Part 17 - The Sweet Seduction Of Sugar

     Hello and welcome to Part 17 of The Rendering also known as "The Sweet Seduction Of Sugar".  It is a fact that every addict has his or her own personal "drug" of choice.  Being addicted to food, from my experience, is not an exception to this rule.  I like most foods to some extent but I must say that sugar is most definitely my "drug" of choice.

     I love my sweets in all forms.  Cakes, cookies, pies.... I guess, perhaps, that might have not been such a good choice.  As we all know, Halloween just passed by us and overall I didn't do so bad.  I will own the fact that I did indeed enjoy a few pieces of candy and a couple of doughnuts.  That being said, I did far better than I normally do.  As I have said since the beginning of this journey, the point is to not "ban" foods but to change my relationship with foods.  Even sugar, while certainly not a great choice, is not evil.  Take a look at this little picture...

     Does this look threatening?  Not really, in fact it is somewhat pretty with all the colors and whatnot.  Do not however, allow my words or the pretty colors to lure you into a false sense of security.  Sugar needs to be respected and used with caution.

     Refined sugar is found in far more items than just desserts.  I did some research and found a surprising number of places that were hiding sugar.  Cake mixes, ice cream, jelly, cookies, and soda are all obvious sources for sugar but what about these sugar land mines, bottled pasta sauce, barbecue sauce, and even bottled tea.  Not convinced?  Applesauce, canned or packaged fruit, juices (all natural too) and even some "healthy" foods like Skinny Cow are high in sugar.  Cereal bars, warm and cold cereals, and even yogurt can be tiny little saboteurs.  Take a look for yourself when you are out grocery shopping or even just looking around you cupboards and pantries.  Find the nutrition label on whatever random food you choose and find how many grams of sugar there are per serving.  Now, for those that do not know, 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar equals 4 grams of sugar.  Now do a little math and figure out just how many teaspoons of sugar you consume in a day.  I can't speak for anyone else, but I have my suspicions that you would be as shocked as I was.  

     So what are some of the dangers of "abusing" sugar?  Yes, I did indeed say "abusing" sugar.  I used that word because that is exactly what I have been doing.  Here are just a few of the problems that "abusing" sugar can lead to...

      I found myself going down this list while doing my research and I just kept saying "yep, got that" and quite frankly it was scary.  So now that I have thrown out some facts I am left with the question "How do I intend to help myself?"

     I have been fairly successful so far with beating this addiction but it is still there.  Still there gnawing at the back of my brain and I know that I am, at times, one treat away from becoming the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde of sweets.  I try to keep the monster at bay with logic.  I remember those lists of health issues sugar can cause when consumed with reckless abandon.  My friend, Edgar Mellencamp, likes to remind me constantly that sugar is also horrible for your teeth so that helps to deter me as well.  

     If you are a fan of my blog, then you know I like to use visual aids because it helps me express my point.  So I will go this direction.  Perhaps, this will help you remember the potential danger that too much sugar possesses.  Mother Nature is a brilliant force.  She has a way of showing us dangerous critters and plants.  Here are a few examples...

       Monkshood, a vibrant purple bloom that is a warning of just how poisonous it can be.

 Or the brilliant Clown Frog.... DANGER!

 

 The electric blue rings of Australia's Blue Ringed Octopus flash a warning to not mess with this little fellow.

 

Red on yellow kills a fellow is all you need to know about the Coral Snake.

 

Finally, this multicolored Poison Arrow Frog screams HANDS OFF!

     

     As anybody can see and as I said before, Mother Nature knows how to warn us of danger.  If she can do it so can I...

 As you can see, sugar can be beautiful as well.  Yes indeed those stunning pieces are made from, you guessed it, SUGAR!  So with that, I will keep in mind the danger that sugar can hold if not used with care.

       Each person has a different metabolism.  Some are fast and some are slow.  Mine, however, would stand a real good chance of losing a race with a glacier.  So, keeping that in mind, I am going to challenge myself.  I will offer this challenge to you as well.  I am going to attempt to go "sugar free" for the next two weeks starting Monday morning.  I mean, absolutely no added sugar or sugary treats.  Again, allow me to stress that I am not saying that you or I "must" give up sugar but I am going to do this as an experiment.  I want to see just how much better, or worse for that matter, that I will feel by reducing almost all added refined sugar.  I want to see how it affects my weight, mood, blood pressure, depression, energy, and overall health.  I normally like to take one day a week for my "dessert" day but I am only going to have sugar free desserts.  I will report on my progress in each of the coming posts.  I am hoping that I will find positive results and not only that, but I am hoping to form a habit of little to no sugar to use towards my benefit.  Try it with me if you want.  I would love to hear your results and thoughts.  I am going to have to also address my use of artificial sugar substitutes.  I understand that there are several conflicting opinions on which ones are bad for you and which ones are, because I can't say good, "less bad" for you.  I would love to hear the thoughts of my readers and perhaps some suggestions as to what products you might know of that are more healthful.  I know that a lot of people have suggested stevia and I have tried it and I actually like it.  I am not sure, but just in passing over some research I think I saw that it depends on what form the stevia is in.  If anybody knows anything about that please feel free to fill me in.

      Now on with the show!!  As we all know, we are here for the numbers so I shan't gild the lily any longer.  I give you.... duh duh duh!!!!!

9 MORE POUNDS GONE!

     More importantly, the new total weight lost is 102 lbs.  I am bouncing back from the weight gain and I am doing it strong!  I owe my success and motivation to my family, friends, and all of you that follow me and lend me your support.  I say it each week but I can't say it enough...thank you all.  I am blessed and honored each week to be able to share such an amazing journey with you all.  I think that I will call this one for now.  On a technical note, I am asking for some feedback on comments on the actual blog posting.  I am getting word that people cannot leave comments on the actual posts when using their "smart" devices.  If this is indeed the case and you have any idea why that is or how to remedy this issue please feel free to email me at Pedropwr3@aol.com.  Thank you all again and remember, the sugar free challenge is on!  As always, please share this post on your pages because you never know who might need a bit of encouragement in their struggle.  We are touching lives out there.  Much love and God bless you all.  VIVE LA FAT REVOLUTION!!!  To be continued...