5 Ways to Kick the Sugar Habit

Erin Adamson, Guest Blogger

Here are some helpful tips that I have learned for cutting the sugar habit. I hope this helps everyone and if you need more help, learn about online options that will help you beat addictions by clicking the last link.

1. Craving sweets? – try incorporating foods with natural sweetness into your meals. I have discovered that caramelized onions, made in a crockpot with nothing added, is a great natural way to add sweet flavor to a meal. I add it to eggs, salads, sandwiches, meats, just about anything.

2. Finding it hard to find “sugar free” items? – look at the ingredients FIRST and see if any type of real or fake sugar is in the first 5 ingredients. Just cutting back on the amount of sugar can help ease you into a sugar free lifestyle. The exception to this rule is bread. Yeast requires sugar to activate and cause the bread to rise.

3. Craving sweets between meals? – use fruit as your inbetween snacks. It contains natural sugars and will help satisfy your sweet tooth without the guilt. I try to keep the fruit plain so I can savor the taste.

4. Don’t cheat! – I know we are all tempted but besides the guilt of that sweet treat you may find that within an hour or two your craving comes back two fold. I was addicted to honey and even adding a tsp to my tea caused everything to taste less sweet and had me craving more sugar.

5. Finally, appreciate your food. I noticed when I cut out the sugar that my foods suddenly started being “more ripe” “tastier” and “sweeter”. It wasn’t that everything was suddenly better. It’s that my taste buds started appreciating the natural sweetness. Now snap peas, cherry tomatoes, and fruits all taste better. Take note of that as your journey continues. It will be a constant reminder of how your hard work is paying off.