I have a family history of heart disease so a healthy lifestyle has been a high priority for me. When I retired I considered myself healthy, not overweight and doing enough exercise. Then I worked out my BMI (Body Mass Index) was 26 which is actually overweight.
I soon began to make some changes. Sugar was the first thing to go. I learned there are two sugars available to us being ‘added sugar’ – generally processed sugar that we or others add to our food and ‘natural sugar’ that we find in fruit and vegetables. I simply cut out all ‘added sugars’ in my diet. At the same time I significantly reduced processed foods.
These days my BMI is 21 (Healthy) and I lost 14kg easily. I have never felt better and my body seems to be managing my food much better. I wish I had realised how much sugar I was eating and the impact of it decades ago!
My doctor is amazed at my results and blood tests - I now have very low triglycerides and I have come off statins which has made me very pleased because I was not a fan of the side effects.
Today I mainly shop in the ‘Fruit & Vegetables’, ‘Meats’ and ‘Dairy’ aisles of supermarkets. Anything from other aisles in the supermarket, I think about it, read the labels carefully and reject all processed foods high in sugar and carbohydrates. I still eat the occasional quality chocolate, pasta or burger but nothing like the volumes of the past.
- Brian, South Australia
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How does sugar compare to tobacco? A teaspoon of sugar or one cigarette will not harm you. But over time, the habit can be fatal. Unlike Big Tobacco, Big Sugar deliberately targets children. And added sugar has become so pervasive within the food environment that we can't avoid it even if we wanted to.
