Innholdsfortegnelse for You Low Sugar i You: Low Sugar

EVERY day, as soon as we’re done with supper, my youngest wants to know “What’s for afters?” That’s the seduction of sugar right there. It becomes habitual so quickly, partly because it tastes so good and sends feel-good hormones rushing through our bodies. And partly because it’s so entwined with the idea of love. How often have you bought chocolates for someone as a way to say thank you, I love you or well done? It’s also a way to reward or treat ourselves. When I was a child, pudding was something you had after Sunday lunch. Very occasionally there’d be a treat during the week, but certainly not every day. My son’s question, which comes like clockwork daily, made me realise how easy it is to fall into a…

It’s a concentrate of glucose and fructose developed in the 1960s by the food industry. It’s made from corn and is commonly used to sweeten processed foods and soft drinks. There are different types of high-fructose corn syrup, some with a higher proportion of fructose to glucose. The most concentrated form – HFCS 90 – contains 90% fructose. The most commonly used type, HFCS 55, consists of 55% fructose and 42% glucose. Regular table sugar (also known as sucrose) is 50% fructose and 50% glucose, so it’s similar to HFCS 55. One of the main differences is that table sugar is dry and granulated, whereas highfructose corn syrup is liquid.…

TOO much sugar isn’t just a problem because it rots your teeth and makes you gain weight. The negative effects of consuming too much sugar are far more wide-ranging. Here’s what it does to your body. BRAIN Sugar lights up the brain’s reward centre with dopamine, with some studies branding it even more addictive than cocaine. Although the energy-demanding organ needs glucose to function, too much of it is bad for your body. Studies have linked the consumption of sugar to the ageing of cells as well as to memory and cognitive deficiencies. EYES High blood sugar can cause the lens of the eye to swell, temporarily causing blurred vision. Eye damage (retinopathy) is a major complication of diabetes. It happens when blood-sugar levels are high so frequently that the…

FOR years she couldn’t understand why she had to finish the whole bar of chocolate after the first nibble. She didn’t know why one bread roll wasn’t enough in a restaurant and why a slice of cake seemed the only thing that perked her up at the end of a difficult day. But one day she realised that her sugar addiction meant she had no control over her consumption of anything sweet. Karen Thomson (39), granddaughter of pioneering heart surgeon Dr Chris Barnard, says she’s been addicted to sugar for most of her life and staying away from it is still a daily battle. It isn’t the only addiction she’s struggled with. Twenty years ago she was in rehab for a cocaine habit and a drinking problem. With treatment she…

General strategies PACK ON THE PROTEIN “Having protein as part of every meal and snack helps to decrease cravings because protein keeps you fuller for longer,” Pretoria dietician Tanya Alberts says. “Make sure you have protein at breakfast in particular, as breakfast often sets the tone for the rest of the day’s food choices.” GET ENOUGH SLEEP “Not getting enough shuteye can cause cravings for high-energy foods,” Cape Town dietician Kirby Hendricks warns. “Aim for at least seven hours of sleep a night. Sleep helps to regulate our hunger hormones, so we tend to make better food choices after a good night’s sleep. If you can, try going to sleep and waking up at more or less the same time every day so your body gets into a routine.” STAY…

ONE of the biggest concerns when trying to cut down on sugar is finding a replacement that works well in baking. Freesweet solves this problem by providing a delicious alternative that can be used in a 1:1 ratio to replace sugar in recipes. That means you can easily make cakes, biscuits, puddings and other sweet treats without the extra kilojoules. The main ingredients are xylitol, erythritol and inulin, which are all naturally sourced and GMO-free. Freesweet is available in two flavours – original and vanilla – and comes in 500g pouches, 200g jars and 5g sachets. The benefits • No artificial ingredients• Delicious sweetness with no bitter aftertaste• Bakes and caramelises beautifully• Replaces sugar in a 1:1 ratio in any recipe• Diabetic-friendly (endorsed by Diabetes SA)• Low-glycaemic response – glycaemic…

HI, MY name’s Kim and I’m a sugar addict. I don’t say this easily. I eat sugar, plenty of it, on a daily basis. When I’m down, up, bored, occupied, alone or in company – any excuse to get my fix. For me, a meal isn’t complete without a sugary, creamy dessert and snacks aren’t satisfying unless they’re sickeningly sweet. One chocolate stopped being enough a few years ago and sugary binges became the new norm. I was always thinking about where the next sugary hit would come from and binges ended in bouts of self-loathing. Diets were always going to begin “next Monday” and this binge was always going to be my last. It’s clear as day – I’ve become dependent on sugar, a foodstuff that’s made headlines for…

DO YOU know how much sugar you’re taking in every day? Perhaps you think it can’t be that bad because your diet is fairly “average” and you don’t add sugar to your tea or coffee. But even if you’ve cut down on chocolates and other sweet treats to reduce your sugar intake – and that certainly deserves an A for effort – you might still be eating more sugar than you realise. This is because there’s hidden sugar in so many foods these days, says Kirby Hendricks, a dietician at Alex Royal Dietetics in Cape Town. We asked five people to keep a food diary for one day and then asked Hendricks to assess them and calculate how much sugar they consumed. ONE DAY’S MEALS, SNACKS & DRINKS LINDSAY DE…

