November 26, 2017 | Category: Bariatric Surgery, Blog, Eating Tips, Healthy Food Choices

C-YUH, Sugar Habit.

One of the biggest and most frustrating complaints we hear from our clients is that they just can’t kick the sugar. Whether it is in their coffee, their breakfast choices, or tempting food when out with friends.

If you’ve been keeping up with our blog, you’ll find that sugar and salt are two of the hardest tastes to kick, and they’re highly addictive.

It isn’t easy, but as soon as you kick the habit, your taste buds will change!

1.   Start with Soda, then literally all other sugary beverages

Sodas and other sweetened beverages provide about half of all the added sugar in the typical American diet.

Keep the fizz without the sugar.

If you have already undergone bariatric surgery, then any sort of carbonated beverage is not recommended. If you are starting on a new path and eating healthy, then this is perfect!

Altnernatives: 

  1. Pellegrino (flavored or unflavored)
  2. Kevita
  3. Club Soda

Swap sweetened (including artificially sweetened) beverages for no-calorie sparkling or seltzer water. For flavor add a twist of lemon, orange or lime. If you’re a sweet coffee or tea fanatic, cut the amount of sugar you use by half each week, until you are down to 1 teaspoon or less per beverage.

2.  Sugar substitutes say they’re good, but they’re not

Research indicates that sugar substitutes do the opposite of weight loss. Studies show that artificial sweeteners, precisely because they are sweet, encourage sugar cravings and sugar dependence. Yikes.

3.   PUT YOUR PHONE DOWN

We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again, pay attention to the food you are eating when you are eating it.

When we eat, we tend to zone out. We’re doing other things (the multitasking never ends), like working, checking our phones, emails, etc. When you reach for a sweet treat, check in with yourself. Are you actually hungry? Stressed? Annoyed? Listen in.

If you really want to know if you’re hungry, take a break, walk around the block. Still hungry? Make sure you’re eating because you have to.

4.   Labels, Labels, Labels

If you are waiting to undergo bariatric surgery and are in the process of losing weight, than it is crucial important to read the labels.

If “sugars” (real or artificial) on the label are more than 8 grams, go directly to the ingredient list and if you see a form of added sugars there. Do you? Put the product back on the shelf. If there is no sugar in the ingredient list, it means that the food or beverage contains natural sugars; you don’t need to worry about these because your body processes them differently than added sugars.

*Note: Keep your eye out for sucrose, dextrose, sorbitol, mannitol, honey, agave, dextrin, maltodextrin, high fructose corn syrup, or any other kind of syrups.