Sugar
Sugar causes energy ups and downs and can add to health and weight problems. Often people are not even aware of the amount of sugar they are eating.Large amounts of hidden sugar in food such as breads, canned soup and vegetables, pasta sauce, frozen dinners and ketchup.
The Key Tips are:
1)Avoid sugary drinks just one 12oz soda has about 10 Teaspoons of sugar in it! Yikes that’s more than the daily recommended limit! To replace soda try sparkling water with lemon, lime or a splash of juice in it.
2) Sweeten the food yourself – buy unsweetened foods such as ice tea or yogurt or unflavored oatmeal.
3) eat naturally sweet food_ Such as fruit, peppers or natural peanut butter to satisfy your sweet tooth. Keep these food on hand instead of candy,cookies and others sweets.
How Sugar Is Hidden On Our Food Labels
Check food labels carefully. Sugar is often labeled using other terms such as:
– Cane sugar or maple syrup
– Corn sweetener or corn syrup
– Honey or molasses
– Brown rice syrup
– crystallized or evaporated cane juice
– Fruit juice concentrates,such as apple or pear
– Maltodextrin (or dextrin) dextrose, fructose, glucose, maltose or sucrose.
Cutting down on sugar (or, imagine: cutting out sugar) can be a smart health choice, but it can also feel completely overwhelming. It’s no surprise why: That crap is everywhere.
To make things easier, here are eight simple, totally doable ways to rid added sugar from your diet. Pick one tip to start, and when you’ve mastered it, move on to the next. Before you know it, you’ll feel better than ever.
1. Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth (Really)
Depriving yourself is a recipe for disaster. Instead, try satiating your sugar cravings in a better-for-you way—like with these sweet and healthy snacks.
2. Make Your Own Dressing
Even if your salad dressing doesn’t taste sweet, it’s probably riddled with added sugar—it’s an all-too-common “flavor enhancer.” Avoided hidden sugar in your veggie bowl by mixing up one of these healthy DIY dressings.
3. Start Subbing
No idea what to use in place of sugar? Check out these 30 (count them, 30) smart sugar substitutes and when to use them.
4. Spot Imposters
Hitting up healthy food aisles and stores isn’t enough. Some seemingly nutritious grub has more sugar than a candy bar, so stay on high alert.
5. Get More Z’s
Skimping on sleep (show of hands, please?) is guaranteed to leave you feeling groggy and pining for a quick jolt of sugar. Stop cravings before they start with these easy tricks to sleep better tonight.
6. Decode Labels
Don’t know the difference between “unsweetened” and “no sugar added”? You need to. Here’s what the food labels really mean.
7. Play Soda Fountain
You don’t have to go cold turkey when it comes to soda—rather, whip up one of these way-less-sugary fizzy drinks.
8. Make Dessert
…One of these no-added-sugar desserts, that is. Your taste buds won’t even miss the white stuff.
SALT
Try to limit sodium intake to 1,500 to 2,000 Mg per day, this is equivalent of one teaspoon of salt. Eating too much salt can cause high blood pressure and water retention.
-Avoid processed or pre packaged foods. processed foods like canned soups or frozen dinners contain hidden sodium that quickly surpasses the daily recommendation of sodium.
-Be Very careful when eating out Most restaurants and fast food meals are loaded with sodium. Some offer lower-sodium choices or ask for meal to be served with no salt. Ask for gravy and sauces on the side as they are also loaded with sodium or better yet order the meal with no gravy or sauces.
– opt for fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned.
– cut back on salty snacks such as potato chips, nuts and pretzels.
– check labels and choose low salt or reduced sodium products
– slowly reduce the salt in your diet to give your taste buds the time needed to adjust.
Salt is tricky: Even if you never sprinkle your meals with table salt, it’s still easy to take in way too much sodium. And just because your food doesn’t taste salty doesn’t mean it’s not riddled with the health wrecker.
So to make shaking your salt habit a little more straightforward, we’ve rounded up seven simple ways to reduce your sodium intake. Try implementing one a day, and by this time next week, you’ll be taking in a lot less (not to mention be a whole lot less bloated)!
Get Spicy
Invest in a well-stocked spice rack. The flavors will be so bold that you won’t even consider adding salt. Don’t know where to start? Check out these yummy ways to add spices to your favorite foods.
Look for ‘Low,’ Not ‘Reduced’
Food packaging can say ‘reduced sodium’ if it has up to 75 percent of the sodium of the original version—so opt for ‘low sodium’ foods instead. They have no more than 140 milligrams per serving. And while you’re at it, check out these six food labels that don’t mean what you think they do.
Cook a Bit More
About 75 percent of the average American’s sodium intake comes from commercially prepared foods, according to the Harvard School of Public Health. So even if you cook just one more meal a week (hopefully sans processed ingredients), you can make a big dent in how much salt you’re consuming. Check out our #31Mealsin31Days Challenge for cooking inspiration.
Beware of Bread
Bread is the biggest source of sodium in the American diets, according to a 2012 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Learn how to find a loaf that isn’t stuffed with sodium.
Go Full-Fat
Hear us out: Low-fat and low-calorie foods often pack more sodium (not to mention more sugar, but that’s a whole other topic) to make up for lost flavor. Learn the four times it’s better to go with the full-fat version.
Make Your Own Chinese Food
An order of Kung Pao chicken can set you back more than 2,428 milligrams of sodium per serving, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. Yikes. Our suggestion: Try whipping up one of these tasty Asian-inspired meals instead. Each has fewer than 400 milligrams of sodium per pop.
Quell Your Cravings
Every now and then, we all just want something salty. So don’t fight the urge—you’ll set yourself up for a bigger blunder later. Instead, try munching on one of these healthy foods that satisfy salt cravings.
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