SUGAR Blues. (aka SAD)

Eating out for events with family, friends, and co-workers is the HARDEST time to stay true to a new health regime, even if you are eating gluten-free and sugar-free....the bottom line is, there is NEVER a good time to start any diet.  It's boring.  It's not fun.  It got me thinking, why do we enjoy things that are bad for us? It's the age-old question, the reason why the bad boy gets the chicks....why sneaking out late gives you a rush of adrenaline...but with food, food can be down right addicting, comforting, euphoric, and let's be real, chocolate does make you happy...why do you think aphrodisiac inducing cocoa confections earned cliche titles like "Better than Sex Chocolate Cake?" & "Death by Chocolate?"  The latter cliche concerns me, because of the not so subtle truth behind it.   

Check out these fun facts from Nutrition Diva while I attempt to convince myself sugar is the devil:

• Sugar suppresses the immune system. When you eat a big dose of sugar, like a bottle of Coke or a candy bar, you temporarily tamp down your immune system’s ability to respond to challenges. The effect lasts for several hours, so if you eat sweets several times a day, your immune system may be perpetually operating at a distinct disadvantage. 
• Sugar promotes inflammation. Inflammation, which is part of the immune response, is not always a bad thing. But eating sugar foods can fuel excessive, inappropriate inflammation that serves no useful purpose and actually promotes aging and disease. In my show on foods that fight inflammation, I pointed out that cutting back on sugary foods will help you avoid excess inflammation.

If you want to slow down the aging process, do what you can to naturallyenhance your body’s production of human growth hormone. Avoiding foods that are high in sugar is a good way to do that.

• Sugar suppresses the release of human growth hormone.  You know those ads in in-flight magazines that show a super-buff guy, who, thanks to a radical anti-aging program, looks about 50 even though he’s approaching 70? He’s most likely injecting himself with human growth hormone. Of course, he’s alsowatching his diet, spending a couple of hours a day in the gym, and using lots of self-tanner, but there’s no doubt that the hormone shots have a lot to do with his physique. Although the effects can be dramatic, hormone treatments are expensive and risky, so I don’t personally recommend this course of action. But if you want to slow down the aging process, you definitely want to do what you can to naturally enhance your body’s production of human growth hormone. Avoiding foods that are high in sugar is a good way to do that. Exercising, going longer between meals, and avoiding undue stress also help.
• Sugar promotes glycation.   Sugar molecules treat your body like a singles bar. Once they get into your bloodstream, they start looking around for things to hook up with, like attractive protein and fat molecules. The hook-up is known as “glycation” and like most hook-ups, the results aren’t pretty. These glycated molecules act like drunken sailors, careening around your body, breaking things and peeing where they shouldn’t. They produce toxic compounds called advanced glycation end products, or, AGEs. That is perhaps the most poetically-just acronym in biology, because AGEs essentially throw the aging process into fast-forward. And much of the damage done by AGEs is irreversible. If that doesn’t motivate you to walk away from the M&Ms, I don’t know what would.
• Sugar raises insulin levels. An influx of sugar into your body will have a fairly predictable result: Your blood sugar levels will zoom up.  Shortly after, your pancreas will release a bunch of insulin to help clear sugar from your blood into your cells. As blood sugar levels go down, insulin levels return to normal. But when you eat a lot of sugar, you’re constantly calling for insulin, and that can backfire in a couple of ways. Over time, it takes more and more insulin to get the job done. Eventually, your pancreas may just stop responding to the call. Congratulations, you’re now an insulin-dependent diabetic. And along the way, exposing your cells and organs to chronically high insulin levels accelerates the aging process.

The main concern for me is the inflammation, while 99% of Americans, both adults and kids, struggle with other nasty effects of the crack-like drug.

Anyways, we went out to lunch at this lovely Italian Bistro in Claremont over the weekend, and check out what my hubby ate vs. what the "Pile High Stack of Arugula" I selected from the eating for Rabbit-Friendly Menu. The funny thing is, while I was salivating over the delicious bread, inhaling the warm savory pasta aromas floating through my nostrils from the plates on either side of me, I attempted to focus my attention on conversation and the great company; somehow I managed to chow my way through the mountainous leafy mound fairly decently, and actually became quite full.  An appetizer of caprese didn't hurt either.  The salad was arugala, extra virgin olive oil and balsamic dressing, Romano cheese, walnuts, cherry tomatoes and dried bing cherries.  I stayed away from the cherry tomatoes only because I had already eaten quite a few in the caprese salad appetizer and was kind of seeded out.

 

And the desserts....this is where I really start to shake.  As if the decadent dessert tray that was rolled past us the night before at the Angels game wasn't torturous enough....we all passed, after a birthday sunday surprise...and went to the In-laws house for dessert. 

This was an amazing pistachio ice cream cake on saltine crust - sweet with a little salty, A-M-A-Z-I-N-G - but not gluten free.  I gave in though, because I have never experience this green delight! Of course, my mother-in-law the angel that she is, thought of myself and my brother-in-laws girlfriend who is a Celiac, and provided us with Yummy Soy Chocolate Cherry ice-cream, of which I had TWO small bowls.  Ya, I know, I'm a work in progress...It's HARD to say NO! Even when it is for a good cause.....like your health! 

And of course delicious fruit tarts - I am not trying to tempt fellow GFree followers, but COME ON! This is the temptation we all face daily, I think it gets easier, but putting me in front of sweet treats is akin to puttin' an alcoholic in a BAR!