Emma Miller
The safest way to adjust your diet and weight is to consult with a specialist nutritionist.
Is it possible not to eat sweets at all?
Sugar is called the “white death”, but it is not an absolute evil. It is a source of energy, necessary for the normal functioning of the brain and muscles. It’s impossible to refuse it completely because sugar is necessary for the body to maintain a normal carbohydrate metabolism.
But it’s worth keeping an eye on how much of it you consume in your diet containing a lot of sugar (candies, chocolate, cookies, sweet pastries, ice cream, and the like).
As the UK National Health Service notes, an adult should eat about 30 grams of sugar a day. That’s the equivalent of 6 teaspoons of sugar, but it’s not just table sugar, honey, or syrups (which doctors recommend should be no more than 5% of your total calorie intake for the day). These 30 grams should also include sugar, which is naturally found in foods such as fruits, vegetables, milk, cheese, and even cereals.
It is very easy to exceed the sugar intake limit. Manufacturers actively add it to various foods that we may encounter on store shelves. It can even be something as obvious as yogurt or ketchup. Yes, and we ourselves add sugar to our meals and drinks, like tea and coffee, without counting every gram. So in trying to control the amount of sugar we eat, we can’t do without counting and studying labels.
Why You Can’t Eat Sugar in Large Quantities
Sugar, like many things, is harmful when there is more than the body really needs. Eating too much of it can damage the nervous system, teeth, and blood vessels, too.
For example, when insulin is no longer enough to normalize blood glucose levels, diabetes develops. And if sugar stores in the form of glycogen in the liver become too abundant, this is the way to obesity. An abundance of sugar in the diet also leads to spikes in blood levels, which are fraught with neuronal dysfunction, the development of false appetite, and overeating. And this is only part of the potential problems of sweet eaters!
What happens to the body if you don’t eat sweets at all or give them up abruptly
If you completely eliminate sweets from your diet, you can deprive your body of glucose, an important source of energy, and you will begin to feel weak, and tired and may even pass out.
If you abruptly and completely give up sugar, there will also be “sugar withdrawal”, which is accompanied by increased irritability. This is due to a decrease in levels of dopamine and serotonin, the production of which stimulates sugar.
But its limited consumption will help to solve the problems provoked by its excess. For example, since sugar is one of the main causes of tooth decay, reducing the number of sweets in the diet will help to reduce the risk of its occurrence. Also, eating fewer “empty calories” and replacing them with healthier foods will lead to the fact that you will feel full sooner and will be less likely to overeat. If a balanced diet becomes your habit, it will lead to normalized weight and better health.
What happens if you do not eat sweets for a month
Changes in the body after giving up sweets appear gradually. As doctors note, already after a couple of days the quality of sleep can improve, because the sweet stimulates the production of the stress hormone.
If you do not eat sweets for two weeks, for example, you will notice that you will have a better sense of taste and will notice an improvement in the state of your intestines. Bloating and dysbacteriosis, the appearance of which is provoked by abundant consumption of sweets, may pass. Change for the better and the state of your skin.
If you continue to consume the same amount of calories as before or reduce their number, there may be noticeable changes in weight. The specialists explain its loss in this case by the fact that the body will begin to use up fat reserves, and fluid will cease to be retained in the body.
If you do not eat sweets for a whole month, you will notice that the positive effect will be more pronounced.
Is it possible to lose weight by not eating sweets?
The question of whether and how much weight can be lost by not eating sugar is more complicated than it seems. When there are too many sweets in the diet, we stop feeling full right after eating. This feeling comes only after a while so a person has time to eat too much. Regular overeating is fraught with weight gain. But giving up sweets will not necessarily lead to a quick and painless loss. Moreover, it does not guarantee that in the near future, the lost kilograms will not return, and your well-being will improve.
In some cases, such as eating disorders, gastrointestinal diseases, kidney, liver, and obesity, a significant change in diet can lead to undesirable consequences. Without proper knowledge and skills, without a correct understanding of your state of health and the needs of your body, it is difficult to predict what will happen to your body if you stop eating sweets in the amounts you are accustomed to.
The safest way to adjust your diet and weight is to consult with a specialist nutritionist. He will help you make a diet that is suitable for you.
