Sugar Addicts’ Diet. Nicki Waterman

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СКАЧАТЬ Carbohydrates

      These are generally longer units – in fact, they are simple sugars strung together. Before they can be used by the body, they have to be broken down into smaller, simple units – a process that takes both time and energy.

      In order to be used by the body, all carbohydrates are eventually broken down into glucose. We can see from this that glucose (a sugar) isn’t bad – in fact, it’s essential for life. The brain and nervous system need glucose to function. But we get the glucose we need from the breakdown of vegetables, fruits and grains without adding any extra. Also, if the production of glucose from the food is slow because the body has to break it down – as it does with ‘brown’, complex carbohydrates – this helps to regulate the amount of glucose in the blood. If, on the other hand, the breakdown is quick, this can lead to high amounts of glucose in the blood followed by a corresponding dip – poor blood-sugar control. And some carbohydrates cause this to happen more quickly than others. Simple carbohydrates get converted to glucose very quickly (if they aren’t already glucose itself) while complex carbohydrates are absorbed into the bloodstream slowly, helping to avoid these blood-sugar imbalances. For further information about blood-sugar, see ‘The Sugar Roller Coaster’.

      Stop! You’re probably thinking that all complex carbohydrates must be good for you because your body has to work to break them down. That’s not the case – some are far better than others. Complex carbohydrates come in two varieties – unrefined and refined.

       UNREFINED CARBOHYDRATES

      These are eaten pretty much as nature made them. Examples of unrefined complex carbohydrates are whole grains used in whole-grain bread, or brown rice complete with its husks. These release energy slowly in the body. With unrefined complex carbohydrates, the fibre – made up of glucose molecules strung together – cannot be broken down or digested, and as a result helps to slow down the speed at which the rest of the carbohydrate breaks down in the body.

      REFINED CARBOHYDRATES

      These are essentially ‘sneaky’ sugars that have been processed to extend their shelf-life and make them desirable to us shoppers. But in the process they’ve lost many of the nutrients that made them beneficial in the first place. These refined carbs are often lacking in essential minerals and vitamins. Importantly, they have also had their fibre – such as cellulose or pectin – taken away. It’s this fibre that can help to slow down a carbohydrate’s breakdown into glucose, which in turn helps to regulate blood-sugar levels. The fact that they can be broken down so quickly after being eaten means these refined carbs are essentially just like simple sugars. But because so many of us don’t know the effect they have on the body, they are hidden or ‘sneaky’ sugars.

      As you’ll see in Chapter 8, we’ll be telling you about which foods you should eat to help stabilize blood sugar and minimize your sweet cravings. The carbohydrates we recommend are unrefined – refined carbs are a definite no-no.

THE SUGAR ‘ROLLER COASTER’

      When we eat simple or ‘sneaky’ sugars, they go straight into the blood. This huge ‘hit’ of sugar causes the body to flood the bloodstream with the sugar-control hormone, insulin, to try and regulate sugar levels. The trouble is that the body isn’t designed for such high sugar levels – the most sugar our caveman ancestors would have got was from berries picked off bushes, not chocolate bars or jelly babies! Excessive amounts of insulin end up being released to deal with the sugar, either by removing it from the blood or taking it to the muscles.

      Imagine a roller coaster which starts off at a low level, climbing to a high peak before dropping down into a dip. It’s the same principle when you eat sugar. You start off with low amounts of sugar in the blood (the roller coaster dips), eat lots of sugar (the roller coaster rises), then insulin is produced to flush the excess sugar out, dropping sugar levels back down (the roller coaster dips again).

      ‘So what?’ you might think. Well, eating sugar – where the roller coaster peaks – and the rise in blood-sugar levels may make you feel high, happy and even euphoric. After all, that’s one of the reasons sugar is so attractive. But the point at which the roller coaster falls – the ‘sugar dip’ – can leave you feeling tired, ratty and even depressed. As well as increasing your risk of certain illnesses (see Chapter 4) and putting on weight, it’s this dip that can make you want to eat more sugar to get that roller coaster back on a high again. If you don’t break your sugar-eating habits, you’re essentially destined for life on a sugar roller coaster that you’re not allowed to get off. Life on this roller coaster is a crucial part of sugar addiction.

      Which Foods Fuel the Roller Coaster?

      Simple sugars are perfect fuel for this blood-sugar roller coaster, as are the ‘sneaky’ sugars – the refined carbohydrates. The extent to which specific carbohydrates (including ‘good’ unrefined complex carbohydrates) make the roller coaster rise – and the speed at which they do so – depends on something called the Glycaemic Index (GI). The GI is a way of measuring the effects of food on blood-sugar levels. Foods range from high GI down to low GI.

      High GI foods break down quickly during digestion and raise blood-sugar levels rapidly and to high levels. Examples include white rice (not basmati) and white bread.

      Mid GI foods break down moderately slowly. Examples include pasta and raisins.

      Low GI foods break down slowly and release sugar gradually into the bloodstream for long-term energy. Examples include lentils, sweet potatoes, and fruits such as cherries and peaches.

      In simple terms, if you want to stop the roller coaster – or at least stop it rising and falling so sharply – you should be trying to eat low GI foods rather than high GI ones. But don’t start panicking and trying to work out what the GI rating of foods is. The Sugar Addicts’ Diet incorporates these principles for you so foods we suggest you eat will tend to be low or medium GI, and those we advise cutting down on or removing altogether will tend to be high GI. We’ll be providing you with lists of these foods later on, as well as a meal planner and recipes.

      Nicki’s Physical Addiction

      ‘When I had a bag of sweets in front of me, I’d have that physical “rush” you get when something really exciting is about to happen to you. And when I ate them, they never disappointed. I’d get an intense, overwhelming rush of energy, taking me to a real high. I’ve never taken drugs but I often wonder if it’s a similar feeling. The trouble was that I’d have to keep on eating the sweets to get that high feeling. In my world, there was no such thing as eating just one pink shrimp – I had to eat the lot. It was like being on a confectionery conveyor belt where the sweets kept coming and I kept eating. I never felt sick or reached “saturation point”, which really added to the problem. If I’d felt ill, I might have been inclined to stop! But of course I had to stop eventually, not because willpower kicked in but because the sweets ran out and there was nothing more to binge on. When I saw the bottom of the bag, I’d feel really sad and deflated. After my sugar “high” it was like payback time – I’d have low energy and would start feeling weary. Other people picked up on it, too. They’d say, “What’s the matter with you?”’

      THE СКАЧАТЬ