IF YOU’RE determined to make healthy lifestyle changes, arming yourself with knowledge is one of the most important things you can do. There’s plenty of nutrition and health information out there, and if you’re looking for user-friendly, up-to-date advice you can get it from podcasts – and the good news is they’re free! Here’s a selection of some great health and nutrition podcasts available for streaming or to download on the Podcast Player app from the Google Play store and the Podcasts app from the Apple App Store. DISHING UP NUTRITION This podcast is about understanding the connection between what you eat and how you feel. A team of nutritionists and dieticians share their solutions for healthier living through food and also answer listener questions. Episodes are generally between 40 and…

It’s a challenge, Karen says, but they’ve managed to make the Thomson household a sugar-free zone. “When we go out the kids are allowed to eat sugar, but when we’re at home we eat food that comes from animals and plants,” she says. She teaches her boys about what’s healthy and what’s not, so “they know what kind of food is good for them”. “My youngest knows what sugar does to him. When we’re at a party he often doesn’t want sweets because he knows he won’t feel good afterwards. But his big brother is just as crazy about sweet stuff as I am.” It’s more challenging the older they get as she has less control over what they eat. All she can do is ensure what they eat at…

☐ Do you ever eat without realising you’re even doing it?☐ Do you often feel guilty or ashamed after eating?☐ Do you often eat alone or at odd locations, such as in your parked car outside your home?☐ After an unpleasant experience, such as an argument, do you eat even if you’re not hungry?☐ Do you crave specific foods when you’re upset, such as chocolate or ice cream?☐ Do you feel the urge to eat in response to outside cues such as seeing food advertisements on TV?☐ Do you eat because you feel there’s nothing else to do?☐ Does eating make you feel better when you’re down, or less focused on problems when you’re worried about something?…

PLANNING and preparation are key when it comes to putting an end to sugar cravings. “One of the reasons we reach for sweet foods and drinks when we’re hungry is that they’re quick fixes that give us an instant burst of energy,” Cape Town dietician Kirby Hendricks says. “This fix is short-lived though, so it’s best to avoid getting into situations where you’re likely to do that.” Even better would be to ensure you have nutritious snacks at hand. We asked dieticians Tanya Alberts, Kirby Hendricks and Jenny Meyer to suggest easy-to-prepare snacks that are low in sugar. EXTRA SOURCES: MEDICALNEWSTODAY.COM, 8FIT.COM, HEALTHLINE.COM…

PEANUT BUTTER BANANA LOAF We’ve used honey instead of sugar in this popular treat and added peanut butter for extra flavour. The recipe can be used for muffins too. MAKES 8 MINI LOAVES OR 12 MUFFINS Preparation 20 min Baking 20-25 min • 80ml (¹⁄3c) oil• 2 eggs•125ml (½c) honey (or sweetener)•60ml (¼c) plain yoghurt or buttermilk•5ml (1t) vanilla essence•2 large or 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed•60ml (¼c) desiccated coconut•325ml (1¹⁄3c) cake flour•2,5ml (½t) bicarbonate of soda•2,5ml (½t) salt•80ml (¹⁄3c) smooth peanut butter•100g peanuts (optional Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease eight mini loaf tins or 10-12 hollows of a muffin tin well with nonstick spray. 1 Beat the oil and eggs together in a bowl for 1 minute with an electric beater. 2 Add the honey or sweetener, yoghurt…

APPLE AND PEAR BRAN MUFFINS They’re fragrantly spicy – perfect for breakfast. MAKES 12-18 MUFFINS Preparation 20 min Baking 20 min •140g stoneground white bread flour3ml (generous ½t) baking powder3ml (generous ½t) bicarbonate of soda1,2ml (¼t) salt10ml (2t) ground cinnamon5ml (1t) ground mixed spice80g oats3 medium apples, cored and grated80g dried pears, chopped30ml (2T) each xylitol and brown sugar100g almond flakes2 eggs80ml (⅓c) oil80ml (⅓c) plain yoghurt TO FINISH •extra almond flakes,• cinnamon and brown sugar for sprinkling• baby apples (optional) TO SERVE •butter or cream cheese Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease the hollows of a large muffin tin with nonstick spray. 1 Mix the dry ingredients well. Add the apples, pears, xylitol, sugar and almond flakes and mix well. 2 In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, oil…

APPLE PIE WITH ALMONDS Hot-water pastry is much easier to make than puff pastry. It might not have the characteristic layers of puff pastry, but it’s equally rich and flaky. MAKES 2 FAIRLY SMALL PIES Preparation 20 min Standing 40 min in freezer or overnight in fridge (pastry) Baking 30-40 minute PASTRY •500ml (2c) cake flour•2ml (½t) salt•250g chilled butter•1 egg yolk•5ml (1t) iced water•5ml (1t) lemon juice•125ml (½c) boiling water FILLING •6-8 apples, thinly sliced•5ml (1t) ground cinnamon•5ml (1t) mixed spice•80g sweetener•grated zest and juice of 1 lemon•250ml (1c) almond splinters, toasted•250ml (1c) ground almonds•125ml (½c) sultanas•1 egg yolk, whisked with a little milk (for brushing on top)•cream, to serve Preheat the oven to 200°C. 1 Pastry Mix the flour and salt. Sift a little of the flour mixture…

