Cutting Out Sugar

[soos_mite_ah]

I'm thinking of cutting out sugar from my diet but I'm not sure how to go about it or how far should I go. 

Lately, my sugar habits look like this. This probably isn't everything but it is everything I have thought of off the top of my head and from my food journal I keep

• Multiple times a week I have a banana with a little bit of honey. I'm not a huge fruit person but I really like bananas. Also I like lemons and limes in a variety of recipes.
• I'm huge on vegetables. To me some have a natural sweetness to them such as when it comes to tomatoes, red peppers, and celery.
• I like to chew gum
• I love chocolate. I don't have it in the house but I catch myself going a little crazy when I'm near it lol.
• I used to have sweetened vanilla almond milk every now (maybe a couple times every other week or so) but I switched to unsweetened fairly recently. 
• I have a couple slices or one slice of gluten free toast every other day or so. 
• I have a gluten free tortilla a couple times a week. 
• Maybe once a month or so I might have a soda.
• I have ice cream like once every other week but I am in the process of cutting down.
• I like using balsamic vinegar in my salads.
• I'm trying to cut down on sauces but I do have them on occasion out of convenience.
• I also add sugar to coffee but I have coffee once every few months. 
• I indulge with deserts when I'm at a social gathering or when I'm with friends. 

To go sugar free, should I cut out all fruit? Balsamic vinegar? Honey? Gum? Certain Vegetables? 

Am I having too much sugar? Idk, sometimes I think I am because I know that I have a sweet tooth. 

I'm also planning on cutting out even the gluten free grains in the future but I'm taking things one step at a time. 

[xxxx]

17 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

To go sugar free, should I cut out all fruit? Balsamic vinegar? Honey? Gum? Certain Vegetables? 

Am I having too much sugar? Idk, sometimes I think I am because I know that I have a sweet tooth. 

You are on the right path. You’re making changes - do not take it to the extreme.

Small, steady steps, with moderation as the goal. 

[Username]

You can replace sugar with liquid stevia and stevia extract.

No, you don't eat sugar because you like it. It's addiction. If you would stop eating carbohydrates you wouldn't crave sugar anymore.

[soos_mite_ah]

1 hour ago, Username said:

You can replace sugar with liquid stevia and stevia extract.

But I don't add sugar into anything. Whatever sugar or sweet flavors I consume is already in the food. 

Unless we're talking about a little bit of honey on my bananas 

Is honey bad? 

[soos_mite_ah]

2 hours ago, xxxx said:

You are on the right path. You’re making changes - do not take it to the extreme.

Small, steady steps, with moderation as the goal. 

Yeah I have seen a lot of extreme things online which is why I wanted some type of clarity as to what is reasonable. Thank you for your input and affirmation 

[Average Investor]

I don't think it is bad with natural sugars. They are very enjoyable too. A bit of it isn't going to hurt. I would aim to remove processed added sugars from your diet if anything. That would be a major benefit. Not just carbs and natural sugars. I don't think having some carbs and natural fruits is going to do anything dire. Overdoing them wouldn't be good, but like with anything I don't think there is much harm in it. 

If you really want to do all I would just start by just cutting out the added ones completely. I have removed added sugar for 1-2 years now. It has been excellent. I no longer have much acne and just feel great. 

21 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

I love chocolate. I don't have it in the house but I catch myself going a little crazy when I'm near it lol.

Try out some raw cocoa or cocoa nibs. It is amazing and won't contain any extra stuff. I like making my own oatmeal with it. 

 

 

[Michael569]

22 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

should I cut out all fruit?

I wouldn't do that. Fruit sugar does not behave the same way as isolated table sugar. Fruits has loads of beneficial polyphenols especially helpful in pcos (as per your journal). I actually wouldn't limit your fruit intake if I were you but maybe don't go crazy on bananas and dried fruits. Try some new low GL fruits like pears, plums, grapefruits, oranges and lots and lots of berries. 

22 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

I love chocolate. I don't have it in the house but I catch myself going a little crazy when I'm near it lol.

swap it for dairy free dark chocolate. Nothing wrong with having that 

22 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

I also add sugar to coffee but I have coffee once every few months

unlikely to be an issue if you only have it so rarely 

22 hours ago, soos_mite_ah said:

Vegetables? 

Not at all, eat all the vegetables you can. The more fibre you eat the better. Don't worry about sugar in vegetables seriously. The only one I wouldn't go crazy with are potatoes. 

[Striving for more]

Looool you already won. You're eating less sugar now than 99.9999% of people. 

Well done for getting to that level, the sugar you have is soo occasional I don't even know you should focus on that. 

Probs better off focus on another aspect of health 

Advise cutting out the gum though isn't it bad for teeth

Edited December 25, 2020 by Striving for more

[soos_mite_ah]

2 hours ago, Michael569 said:

I wouldn't do that. Fruit sugar does not behave the same way as isolated table sugar. Fruits has loads of beneficial polyphenols especially helpful in pcos (as per your journal). I actually wouldn't limit your fruit intake if I were you but maybe don't go crazy on bananas and dried fruits. Try some new low GL fruits like pears, plums, grapefruits, oranges and lots and lots of berries. 

2 hours ago, Michael569 said:

 Not at all, eat all the vegetables you can. The more fibre you eat the better. Don't worry about sugar in vegetables seriously. The only one I wouldn't go crazy with are potatoes. 

Yeah I think introducing more variety when it comes to fruits can be helpful. Idk, I think I fell into a rabbit hole on the internet saying how fruit and some vegetables are bad because they are sweet. There is a lot of misinformation and a lot of weird diet/ wellness things out there and as someone who is in the beginning stages of looking into types of food and making lifestyle changes, it can be a little confusing.  Also one question, are sweet potatoes better than regular potatoes when it comes to the way the sugars react in the body? 

[soos_mite_ah]

@Striving for more Idk I think I might be nitpicking at this point. I guess I can overestimate the prevalence of sugar in my diet because I feel like I'm always craving something sweet even though nowadays, since I started paying attention to it more, I can't even bear to have a whole soda. 

[Michael569]

@soos_mite_ah yes sweet potators are much better. 

Yes there is lot of nonsense on the internet. And this is just my biased opinion but anyone tells you fruits and vegetables are bad for you generally has no idea what they are talking about. I've spent around 5 years and close to 4000 hours dissecting nutrition for myself and am yet to find evidence that they are bad flr anyone although some people can either be allergic or intollerant to some. The first means they need to avoid those for life, the second that their gut needs fixing.