Some notes about sugar.

Reading this was damned depressing.  I love my cupcakes.  I love them as much as a person can love sprinkled and frosted cups of yummy yummy goodness.

But I’m saying good-bye to the pastries.  Or, I’m trying to, at least.

More and more though, as I’m immersing myself into this whole “healthy eating do the right thing at the dinner table I want my ass to be a size four” mindset, I’m learning just how bad sugar can be for your body.  Does that mean I’m going to go all food nazi and cut it out completely?  No way, I love my vodka and I love my cupcakes.  I’m not cutting it out 100%.  What I AM doing is moderating it, and making the indulgences count.

The “glycemic index” is a measure of how a given food affects blood-glucose levels, with each food being assigned a numbered rating. The lower the rating, the slower the absorption and digestion process, which provides a more gradual, healthier infusion of sugars into the bloodstream. On the other hand, a high rating means that blood-glucose levels are increased quickly, which stimulates the pancreas to secrete insulin to drop blood-sugar levels. These rapid fluctuations of blood-sugar levels are not healthy because of the stress they place on the body.
One of sugar’s major drawbacks is that it raises the insulin level, which inhibits the release of growth hormones, which in turn depresses the immune system. This is not something you want to take place if you want to avoid disease.
An influx of sugar into the bloodstream upsets the body’s blood-sugar balance, triggering the release of insulin, which the body uses to keep blood-sugar at a constant and safe level. Insulin also promotes the storage of fat, so that when you eat sweets high in sugar, you’re making way for rapid weight gain and elevated triglyceride levels, both of which have been linked to cardiovascular disease. Complex carbohydrates tend to be absorbed more slowly, lessening the impact on blood-sugar levels.

We’ll talk only about processed sugars and corn syrup here (not fruit sugars). Sucking down a large amount of processed sugar results in a large insulin spike as your body fights to return to homeostasis.  General theory goes that a continually high-sugar diet with these repeated insulin spikes eventually leads to insulin resistance- your blood sugar will require more and more insulin to stay in check. The theory goes that this will eventually develop into diabetes (type II) and you’ll require insulin shots.

Now I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to have to take insulin shots. And I don’t like the idea of tooth decay, depression, diabetes, hypo/hyperglycemia, etc.  None of that appeals to me at all.

Want a reality check? Go here, download and print out the food journal, and take a look at what you’re REALLY eating.

❤

j