It is easy to want to indulge in all the holiday treats over Thanksgiving and Christmas. Unique desserts, cakes, chocolate and candy, all come into the market place and our kitchens. In my family we swapped cookies for years, so we would have all our favorites. Of course we ate them all. Sugar creep starts to decrease the nutrient density in our eating.
The amount of sugar you eat can increase gradually without conscious awareness. Plugin and prevent sugar creep during the holidays. I primarily mean the white stuff that comes in a 5-pound bag and high fructose corn syrup. Look out for these added sugars, and be careful in your food choices during this holiday season.
What is too much?
Too much is surprisingly little, perhaps even less than you currently eat. You want to cut back before you start to feel the effects, your inflammation goes up, and aches and pains you thought you had seen the last are back. During the holidays, you start eating more sugar, and you enjoy it and still feel okay, except you want more. If you start to crave sugar-laden foods, watch out. Don’t eat more until your body is overwhelmed and damage happens.
As hunter-gathers, the sweet taste was not familiar except a short fruit and berry season; we ate many bitter and astringent plants. Because of the rarity and quick energy source, our brains and bodies saught and celebrated sweet. Now cane and beet sugar is everywhere in packaged foods and prepared treats. Our bodies don’t have healthy mechanisms to handle this excess.
The Effects Sugar Creep On Your Body
Sugar promotes tooth decay; if you have chronic Lyme disease, your teeth may already be hurting. The sweet stuff raises blood sugar rapidly, followed by a quick crash. Blood sugar crashes can make you jittery and subject to bad choices. Here are a couple of problems too much sugar drives.
Excess Sugar Increases
Insulin
When you eat excess sugar, your body pumps out insulin to process it. Cells absorb glucose, convert it to ATP, and use it. If you eat more than you can use, you convert it to glycogen, store it in the muscles for near term use, or convert it to fat for long term storage. Higher insulin levels can affect the blood vessels all over your body. The vessel walls to get inflamed, thicken, and stiffen, raising blood pressure over time. Unchecked, this may lead to a heart attack or a stroke. Chronic high insulin levels may also lead to insulin resistance and potentially type 2 diabetes.
Inflammation
When the glucose level in your blood is chronically high, your body creates pro-inflammatory chemicals in response. Joints and muscle ache due to elevated inflammation and make you miserable. It also makes you more injury-prone and prematurely ages your skin. Chronic inflammation in the brain from too much sugar contributes to the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Battling inflammation is a big part of managing chronic Lyme disease. Extra sugar is an inflammation trigger that you can reduce and help yourself cool things down.
Consider the potential effects over time of just a few extra sweets each day. When possible, choose whole nutritionally dense food. Make an effort to enjoy the sweet taste of sweet potatoes, fruits, and the lovely smell of beautiful flowers. Have a sugar-based dessert now and then if you feel it is okay, side-step sugar as default or habit. Pay attention and prevent sugar creep during the holidays and beyond.
The purpose of this article and its contents is to share and educate on tick-bite protection and Lyme disease recovery strategies. The information provided on this website is not a substitute for professional medical care, treatment, or advice. All the material here is for information purposes only. Always share strategy and work with your health care team.