Hello my foodie friend and welcome to the very first episode of Nutrition… But Naked.
It can be easy to get caught up in diet culture and health trends, but I’m here to tell you that it’s all a lot more simple than you would think. We’ll be stripping down nutrition to it’s bare bones. Leave complication at the door, grab a drink, and let’s get naked!
Today is all about sugar. There are a ton of rumors about what sugars are good or bad for you, and I’m going to tell you why it actually doesn’t matter that much.
We all have that friend, or maybe you are that friend who uses honey, or some other substitute, instead of sugar because it’s natural so it’s got to be healthier, right? Not exactly. This same friend might also spend a lot of time worrying about their weight and avoiding certain foods.
Let’s dive into what’s what in the sugar world, and why that friend of yours isn’t doing herself any good going on that juice cleanse.
Sugar and Your Body
If you ate a heaping spoonful of sugar, your body would be bombarded with energy. So much energy that your pancreas would send out one of it’s trusted sidekicks, insulin.
Insulin tells your body that you don’t need all of that energy right this second, so instead of keeping that sugar floating around in your blood, you can put it into storage. Some sugar gets stored as glycogen in places like your liver, and the rest is stored as adipose tissue, aka fat.
Fat is a super important part of your body. It’s what allows us to sit without pain -- imagine straight up bone against a chair instead of a cushy caboose. Not to mention it’s what keeps our organs from playing bumper cars with each other. Um ouch.
But if you’re someone who feels like you already have enough adipose tissue, you might not want all of this sugar going straight to storage.
Natural Sugars
When you hear the word “natural” your first thought might be “healthy.” And while your doctor didn’t lie to you when she told you to go for the apple instead of the soda, the apple’s natural roots (ha get it? Roots…) aren’t what makes it better for you than the soda.
The magic of the sugar found in apples actually has nothing to do with the sugar itself, and everything to do with the vehicle it enters your body on. I’m talking about fiber.
Imagine that spoonful of sugar we talked about earlier, racing through your body in the fast lane. Fiber is like the floatie your sugar gets to relax on going down the lazy river that is your blood stream.
Since the sugar in apples gets to take its time, your body is able to utilize more of that energy, and in turn it puts less away in storage.
This is also why you never get a sugar high, and then a big crash when you eat an apple.
But what about honey? It’s natural, so shouldn’t it be “better” for me? If the only reason you’re avoiding refined sugar is for weight loss, then no, honey is no better.
Honey, maple syrup, and even juices race through your body just as fast as that heaping mouthful of sugar because it doesn’t have any fiber.
So Now I Have to Cut Honey and Juice Out of my Diet Too??
“N” to the “O,” NO. If anything this means that you can let go of your fear of refined sugar. If you have been willing to drink carrot juice because society deemed it “healthy” but you aren’t willing to drink soda, now you know that your body doesn’t know much of a difference!
Plus there are so many other factors to consider, outside of gaining adipose tissue.
If you prefer the taste of maple syrup because it gives your dish that cozy fall feeling, then use maple syrup! If your number one priority is supporting the bee population, opt in for honey whenever you can!
Even though the amount of sugar in juice can sometimes be just as much as a can of soda, I can guarantee that nine times out of ten, you’re going to get a lot more vitamins and minerals from carrot juice.
Eating is something to embrace and enjoy, and for so many of us, the joy became muddled with things like guilt or societal standards. The bottom line is, refined sugar is not something to fear, and by restricting yourself from eating it, you are only piling on stress to something that could instead be fulfilling and a positive experience. Take back your joy!
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