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Science & The Spirit
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THE SOUR SIDE OF SWEETS
Health Helps Part 15
By Dane and Vicki Griffin
After a buys, stressful day, what could be more
comforting than something sweet? The possibilities are endless:
a thick slab of German chocolate cake, a nutty chunk of fudge, a
heaping bowl of rocky road ice cream with butterscotch sauce.
Or, for a quick fix, a snack of Oreos, a Snickers bar; or maybe
a root beer float.
What do they all have in common? These
"comfort foods" all contain refined sugar—and lots
of it. And we're eating more of it every year.
Sweeter as the days go by!
In the late 1800s, the average American's diet
contained very little sugar—only about five pounds1 of sugar
per year. By 1970, we were eating 24 times more sugar: 122
pounds a year!2 Today, many authorities estimate an even higher
total: an unbelievable 150 pounds per person per year!3
That's more than a cup a day!
Before you argue that you couldn't possibly be
eating that much sugar, remember that most of the sugars we
consume are hidden in food we eat. Sugars are not only in
obvious places like soda, cookies, cakes, pastries, candy,
donuts, and ice cream. They are also unsuspected guests in most
processed and refined foods, including gravies, sauces, peanut
butter, seasoning mixes, ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressing,
crackers, canned fruits and vegetables, processed cheese
spreads, stuffing and bread mixes, sweet pickles, dry cereals,
and even salt! Just read the labels. You'll be shocked at the
places sugar turns up!
How sweet it isn't
All that sugar doesn't seem to be making us any
sweeter. in fact, it may be contributing to mood swings,
fatigue, and a host of diseases. Some researches believe that
those who become addicted to other substances begin with sugar:
that is the "basic addiction"—and one of the hardest
to kick. Sweet foods do affect brain chemistry. Researchers at
Yale University found that children who ate sugar on an empty
stomach had high levels of adrenaline, which resulted in
shakiness, anxiety, excitement, and problems with concentration.
A relationship has also been found between refined sugar intake
and destructive, aggressive, and restless behaviors in
hyperactive children. That's not all: Other studies have shown
that high sugar intake is associated with lower intelligence and
lower achievement test scores in children ages 5 to 15! Sugar
has been show to drain energy and cause tension. Excess sugar
depletes vitamins and minerals, especially the B vitamins, from
the body. This can cause irritability and anxiety. In other
words, the more sugar you eat, the more likely you are to feel
stressed and out of sorts. Too much sugar has also been shown to
be a cause of premature puberty and aging, cataracts, headaches,
tooth decay, bowel cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, breast
cancer, lowered immune function, ulcers, and hypoglycemia.
Sweeten up—naturally!
How can you cut all that refined sugar our of
your diet? Remember that most processed foods contain sugar in
one form or another. So go natural! Cook dry beans instead of
using canned ones. Try fresh or frozen vegetables rather than
canned. Make gravies and sauces from scratch. And instead of
reaching for a candy bar, try God's naturally-packaged
sweets—a juicy, fresh apple, pear, apricot, or mango. Remember
also that when you eat more whole grains, beans, vegetables, and
fresh fruit, you won't have such an urge to snack.4
At breakfast-time, choose unrefined, whole grain
cereals instead of instant, pre-sweetened ones. Try millet,
rice, rolled oats, barley grits, and multi-grain cereals,
sweetened with bananas, chopped dates, raisins, or a little
honey or rice syrups. By the way, pure honey has been shown to
have healing properties that are absent in other sugars. Honey
is sweeter than sugar, and raises blood levels higher, but less
is needed to sweeten the food. but steer away from artificial sweeteners.
Their potential side effects can be serious.
What happens when you shift your focus from
"fast food frenzy" to "fabulous, fresh, and fiber
filled?" Time released energy, a better mood, vibrant
health, and more even temper are just a few of the rewards. As
we come closer to the "Designer Diet" God gave our
first parents, we will experience satisfaction instead of
hunger, energy instead of fatigue, and health instead of chronic
sickness and disease. Our Creator truly is a God "who
satisfieth they mouth with good things, so that they youth is renewed
like the eagles" (Psalm 103:5).
Part 1
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4
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10
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Copyright © LifeStyle Matters, Inc.
1. Misner, Bill, Ph.S., Killer
Sugar! Suicide With A Spoon. Note that these figures include
sugar in its many forms, including glucose, sucrose, fructose,
honey, corn syrup, etc.
2. San Jose Mercury News,
January 17, 1999, page 7.
3. Newsweek, July 13,
1998, pages 72-74. While some reports indicate that white
refined sugar consumption is down, that is largely due to the
fact that high fructose corn syrup, a concentrated sweetener
processed from cornstarch, has increased almost 250% in the last
15 years, according to the Department of Agriculture.
4. This is because these
foods are high in fiber, which increases satisfaction and takes
longer to digest.
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