ICE CREAM PAVLOVA CAKE At last – pavlova without sugar! MAKES 1 CAKE Preparation 20-30 min Baking 1½ hours Freezing about 2 hours ICE CREAM •250ml (1c) plain full-cream yoghurt•1 tub (230g) cream cheese•125ml (½c) cream, whisked until stiff•30ml (2T) coffee granules, dissolved in 15ml (1T) boiling water•125ml (½c) sweetener such as xylitol MERINGUE •5 egg whites at room temperature•180-250ml (¾-1c) sweetener such as xylitol•pinch of cream of tartar•30ml (2T) cornflour•5ml (1t) vanilla essence•50g almond flakes TO FINISH •100g dark chocolate, melted (with sweetener, if you like)•dark chocolate shavings•salt flakes•rose petals (optional) Preheat the oven to 120°C. Grease two baking sheets with nonstick spray, line with baking paper, spray again and dust with cornflour. 1 Ice cream Mix the ingredients well and freeze until firm but not hard, stirring occasionally…

SOME things just need a bit of sweetness, and there’s no need to give that up if you’re trying to cut down on sugar. Freesweet provides a way to cut out sugar completely while still enjoying that delicious sweet taste. It contains 67% fewer kilojoules than sugar and is low on the glycaemic index (it has a GI of 3, while sugar’s is 65), which means it doesn’t cause large spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels. The main ingredients in Freesweet are xylitol and erythritol, which are natural sweeteners, and inulin, which is a plant-based soluble fibre that’s also a prebiotic. MOJITO MAKES 2 DRINKS Preparation 10 min •1 lime, sliced•8 mint leaves•10ml (2t) Freesweet sweetener•ice•2 tots rum•2 cans (200ml each) soda water TO FINISH •lime slices and mint…

On average, South Africans consume between 12 and 24 teaspoons of sugar a day, according to a 2016 study by Wits University. About a third of this comes from sugar-sweetened beverages DID YOU KNOW? South African kids consume between 40 & 60g of sugar a day OBESITY IN SOUTH AFRICA Drinking just one sugar-sweetened beverage a day increases an adult’s likelihood of being overweight by 27% That’s how much your risk of type 2 diabetes increases if you drink one sugar-sweetened beverage daily 7% of South African adults aged 21-79 (about 3,85 million people) have diabetes, according to the International Diabetes Federation. 5% That’s how much sales of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) dropped in SA between 2017 and 2018 – it’s believed to be thanks to the sugar tax, a levy…

WEEK 1 My first step was to get rid of all things sugary. It amounted to two large plastic bags and included not only biscuits and chips but condiments, cereals, jams, peanut butter, juice, baking ingredients and some canned goods. In its place I stocked up on sugar-free peanut butter which replaced my much-loved regular one, spices instead of sauces, rooibos tea to replace juice, and fresh fruits and vegetables. I decided to cut out all items with added sugar but to still eat things in which sugar occurs naturally if they were beneficial to my health, such as milk. I consumed these in moderation. I realised how much sugar we consume without knowing it (it’s in things such as pasta sauces, cereal bars, salad dressing, low-fat yoghurt, dried fruit,…

MORE than 20kg a year – that’s how much sugar the average four- to eight-year-old eats in a year. If 20kg seems like a lot, consider this: it’s based on an intake of 60g a day, which is 12 teaspoons of sugar. Your child can take in 60g a day just by having sweetened cereal and a glass of juice at breakfast, a peanut butter and jam sandwich at lunch and a brownie after supper. That’s before even counting snacks or sweetened fizzy drinks. If your kid is consuming 60g of sugar a day, that’s 1,8kg a month – and more than 20kg a year. It’s shocking statistics such as these that prompted Freesweet founder Deborah Good to find another way to allow her kids to have sweet treats –…

EASY HEALTH RUSKS MAKES 36-40 RUSKS Preparation 15 min Cooking 30-35 min Drying 3-4 hours or overnight •800ml (3¼c) self-raising flour•5ml (1t) baking powder•125ml (½c) brown sugar•500ml (2c) bran•125ml (½c) oats•125ml (½c) desiccated coconut•125ml (½c) sunflower seeds•180ml (¾c) raisins•250ml (1c) plain yoghurt•1 egg•250g butter, melted Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease a 29 x 20cm baking tin with nonstick spray. 1 Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. 2 Add the sugar, remaining dry ingredients and raisins and mix lightly. 3 In a separate bowl, whisk the yoghurt and egg together and pour into the melted butter while whisking. 4 Pour the yoghurt mixture into the dry ingredients and mix well until a sticky dough forms. 5 Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for…