Diet Food Plan Info & Tips

Diet Plans? Sugar is sugar!

If you are like me and have a sweet tooth, that can be a major road block in our diet plans to burn fat quickly. Hey, but it does not have too be! Like I discussed in earlier posts, you can change a habit in less than four weeks if you persist. For maximum weight loss results with diet plans get your “sugar fix” from fresh fruits and berries only. It might take a few weeks to make the transition but your body and health are worth it! After achieving my target goals, a higher metabolism rate allowed me to indulge in healthier low fat versions of my favorite desserts in moderation.

Sugars can be an obstacle for any diet plans, especially those that do not occur naturally like refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Processed sugars are hidden in almost all packaged products you find in grocery stores. Just go to your pantry and examine the labels. The thing about sugar though is it found naturally in almost all the foods we eat including vegetables. Being aware of what of sugars you are eating will make all diet plans more effective and help you achieve your results faster. Here’s the “skinny” on sugar.

Simple sugars or glucose is a fundamental fuel used by our cells for normal brain and body functions. It is what our bodies burn for energy. When it comes to weight loss and diet plans, all carbohydrates are made up of units of sugar and must be burned by the body. Whether it is processed sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, natural cane sugar, fructose, honey or molasses they all raise blood sugar levels and are high on the glycemic index scale. This is not very good for diet plans when trying to burn fat or if you are diabetic or have blood sugar issues. Especially if you consume too much sugar. This cripples many diet plans.

There are sweeteners that have less or no affect the glycemic index and these are considered more beneficial for diet plans and your weight loss program. I will share four of them below for you.

Healthier Sugar Alternatives for Diet Plans

Lo Han (also called Lo Han Guo or Lo Han Kuo) is a fruit similar to kiwi fruit an can be bought in forms from that are 10x to 250x sweeter than sugar. This fruit is also called Lo Han Guo or Lo Han Kuo. Lo Han Fruit has been used for over 1,000 years and is also known as the “longevity fruit” due to its cooling, calming, fat burning, stress-reducing effects. It is grown in a pristine mountain region in China. Lo Han can be found commercially in products like Slimsweet. Used in a lot of successful diet plans.

Agave Nectar is derived from the Agave cactus, mostly found in Mexico and is about 1 1/2 times as sweet as sugar with half the carbs. It has a higher glycemic index of 48 and can be purchased in raw and processed forms like syrups. It’s taste is similar to but not identical to honey. This is the same cactus that produces tequila. If purchasing syrups I recommend ONLY the raw syrups that have not been heated above 118 degrees for use in diet plans.

Chicory root has been used in many consumer forms. It is used as a caffeine-free coffee substitute, to increase fiber content in snacks like energy bars and it is used as a zero calorie sugar substitute in diet plans. A local food co-op sells chicory root in a product called “Just like Sugar”. This product also contains stevia and orange peel. The leaves of common chicory roots produce radicchio and Belgian endive used in some nice up scale salads!

Stevia is an herb from a South American plant. It’s leaves are up to 300 times sweeter than sugar and contains about 10 calories per pound. It is also used as a sugar substitute in diet plans but you may have to try several brands to find one to suit your taste buds. Some may have a bitter taste from processing the whole leaves.

If you need to have it sweet, these healthier alternatives will help you achieve your goals of burning fat and losing weight a lot faster! A very beneficial factor for diet plans.

My Advise on “Artificials”

Be wary of artificial sweeteners with diet plans! Most of these were discovered by accident and sound a warning bell in my head and should in yours too! Saccharin, Sweet and Low, Equal, Nutrasweet, Aminosweet, Spoonful, Spenda, are some of the brand names. A lot of controversy here over these artificial sweeteners. If you do some research on these you will find which are made from coal tar extracts, which ones break down into formaldehyde and formic acid (ant sting poison) in your stomach and which ones have a chlorinated base like DDT and can cause autoimmune disease! There is a lot of corporate money behind these revenue producing products and it is my opinion that public health concerns are at the bottom of their priority list. These should be avoided on any diet plans.

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