My Problem with Sugar

Hot Cocoa, my sweet...

I have a sugar problem.  The sucrose and glucose and high fructose corn syrup and beet sugar and honey and artificial sweeteners and so on… I love each and every form of sugar so very much.

My passion for the sweet isn’t a problem most of the time.  But every so often, I go on a sugar rager to end all ragers. I mean, if I want sugar, and a product in my kitchen has sugar in it, I will eat it, even if that means I’m just eating spoonfuls of jam or maple syrup.  It doesn’t matter if I’m hungry or not; once I start this sugar sucking, I can’t stop.  Because of these periodic pig-outs, I almost never have any goodies at my place. I can’t have a box of cookies around without eating half the box at once.
 

Lots of things can trigger my sugar frenzies. Depression, lack of willpower, not eating enough protein, not eating enough in general, eating the wrong kind of carbohydrates, consuming too much salt, not sleeping enough, ADHD, and so on.  And the holidays are always good for a few fantastic sugar binges. 

Thus it comes as no surprise that last week I went hog-wild on Christmas cookies, chocolates, candies, and ice cream for five or six straight days.  Sugar! Consequently, when I came down from that extended sugar high, I felt heavy and slow and strung out and all together not so good. And grumpy too.  Growl.

Oh, Sugar Mountains Majesty...

Since my system clearly could use a good cleanse from the sugar bug, I’ve decided to begin Operation Consumption Liberation with the challenge of abstaining from sugar.  Here are my rules and stipulations for the month of January:

1. I will abstain from eating straight spoonfuls of sugar, syrup, honey, etc. Duh.
2. I will abstain from consuming prepared foods and drinks with added sugar, and adding it to home cooking.
3. Added sugar includes refined sugar in all its forms. (glucose, xylitol, HFCS, beet sugar, and so on…)
4. Added sugar also includes unrefined, raw sweeteners (honey, maple syrup, molasses, agave, etc.) Yes, these ARE healthier, but my yen for sweetness does not discriminate bad sugars from better sugars—once I indulge one, the other will follow.  Along the same lines…
5. I will abstain from artificial sweeteners. (Aspartame & saccharine, I mean you.) However...
6. I will NOT abstain from eating fruit.
7. I will NOT abstain from dairy products, though it has naturally occurring lactose.
8. I will NOT abstain from eating starchy sweet potatoes, beets, bread, pasta, but I will make an effort to eat mostly complex carbohydrates and whole foods.
9. If I go out to eat, I won't order dessert and I’ll do my best to avoid hidden sugars. That said, I’m not going to give the chef the third degree about a dish's ingredients. Likewise…
10. I will make my choice to avoid sugar my responsibility only, and not the burden of friends and family if they want to have me over or go out to eat. 

This 23-by-29-inch "Sugar High" print can be yours for $25.65

There are two more things that I want to address for this challenge.

FIRST, I am not abstaining from sugar to lose weight. I am content with my weight as it is.  However, one of the many reasons I’m abstaining from sugar is to avoid gaining weight.  I don’t want to be skinner, but also I certainly don’t desire to be larger.  If I keep eating sugar the way I’ve been eating sugar, I will quickly go up two dress sizes. 

SECOND, if I’m going to take something that I enjoy (albeit to the point of excess) away from my life every month, I want to add something to fill that space, so that I feel less like abstaining equals punishment.  Something that is good for me. Something that is not overly tasking, but is reasonably enjoyable.  This month, I am adding more sleep to my days.

Oh, sugar, sweet white death, I’ll miss you, but my teeth and my immune system and my butt will not.  Here’s hoping that come February, I can use you with more discretion.

P.S. Thanks to Erika for my hot chocolate loving photo!