Be careful of sweet tooth addiction! Nutritionists teach 6 tips for controlling sugar levels

Biscuits, candies and other sweets, when eaten in one bite, are not only sweet and delicious, but the accompanying sense of happiness is even more irresistible! However, nutritionists say that excessive intake of sweets will not only lead to "sweet addiction", but will also make obesity, diabetes and other problems more likely to occur. It is recommended that female friends not only pay more attention to the sugar content labels when purchasing packaged foods, but also keep in mind the 6 major sugar control techniques to truly and effectively quit sugar and stay away from the harm of chronic diseases!

Are you eating sugar right? Natural sugar is better than added sugar

Zhang Huiping, director of the nutrition department of Taipei Municipal United Hospital Yangming Branch, said that "sugar" simply refers to monosaccharides and disaccharides such as glucose, fructose, sucrose, galactose, and lactose, which usually have varying degrees of sweetness. In addition to the natural sugars in fruits and milk (referred to as natural sugars here), a large part of our diet comes from added sugars (referred to as added sugars here), such as sucrose, brown sugar, honey and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

Since foods such as fruits and milk, which are natural sources of sugar, contain important nutrients needed by the human body, it is recommended to consume them in appropriate amounts every day according to the diet plan. However, foods containing added sugar, especially high-calorie, high-fat cakes and sweetened drinks, are something we need to be more vigilant about and pay attention to controlling our intake.

Don’t make your body unhappy! Excessive sugar intake may lead to chronic diseases

But what harm will excessive sugar intake have on the human body? Nutritionist Zhang Huiping explained that although moderate intake of sweets does help the body restore strength and change mood; however, excessive sugar intake will not only cause obesity problems, but will also significantly increase the risk of developing diseases such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood lipids, gout, dementia, cancer, etc.

If children consume too much sugary food, not only will their appetite for meals decrease, but if their nutritional intake is unbalanced, it will affect their development and their learning ability will deteriorate. Therefore, to keep your body healthy, you must learn to control your intake of sweets.

Is it hard to calm down without sweets? It may be "sweet tooth addiction"!

In particular, if you find yourself unable to calm down without eating sweets, you should be careful about whether you have a "sweet food addiction" problem! According to research from Princeton University in the United States, when the human body consumes sweets, a large amount of dopamine is secreted in the brain. Dopamine can transmit messages of excitement and joy, causing people to have an ecstatic reaction similar to smoking, drinking and taking drugs. If you consume too much and become dependent on this feeling, you may become addicted to sweets and find it difficult to quit.

How to control sugar intake? WHO: Added sugar should not exceed 5% of total calories per day

In view of the potential harm that excessive sugar intake may cause to human health, the World Health Organization (WHO) revised its original recommended sugar intake guidelines in 2014, lowering the recommended intake of added sugar from 10% of total calories to 5% of total calories, a decrease of half the recommended amount.

For example, if an adult male's daily calorie requirement is 2,000 calories, and the recommended intake of added sugars is 5% of the total calorie intake, it means that 100 calories of the daily diet can come from sweets; and sugar has 4 calories per gram, so 100 calories can be converted into 25 grams of sugar. One can (330 ml) of commercially available soda or cola contains 35 grams of sugar, so drinking just one can of beverage exceeds the recommended amount.

The battle against sugar! Nutritionists teach you how to read nutrition labels

To prevent consumers from accidentally consuming too much sugar due to not understanding how to calculate the sugar content of food. Nutritionist Zhang Huiping suggested that when consumers buy packaged foods, they may wish to pay more attention to the "sugar" content indicated in the nutrition label and assess whether there is any concern about excessive sugar content, so as to avoid consuming a large amount of sugar while enjoying the food.

Nutritional label example:

Quit sugar by doing this! 6 tips to avoid sweets addiction

In addition to the above examples, nutritionist Zhang Huiping also provides 6 tips to help people quit sugar for those who are addicted to sweets and cannot live without sugar. She hopes that everyone can start with self-control in daily life, reduce the desire to eat sweets as much as possible, or replace added sugar with natural sugar, which will help reduce the burden on the body.

Tip 1: Fill your sweet tooth with positive thoughts

When you are tempted by sweets, do something else, such as exercise, take a walk, etc., to strengthen your willpower to resist and reduce the discomfort of quitting addiction. If you really want to eat sweets, make low-sugar desserts yourself or buy low-sugar foods to increase your self-control instinct.

Tip 2: Keep your blood sugar stable

Change your eating habits, choose whole grains with a low glycemic index and eat them at regular times and in regular amounts. Have protein in every meal to increase satiety and make sure you don’t feel hungry.

Tip 3: Quitting sugar can help you divert your attention and avoid stress.

Quitting sugar is like quitting drugs. You should not be under stress when quitting sugar, as this will create resistance to execution. Instead, you can avoid craving for sweets by going to bed early and exercising.

Tip 4: Create an appropriately supportive environment

Get support from family and friends, buy less sweets or put them away, and avoid frequent places where desserts are displayed or sold.

Tip 5: Don’t use sugar substitutes

According to research from the University of Texas Health Science Center, drinking sugar-free soda every day will increase the incidence of obesity by about 41%, which is not conducive to weight loss. It is recommended to choose natural honey, fructose, and oligosaccharides, but it is safer to consume in small amounts.

Tip 6: Reduce your craving for sweets, start now

Start sugar control now, don't wait until tomorrow. Let’s start little by little! Gradually control the amount of sugar, and eventually your desire for sweets will decrease!

Nutritionist’s secret recipe revealed! "Colorful Konjac Pomelo Tea Jelly" is low in calories and delicious

If you really can't bear the desire to eat sweets, nutritionist Zhang Huiping has designed a recipe for "Colorful Konjac Pomelo Tea Jelly" that uses fresh fruits, natural ingredients, and low-calorie konjac for your reference. It is not only sweet and delicious without the burden, but also has much lower sugar content than commercially available desserts.

★Colorful Konjac and Grapefruit Tea Jelly

Ingredients: red yeast rice, orange, osmanthus plum, tree plum, grapefruit sauce, konjac powder.

practice:

1. Add 1 packet of konjac powder to 600cc of cold boiled water, stir well and let it stand for about 15 minutes.

2. Heat over medium heat, stirring, until bubbles appear on the edge of the pot (temperature is about 85°C), then turn to low heat, stir evenly and turn off the heat.

3. Divide into heat-resistant molds and let cool, then put in the refrigerator.

4. After the konjac is completely chilled, cut it into small cubes.

5. Take 1 teaspoon of grapefruit jam, mix it with 500 CC of ice water, then add diced konjac.

Remark:

You can use the natural pigments in food to make colorful konjac jelly (for example: take 100 CC of orange juice, adjust the amount of water in step 1 to 500 CC, follow the above steps, and after turning to low heat in step 2, add orange juice and stir evenly. Complete the subsequent steps to make the orange konjac jelly).