Sugar, Sugar, Sugar - Is there a middle way??

Well today is my birthday and you know what that means - sugar, sugar, sugar......  I know I have choices when it comes to sweets on my birthday but boy is it hard. Everyone wants to go out and celebrate and that usually includes sweet foods, dessert and cocktails, all of which I love!  What shall I do??

I'm reading a very interesting book called Sugardetoxme, that explains the science of our brain's response to sugars and sweeteners (even no calorie ones) of all kinds. I, like the writer, have a sweet tooth. She has chosen to completely detoxify from sweet foods of ALL kinds except a small amount of low sweet whole fruit. She explains that even fruit smoothies where the fruit is blended to a pulp loses fiber and stresses the body, and fructose in general is extremely hard on our blood sugar regulatory system. She informs us that metabolically we really can only handle 100-200 calories of sweet foods/liquids per day of ANY kind (including lactose milk sugar and the no calorie herbal sweetener stevia).

It's true that many, many people on the planet, and especially in America, are terribly addicted to sugar (and other stimulants), causing a wide variety of health problems, but where do you draw the line?  Especially in this day and age when sweet foods are so readily available everywhere you go and for every occasion imaginable, and Jamba Juice and Starbucks have become a daily habit.

I'm fascinated by this scientific analysis of the full effects of sugar spelled out so well by this author, and commend her ability to abstain from sweet foods completely, possibly living the healthiest life she can live while also helping others strive for this as well. Can I do that?  Food, and especially sweets, are consumed for a variety of reasons and I know I eat them for fun, emotional issues, stress, fatigue, social occasions, habit - you name it. When I have completely cut these foods out for long periods of time in the past because they made me so incredibly sick that I had no choice (even absolutely no fruit!), I felt deprived and like I was going to go crazy, though my health did improve over time.

Ultimately I believe in the middle way in all things. Enjoy life but do it in balance. Find sweets that work for you even if they might have a small side affect, once in a while. Force never works!  Love yourself and love life, as naturally, healthfully, and in balance as you can. Don't go to battle or become obsessed with food and let that consume you just for "perfect" health or a skinny body, forever and always. If you can do it and be happy then good for you!  But there are many other things to work on in life besides food, things that can change your health and who you are as a person in a deep way, so you can experience more LOVE - romantic, supernatural, personal, familial, etc - such as improving communication, decreasing stress, caring for ourselves and others in a variety of ways, experiencing new things, finding a higher calling, living a full life as best you can. LOVE of ALL kinds is the true lifelong elixir. Don't get bogged down by food!!!

For more to come on sugar detoxing the middle way, follow my experience and instruction as a long time "sugar sensitive"/hypoglycemic, as I uncover this middle way in my life, recorded in this blog.  

Controlling Hypoglycemia

Depending on which doctor you talk to or what book you read there may be simple to complex instructions on how to control hypoglycemia and how to eventually overcome it, but what it comes down to is listening to your own particular body. We are each biochemically unique and our diets eventually will have to be individualized once we become adept at listening to what we need. Keeping a diet journal is a great way to track your food responses and log what works and what doesn't. Also over time you will find your body will change and your needs will change, so becoming a bit intuitive about these signals is very helpful.

The basic rules are both diet and lifestyle changes. You must cut out sugar of all kinds, white flour, dried fruit, fruit juice, caffeine, alcohol, and tobacco. In my experience ALL fruit had to be cut out, and some doctors may also require a grain-free diet as well. Some can get away with eating low-sweet whole fruits such as apples, berries and melons. Again this will be individual to you and based on trial and error. In some case (including my own) sugar and refined grains have to be reduced in a gradual manner in order to not cause too much disruption to the body. Extreme fatigue is often the most difficult symptom to manage, especially without caffeine. I will talk more in my next post about Sugar Detox and how to do it.

Reducing stress is also required. This can be logged in your diet journal as well, noticing what causes stress or anxiety so you can brainstorm possible solutions. Find ways to reduce stress throughout your day through meditation, deep breathing, deep relaxation tapes, yoga, tai chi or qi gong, stretching, therapy, etc......  Be patient, stay positive, and trust the process. It will get easier and you will feel better!

Symptoms of Hypoglycemia

There are a wide variety of symptoms when it comes to hypoglycemia, making it a frequently misdiagnosed disorder. A glucose test from you're doctor is proof but for those who are Highly Sensitive People (Elaine Aron, The Highly Sensitive Person), this test may not be sensitive enough for you and come up negative. That is how it's been in my case and others who are sensitive like me. But I know my body and know what I'm feeling.  I have also experimented enough with diets to see the difference when I follow the hypoglycemia control way of eating.

Some of the symptoms of hypoglycemia are fatigue, insomnia, mental confusion, nervousness, mood swings, faintness, headaches, depression, phobias, heart palpitations, cravings for sweets, cold hands and feet, forgetfulness, dizziness, blurred vision, inner trembling, outbursts of temper, sudden hunger, allergies and crying spells. I have experienced all of these frequently since I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia and hypoglycemia eighteen years ago. But the worst ones for me are fatigue, anxiety, depression, sudden hunger, food allergies, mood swings and outbursts of temper. Not a fun way to live.......

In my next post I will discuss the process of controlling and recovering from this disorder.  I'll also discuss the interesting connection between hypoglycemia and fibromyalgia, which according to Dr. Paul St. Amand (What Your Doctor May NOT Tell You About Fibromyalgia), go hand in hand!

Hypoglycemia Book

A great book on hypoglycemia is "The Do's and Don'ts of Hypoglycemia" by Roberta Ruggiero. She explains that "Hypoglycemia is the body's inability to properly handle the large amounts of sugar that the average American consumes today. It's an overload of sugar, alcohol, caffeine, tobacco and stress."  After a certain amount of this abuse (everyone is different...) the body malfunctions and necessary sugar is unavailable to the brain, causing a state of alarm and a variety of physical and emotional symptoms. If this condition becomes chronic, the imbalance can lead to permanent disorders, inflammation and disease.

Hypoglycemia Mis-start

Well I sure chose the wrong week to start the hypoglycemia protocol as they were building a fence at my place and I am still living out of boxes since my move in mid-May.  Things were busy all week and dietary restrictions went out the window - donuts, pizza, beer......  I tend to eat whatever I want when I'm tired and stressed, though I pay for it for days afterwards. Dietary protocols take time and focus so you need to make room in your schedule to plan for and follow them. I'm going to try again this week and I hope you will follow and learn from my posts!  Happy healthy eating to feel good and enjoy life!!  😊

Hypoglycemia

It's time to work on a hypoglycemia protocol!  This is a disorder that affects a great number of people and many don't even realize it. I have struggled with this blood sugar imbalance for many years. Since being under increased stress recently, my blood sugar has gone a bit out of control and it's time to work this protocol!  Please follow along with me as I begin tomorrow Monday June 11. Let's beat this thing and experience increased well being and overall health!!

Nutrition For Dancers

This is a short post on nutrition for dancers.  Very important is my blog post on 3/19/12 called Free Radicals & Detoxification.  Those who exercise to extreme (most dancers, runners, etc) need to counteract the production of free radicals in their bodies!  There is also a good book aimed specifically for dancers (please see below.....):

Nutrition for Dancers

No junk food or soda (even diet – poison!)

No refined sugar or white flour

Lots of fresh vegetables and fruit

WATER

Sea salt – as much as you crave

Adrenal Support Herbal Supplement

SLEEP

Relaxation

Protein and whole grains

Book: The Care and Feeding of a Dancer by Toni Branner (at Amazon.com)