8 Amazing Benefits Of Cutting Back On Sugar For A Month- Health Benefits Explored

Find out ‘8 Amazing Benefits Of Cutting Back On Sugar For A Month’ You are not alone if you have a sweet taste and can never get enough cakes, cookies, and other treats. The American Heart Association estimates that Americans consume 77 grams of added sugar on average per day, which is quadruple the amount that is advised for women.

Four grams of sugar equals one teaspoon, therefore 77 grams is just under half a cup of sugar, to give you an idea. The AHA also discovered that beverages—soda, in particular—are the main source of added sugar, followed by snacks and desserts. Because so many of us consume more sugar than is healthy, we may start to wonder what influence this will have on our health and what the consequences of cutting back might be.

Let’s first examine more closely what consuming too much added sugar might do to our bodies. This type of sweetener, in contrast to natural sugar, consists of sugars or syrups that are added during the preparation or processing of food. While it may enhance the flavor of food, consuming too much of it can seriously harm our general health. For instance, Harvard Health Publishing revealed that increased added sugar consumption is linked to everything from fatty liver disease to diabetes and weight gain. In addition, the Mayo Clinic cautions that consuming too much added sugar may increase your triglyceride levels, which are associated with an increased risk of heart disease. Even some malignancies and cognitive degeneration have been linked to it, according to several studies.

You might feel compelled to cut back on your intake after knowing about some of these potential negative effects of excessive sugar consumption. In fact, some might even make an effort to stop using it entirely, or at least for a while. At first, giving up added sugars—even for a month—might seem challenging, but the advantages it can provide are well worth the effort. Read on to learn the amazing results of cutting down sugar for 30 days, including a decreased risk of developing diabetes, improved gut health, and less anxiety.

 

Nearly 125 million Americans suffer from chronic inflammation, which has been related to a variety of diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer’s, and arthritis. Three out of five individuals worldwide pass away from these inflammatory disorders. One research study from 2006 reveals that sugar may also be directly related to inflammation, along with other common lifestyle variables including heavy drinking, smoking, obesity, and chronic stress that may raise your odds of inflammation. Therefore, avoiding additional sugar may help you lower your chance of developing certain of these inflammatory diseases.

 

According to a report from 2020 that was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, sugar consumption may be a risk factor for the occurrence of several malignancies, with a focus on breast cancer. The registered dietitian at Sporting Smiles, Allison Tallman, MS, RDN, CNSC, adds that cutting down sugar may also lower your risk of developing specific malignancies.

Even for people who already have cancer, eating sugar “feeds” malignant cells, claims Tallman.

 

Although sugar is an energy source, Tallman asserts that the most crucial factor is the source’s nature (or quality).

She makes the point that processed meals, cookies, chips, and cake, which often include refined sugar, might make you feel drowsy and lethargic.

She continues, “By avoiding these meals and sugar as a result, we’re likely to have more energy and feel better than ever.

As a result, if you tried a sugar cleanse for a whole month, you might naturally experience an increase in energy.

 

You might wish to give up sweets for a while if you frequently have bloating and inconsistent digestion. It turns out that removing sugar from your diet for a month may be good for your digestive health. It can help you develop a better balance of “good” gut flora as one approach to accomplish this.

According to integrative and functional dietitian Jenny Askew, MS, RD, LD, ACSM-EP, and CEO of The Nutrition Clinic for Digestive Health, “Sugar and refined carbs nourish harmful bacteria in the gut, which can cause digestive difficulties.” This may result in an excess of harmful bacteria and a deficiency of beneficial bacteria, which may eventually result in digestive problems including gas, bloating, diarrhea, or even constipation.

Askew continues, “This can also lead to inflammatory diseases, like acne, headaches, and rashes.

 

Sugar has been associated with cavities since we were young, and for good reason. Adults who consistently eat one to two sugary drinks per day had 30% higher dental problems than adults who don’t drink any sugary beverages, according to Healthy Food America. Furthermore, according to HFA, children who regularly consume sugar-sweetened beverages have a nearly two-fold increased risk of developing tooth decay compared to kids who do not. Replace sugar-filled beverages with healthy ones during your sugar-free month, such as flavored seltzer water or sugar-free tea with lemon.

 

For one month, cutting out added sugar provides health benefits for both our bodies and minds. For instance, a study found a link between increased diet sugar intake and a higher risk of depression. A high-sugar diet has been linked to changed emotional states, anxiety, and neurobiological abnormalities in brain function, according to a different 2019 study.

 

Increased sugar consumption in a population was connected to higher type 2 diabetes rates, independent of obesity rates, according to a recent study published in PLOS ONE. Another study, also published in the British Medical Journal, discovered that even one daily sugar-sweetened beverage consumption was linked to a higher risk of developing diabetes, regardless of a person’s weight or visceral fat levels. Therefore, if you can eliminate or drastically reduce your intake of added sugar, your risk of acquiring type 2 diabetes, which is the most common kind of diabetes, may be reduced.

 

Over 24,000 adults were included in a recent study in France to see whether nutrition had any bearing on whether or not someone acquired acne. Researchers discovered that a rise in adult acne was really associated with a diet high in sugar, fat, and animal products. Therefore, giving up sugar for a month can help your skin clear up.