Tame Your Sweet tooth!

8 Simple Changes to a healthy lifestyle and being Diet Free. This week we look at the final letter in the word DIET.

The 'T' in DIET is all about taming the sweet tooth. There is sugar in almost everything processed. Or worse yet, High Fructose Corn syrup! If you're over-indulging in products that contain either of these, you might as well start ordering the diabetic test strips now. Personally, I'd prefer to spend my money on other things - like rubber stamps and scrapbook paper. :-D So instead, let's look at how to eliminate these items from our food intake. (Notice I didn't say DIET)

First and foremost, if you're eating fresh fruits, you're getting all the sugar you need. And if you're eating it for snacks, chances are you are curbing your craving for 'sweet treats'. Now this doesn't mean you can NEVER EVER have something sugar sweetened... just make it COUNT. Keep the portion in mind. Example... 5 pices of Dove Caramel choclates are 200 Calories - 100 of which are FAT. If you keep your sweet treat on a 100 calorie level, only have 2. Just enough to know it's a TREAT... not a meal.

I also know firsthand it's almost impossible to go cold turkey. I have really strong willpower (low pain threshold but I can back off if I really put my mind to something). What you want to do is wean yourself back a little at a time. If you drink 4 (20 oz) sodas a day, promise yourself for one week you'll only have 3 (2 would be better but I'm a realist). The next week promise yourself only 2. By the third week you'll be down to 1 soda per day. I'm down to 1 (12 oz) soda over the course of 3 days. My GOAL is to get it down to 1 treat soda over a weekend or only on mowing day (one or the other)

I live in Sweet Tea country. I've always had sugar in my tea (okay... almost syrup). I had quit drinking tea for a long time but I really enjoy it in the summer. I'm gradually working my sugar content back. I'm down to 1/2 of what I would normally put in it. Every week I get a little skimpier with the sugar until eventually I'll have just enough to take the bitter edge off and be happy. I also only drink one glass of tea a day and not until I've had at least half of my water for the day.

The other REALLY BAD thing is High Fructose Corn syrup. This is a killer when it comes to developing Type2 Diabetes. The easiest way to avoid it is to READ LABELS. If a label says it contains High Fructose Corn syrup, PUT IT BACK. And the worst thing you can do for your child's diet is to give it to them.

It's all about the choices we make. Personally, I've made the choice to be healthy and hopefully be around to enjoy my granddaughter long after she's moved out. :-)

Enjoy the Journey!