Book Club And The End Of Sugar (For Now)
Over the past five days I have been suffering from the consequences of letting my social (and general commitments) calendar explode to the detriment of my sleep. The aftermath has taken the form of a throat infection that has now morphed into a persistent flu (the joy.)Â My recovery has consisted of a much-needed trip to the tofu store, library books and more vegetables than you can shake a stick at.
The first book I read was "Accidentally Overweight" by Dr. Libby Weaver. I listened to her speak at the Wanderlust festival two weekends ago and, with piqued interest, requested all of her books from the library. Apparently everyone else had the same idea - I am 404th in line for her one about skin...
Weaver states that where most people believe we must lose weight to get healthy, she lives by the idea that actually, we must get healthy to lose weight. Her book references the science of how our bodies function to debunk the idea that weight loss or gain is only about energy in v energy out.
My second book was "I Quit Sugar" by Sarah Wilson (yes, I really love reading about health). I first heard about this book through a friend that I met on exchange in New Caledonia and naturally, as my father is a dentist, I was intrigued.
My brother and I were taught that refined sugar will absolutely annihilate our smiles but that fruit was fine. Consequently I was fed bowls of fruit salad three times larger than my head practically from birth. However, since starting my nutrition degree I have begun to find the 'but-it's-natural-sugar' argument to be a bit off. Wilson's book confirms my doubt offering that sugar is sugar no matter what form.
She elaborates that our bodies are not built to consume the amount of sugar that is available to us on a daily basis in whatever form. Weaver touches on this too. And it makes sense - the world is evolving at an enormous pace, one that our bodies cannot mirror.
So I have decided to try this quitting sugar thing. All theories aside I am definitely guilty of hiding behind the natural sugar excuse. And considering 2 seconds after looking at a white chocolate cake pin, I inhaled a Whittaker's white chocolate stick, I am clearly just as addicted as everyone else. The next 2 months are going to be interesting, particularly since Easter is smack bang in the middle of them. Will keep you updated.
