The Everything Naturally Sugar-Free Cookbook: Includes Apple Cinnamon Waffles, Chicken Lettuce Wraps, Tomato and Goat Cheese Pastries, Peanut Butter Truffles, ... Eclairs...and Hundreds More! (Everything®) (2 page)

The secret is out; sugar is everywhere! And it’s not the benign substance many manufacturers would have you believe. What was quite harmless a few hundred years ago has become, through the modern refining process, an unnatural substance that causes negative effects on the body. As the sugar cane plant makes its way through the refining process to become the white granules known as sugar, it becomes void of any nutrition and wreaks havoc on all systems of the body.

The process of manufacturing sugar involves a series of chemical-laden steps. Sugar cane plants are often grown with the help of heavy fertilizers. Once the plant is harvested, it is crushed to release the juice and juice is then evaporated, boiled, and stored. While in storage it can become contaminated and take on an unpleasant taste. The refining process takes care of this by killing off any bacteria present and making the granulated sugar sweet and sparkling white. Any nutrients left from the original plant are killed during processing and the resulting product becomes lifeless.

Why is lifeless food harmful to the body? In addition to the heavy chemicals sugar is exposed to during the refining process, consumption of unnatural food by living bodies causes serious problems. Sugar and other lifeless foods strip the body of vital nutrients, such as B vitamins, without giving the body anything back. Why are B vitamins so critical to humans? B vitamins are important for the absorption of calcium and allow the nervous system to function properly. B vitamin deficiencies affect mood and energy levels. Naturally sweet foods, such as fruits and whole grains, are inherently rich in B vitamins that help to metabolize the sugars that naturally occur within them. On the other hand, lifeless food such as refined sugar takes from the body and gives nothing in return.

Besides being a lifeless food, sugar lowers the power of the immune system by slowing down the bacteria-fighting cells in the body. This suppression of the immune system happens for several hours after sugar is consumed. And typically, by the time the immune system has had a chance to recover, it is already being bombarded with more sugar.

The human body is not equipped to quickly metabolize processed sugar. The liver attempts to manage the consumed sugar by depositing some of the glucose from the sugar into the bloodstream, or stores it for later use. If the liver is already completely full of glucose it stores the extra as triglycerides, or fat. Fructose, another component of sugar, also has to be managed by the liver and is stored as glycogen. The liver can only hold about 100 grams of glycogen before it has to convert the rest to fat. Once the liver is filled with glucose and glycogen it becomes overtaxed and a whole host of problems can surface. When the liver is constantly overloaded with sugar, it becomes susceptible to liver disease. Also common for people with diets high in sugar, is insulin resistance, which can cause diabetes. Insulin resistance creates a highly toxic atmosphere throughout the entire body, allowing cancer cells to flourish.

To make matters even worse, sugar is addictive. It causes physical reactions in the brain that result in manufactured feelings of happiness or relaxation. Dopamine receptors are located all over the brain and release feelings of pleasure whenever sugar is eaten, similar to the effect of heroin or cocaine, although on a smaller scale. This is where the term “sugar high” comes from. The mind and body begin to crave the dopamine high created by the sugar and the brain sends out powerful messages to the body reminding it to continuously feed this addiction.

Eric Stice, a neuroscientist at the Oregon Research Institute (
www.ori.org
), conducted MRI scans to illustrate what happens in the brains of overweight people when they consume soda, ice cream, and other sugary foods. He found that the brain actually builds up a resistance to the dopamine effect. In other words the more sugar they consumed, the more they needed to create the same level of pleasure. The body becomes addicted and desensitized at the same time. It craves more but is never satisfied. This overconsumption of sugar leads to the overconsumption of all foods and promotes habits perfect for obesity.

On average, Americans consume approximately 130 pounds of sugar per person per year, or roughly 3 pounds per week. Children and teenagers on average consume even more, about 1 cup of sugar per day. Soda and other sweetened drinks are possibly the worst culprits because people become addicted to the high amount of sugar as well as to the caffeine that some drinks contain. A 12-ounce soda contains 10 teaspoons of sugar, and an average American drinks 53 gallons of soda per year. These high rates of sugar consumption are up 45 percent from sugar consumption thirty years ago.

Societal trends also perpetuate the overconsumption of sugar. Sugar is often treated as a reward. Children are praised with candy and adults are treated with gourmet cupcakes at the office. If you’re having dinner at a restaurant, you might drink soda, lemonade, or sugar-laden cocktails, and have dessert as well. You could easily consume more sugar in one evening than you should have in an entire month! A traditional child’s birthday party is loaded with sugar. It seems that a party isn’t complete without a cake served with ice cream, a piñata stuffed to capacity with candy, and the ubiquitous favor bags with more candy and sweet treats.

It’s a sugar-obsessed world, and it’s fun to indulge. Not only is sugar physically addicting, but sugary treats are associated with celebrations and holidays. Candy, cookies, and cake are used to say “Good job,” “I love you,” “Happy anniversary,” and “Thank you.” While there is nothing wrong with this on a small scale, it’s important to be aware of how, in excess, these rewards and celebrations perpetuate the sugar-craze.

