Post-holiday sugar detox tips
So. Many. Cookies.
With the calendar crowded with gatherings between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, it’s been a challenge to maintain healthy eating habits. For some of us (well, me, at least), stepping away from home-baked cookies was often just too hard.
“The holidays are a time when sweets are all over the place,” said Jessica Beavers, a clinical registered dietician who works with patients at Cape Cod Hospital. “Everyone’s together and we’re making treats that we typically don’t have year-round, whether it’s cookies or pies. It can be tricky to navigate that, especially for anyone who tries to go easy on the sugar throughout the year.”
It's important to differentiate the natural sugar found in fruit from the refined sugar found in candy and cookies. Refined sugar will spike your blood sugar.
“It's a simple carb, essentially,” she said. “Your body processes it quickly and then you get a sugar high followed by a crash. Instead, we recommend fruit as a snack, since fruits have natural sugars, a lot of fiber and vitamins and minerals. It takes your body more time to process them.”
Refined sugar can be addictive for many people. If you’ve had cookies the last few days, you may crave them today, she said.
Sugar Detox Tips
If you enjoyed too much sugar over the holidays, here are some of Beavers’ sugar detox tips.
Practice forgiveness – “Looking at the holidays realistically, you might wish you could eat nothing but fruits and vegetables, but most of us will binge some sweets at some point,” she said. “Don’t worry about the past. Focus on making good decisions going forward. Giving up sugar isn’t easy, so celebrate successes and don’t dwell on mistakes.”
Make a plan – “Be mindful of your normal baseline versus how many sweet treats you ate over the holidays,” she said. Set a goal of going the next three days without any sweets to get yourself back on track.
Clean out your pantry – No one likes to waste food, but you have to decide whether you’re doing yourself any favors by keeping a stash of sweets. “If it’s not in the house, then you can’t just grab it and eat it mindlessly,” she said.
Read the labels – “Check closely to see how much added sugar is in the foods you eat,” she said. Processed foods often contain sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup, barley malt, dextrose, maltose or rice syrup, among other forms or refined sugar.
Eat mindfully – The more you enjoy what you’re eating, the less likely you are to overeat, especially when it comes to sweets. “Whether it’s the main meal or sweets, take some time before going back for more – and you’ll probably find you’ve had enough,” she said.
Drink plenty of water – Being well hydrated helps reduce sugar cravings. “Sip on water, tea or low-cal seltzers in between meals and avoid sugar sweetened beverages,” she said.
Don’t skip meals – “Sometimes people try to limit calories by eating one big meal a day,” she said. “You get hungrier by doing that and then you’ll overcompensate and eat more than normal.”
Cope with stress – “Some people turn to food when they’re stressed, and that’s totally okay, so long as you’re aware of it” she said. “Balance that with some other outlets that help you cope with stress, such as physical activity. Going on a short 10-minute walk around the block after eating is a great way to help for multiple reasons.”
Think long-term – “With the new year, a lot of people set goals like giving up sweets cold turkey,” she said. “That might be a great goal, but you have to be realistic. You want to be sustainable, so you can maintain these goals. If it’s a big change, sometimes it is easier to taper off. If you go from a hundred to zero, these changes won’t necessarily last. Slow and steady wins the race.”
