is totally loaded in almost all processed and packaged food.

"In the United States, fewer than 4,500 farm businesses produce sugar. Yet they cost taxpayers up to $4 billion a year in subsidies." - Vincent Smith

Sugar is sneaky.... tucked away in so many store bought foods because marketers know that it is tasty and will trigger people to become addicted to it and crave this product.

THIS IS NOT YOUR FAULT. 🔥

But you CAN do something to protect yourself and your family.

See my 5 Step Sugar Detox Plan below 🍭

Aside from the toll sugar takes on your health, here are some other ways sugar affects us negatively:

Motivation Sugar affects motivation by reducing dopamine, the motivation neurochemical in your brain.

Brain Fog 🧠 Sugar causes brain fog by spiking the hormone insulin, which gives you the rush after you eat sugar. The spike, then, leads to a crash as your insulin plummets.

Insatiability Consuming sugar only provides temporary satisfaction, which can lead to overeating as we try to satiate by eating more.

Teeth Health 🦷 High sugar consumption causes tooth decay.

Now that you have read some of the scary truths about sugar consumption, the best way to see for yourself the effect sugar is having on your body and mind is to try cutting it out for at least 10 days.

Before you start a detox, it is a good idea to have a plan in place, because the cravings will be shockingly strong for the first few days. Here are some steps to follow to help get you ready:

STEP 1: Get in the Right Mindset Prepare yourself by making the decision to clear your body of sugar. This is important because you won’t have success if you don’t set your mind to it.

STEP 2: Eat a Healthy Diet Focus on eating healthy carbs, proteins, and fats. Eating healthily will help you feel better as your body starts its detox.

STEP 3: Build New Routines It is hard to stop any addictive behavior cold turkey, so to soften the withdraw it is best to approach for your detox by gearing up with small changes to your routine, such as cutting cream and sugar from your morning coffee or cutting down on any beverages with sugar throughout the day.

STEP 4: Throw Out the Sugar Get rid of all the candies and sweets you have in your pantry. And be sure to read those ingredient lists!

STEP 5: Call Kyria!

Click here to reserve a FREE Soul Chat and I would be more than happy to help you breakup with sugar. I have lots of tips, healthy sweet recipes, strategies and am here to listen to you. Don't be shy! I have 100% been there before too and I am ready to help you. Are you ready? Let's chat 💜

PS: By all means, have fun and YES, enjoy something sweet on Thursday...but maybe just not 3 cups of sugar 😉💗 #moderation