In 2013 Credit Suisse’s Research Institute reported that as a nation the United States spends $1 trillion annually on health-care issues directly related to the consumption of excess sugar. This figure represents 30–40 percent of the total health-care costs in the United States. Robert Lustig, a pediatric endocrinologist from University of California–San Francisco, published articles stating that sugar is a big player in the current decline of health in America and that 75 percent of disease is brought on by a person’s lifestyle. Lustig believes that because of this health decline, today’s generation of American children could end up being the first to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. This is the sad outcome of our overconsumption of sugar; it’s literally killing us.

The term “sugar-free” is often used to describe foods, such as cookies, gum, and drinks, that have chemical and artificial sweeteners in place of sugar. Artificial sweeteners approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration include saccharin, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, neotame, and sucralose. These artificial sweeteners are found in products like Sweet’N Low, Equal, and Splenda. These products are indeed free of refined white sugar and are often calorie-free, but simply being “sugar-free” does not mean they are healthy. Diets heavy in foods with artificial sweeteners are as unhealthy as diets high in refined white sugar.

Research shows that similarly to sugar, artificial sweeteners desensitize the body’s reaction to sweet food, leaving the body unsatisfied. This results in consuming food in excess to satisfy hunger. Artificial sweeteners are much sweeter than regular sugar, causing a person’s proverbial “sweet tooth” to be continuously overstimulated. Over time, that overstimulation changes tastes and preferences. Naturally sweet foods such as fruit don’t taste as good as they once did, and non-sweet, simple foods such as vegetables can become truly unappetizing.

Studies also show that artificial sweeteners are just as addictive as white sugar. A 2007 study at University of Bordeaux in France found that rats overwhelmingly preferred saccharine to cocaine, suggesting the addictive quality of the substance. Researchers provided rats with a choice of saccharin-sweetened water and intravenous cocaine. The rats could press a lever and receive either a shot of cocaine or a sip of saccharin-sweetened water as often as they wanted. The animals chose the high from artificial sugar water 94 percent of the time. Researchers in the study believe their findings reveal that the concentrated sweetness of artificial sugars creates a more intense pleasurable sensation and addiction than cocaine does.

The results of eliminating sugar and artificial sweeteners can be astonishing, and the long- and short-term benefits can be wide-ranging. Physical benefits go beyond just weight loss. By allowing more room in the diet for healthy foods, vital nutrients can promote increased energy, a stronger immune system, improved complexion, better digestion, steadier blood sugar levels, and improved sleep. In addition, long-term health risks of developing heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and diseases associated with these conditions can be reduced, if not eliminated.

Eliminating or even reducing processed sugar and artificial sweeteners from your diet has the added benefit of promoting improved mental health. You may experience clearer thinking, decreased irritability, fewer mood swings, and an increase in self-control. Less mental energy directed toward fighting cravings or addictions promotes better overall health.

Naturally sweetened recipes such as those found in this book are free of refined white sugar
and
artificial sweeteners. Natural, whole-food sweeteners including honey, coconut sugar, pure maple syrup, and molasses are used instead.

Following is an overview of the natural sweeteners used in this book.

Coconut sugar, often called coconut palm sugar, is made from the flowers of the coconut tree. Coconut sugar does not have the same tropical flavor usually associated with coconuts. Coconut sugar closely resembles brown sugar in appearance and has a distinctly sweet scent. It caramelizes like sugar, so it works particularly well in baking. Coconut sugar replaces sugar cup-for-cup in recipes and mimics the taste and appearance of brown sugar. It’s naturally full of vitamins and minerals like amino acids, potassium, magnesium, iron, and zinc. Coconut sugar is a whole food and does not drastically impact blood sugar levels. It’s a safe diabetic sugar substitute, with a low glycemic index of 35.

Date sugar is dehydrated, ground-up dates. Dates are a healthy fruit, high in vitamins, fiber, and minerals, and they provide delicious natural sweetness to a recipe. Dehydrating and grinding the dates to sugar does not compromise the health benefits of whole dates and the dry product is a convenient natural sweetener. Because date sugar is dehydrated, it can drain baked goods of moisture, so most recipes with date sugar need a lot of liquid. Date sugar is a pure fruit, so it has a relatively high glycemic index and is not a good choice for diabetics.

Raw honey is unfiltered, unprocessed, and straight from the beehive. It’s an alkaline food and contains the vitamins, enzymes, minerals, and water needed to sustain life. Raw honey contains B vitamins, vitamin C, amino acids, and minerals such as magnesium, calcium, zinc, potassium, and phosphate.

When a recipe calls for honey, any kind of honey will do. However, to get all of the antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antiallergic health benefits, raw honey is recommended.

Raw honey can aid in neutralizing toxins in the body, has cancer-fighting properties, can soothe coughs and sore throats, and can help reduce fevers. It is often used topically to help heal skin rashes, acne, or eczema. When raw honey is mixed with ginger or cinnamon it can help calm upset stomachs, constipation, and nausea.