By Marcia & Drew Robbins
Let’s set the stage. Will Smith is talking to Tommy Lee Jones in the famous scene from Men in Black 3. Tommy Lee Jones asks, “Do you know what the most destructive force in the universe is?” To which Will Smith answers, “Sugar!”
For the human body, sugar is truly destructive
Sugar has been linked to obesity, cancer, hypertension, high blood pressure, hypoglycemia, insomnia, dizziness, allergies, depression, headaches, cardiovascular disease, hair loss, ADD/ADHD, breakouts/skin irritations, Metabolic Syndrome, Type 2 Diabetes, fatigue, nervous tension, aching joints, stiffening of the arteries and even violent behavior. According to the American Dietetic and Diabetic Associations, increased sugar consumption is the leading cause for degenerative disease. It’s pretty overwhelming, especially since these diseases can be avoided.
The “fix” has been in since 1967 when the Sugar Research Foundation paid $50,000 (in today’s dollars) to 3 Harvard researchers to downplay the link between sugar and heart disease. These researchers created a way to point the finger at FAT. “They were able to derail the discussion about sugar for decades,” said Stanton Glantz, a professor of medicine at U.C.S.F. Can you imagine how many lives have been damaged because of this fake science?
Is sugar really the problem?
Yes, it is! The statistics are staggering: In 1900, the average American consumed 5 pounds of sugar per year. By the year 2000, this had risen to 150 pounds per year! This is a 3000% increase in sugar consumption, per American, resulting in 500 additional calories consumed per day – equivalent to eating an extra Big Mac every single day.
In 1960, Americans consumed an average of 1 teaspoon of sugar per day. Now, the average American consumes 22 teaspoons daily, while American children average 32 teaspoons per day.
No one would purposefully eat 22 teaspoons of sugar, but we do consume this amount through hidden sugars that have snuck into our diet. The facts are, that of the 600,000 items on American supermarket shelves, around 480,000 contain hidden sugars. It is not enough to simply look for “sugar” in the ingredients list, because there are over 250 different names for sugar used in American product ingredient labels!
Facts don’t lie. The United States has an obesity epidemic. In 1975, the obesity rate was 14%. Today, it is at 36.5%. The numbers are even worse for our children. We now have children being treated for Type 2 Diabetes, also called Adult Onset Diabetes. This is a recent phenomenon.
Sugar is Addictive
An addictive substance is something that, when it is no longer taken, causes symptoms of withdrawal, including headaches, fever, upset stomach, diarrhea, etc. According to Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D., brain scans show that sugar is as addictive as heroin and cocaine!
What is The Solution?
It is important to note that addiction to sugar is a biological process. So, mere willpower is not strong enough to break the addiction. How is it possible, then, to break this addiction in a world full of heavily marketed sugar-filled products? Cut added sugar and sugar substitutes from your life! My favorite quote from Dr. Hyman is that “sugar should be considered a recreational drug”. We whole-heartedly agree with that.
We believe, however, that in order to be successful in making big changes, you must have a support system. In making these changes ourselves, with dramatic results, we developed a 3 Pillar Program – a team of people with similar goals. This process has helped over 100 people, in Santa Rosa Beach, make these lifestyle changes.
So, in speaking from experience we say ‘you can change your health – one bite at a time’.
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