Protect Your Health By Skipping Sugar Over The Holidays

Over the holidays, we’re bombarded with sweet treats, candies and other baked goods laced with sugar that affect our physical and mental health. Overeating and eating foods that lack proper nutrition can lead to weight gain and deficiencies. While we, as humans, can subsist on most foods, our bodies need a proper diet to get all the vitamins and minerals that we need to be truly healthy. An easy way to combat this issue is through a nutritional assessment, which aims to create a dietary plan through blood testing, food tracking and lifestyle changes. Find out how a nutritional assessment can help you overcome sugar addiction and make better life choices with this guide!

What Does Sugar Do To The Body?

During the holiday season, most people gorge themselves on chocolate oranges, gingerbread, eggnog and an abundance of cookies and cakes, but few take the time to stop and think about what all of the sugar in these delicious desserts are doing to their bodies. While sugar is a wonderful additive to most holiday treats that we eat, it has a disastrous effect on our bodies when consumed in extreme amounts. Most people focus on the weight gain portion that excess sugar causes, but there are other worse things that can develop from too much sugar. In fact, too much sugar contributes to heart disease that can literally kill you, along with diabetes and obesity. The most common culprits of sugar overload include soda, fruit drinks, yogurt, cookies, cakes, candy, cereal and processed foods, but added sugar also shows up unexpectedly in things like cured meats, ketchup and bread. Additionally, while you may only be eating these sugar-filled foods sparingly, many only have 5 grams of sugar in them but have smaller portion sizes, which means you’re more likely to overeat and experience sugar overload. This process can create a domino effect in other areas of your health, such as your liver and blood pressure. Excess sugar can overload your liver and cause fat accumulations, leading to weight gain and fatty liver disease. High blood pressure can lead to heart disease, dementia and kidney problems, which are extremely difficult to remediate. Both of these factors increase your chances of heart attack and stroke, which are deadly conditions. Sugar is a common connection between these diseases and your health, and it should never be overlooked. Learning what you can do to prevent sugar overload over the holidays this year will greatly impact your ability to prevent disease from developing in the future.

Tips For Staying Sugar-Free Over The Holidays

While we know it is extremely difficult to avoid sugar with all of the family parties and work events during the holidays, there are a few tips we recommend that will help you during this process. First, make a plan that you can stick to when you’re confronted with sugary treats. If you eat a sweet snack, cut back on carb-loaded foods (like potatoes and bread) during your meal. Don’t skip meals in preparation for a big event as you’ll be more likely to overeat and choose sugary foods, and make sure to eat close to your normal eating time to keep your blood sugar levels steady. Secondly, make smart choices when you’re choosing your food. Grab only the foods that you like the best and then move away from the table. Start with vegetables first and eat slowly since it can take up to 20 minutes for your brain to recognize that it’s full. If you can’t avoid the annual Christmas pie, choose the one that’s healthier, like pumpkin rather than pecan pie. Choosing pumpkin over pecan pie will cut your calories and sugar by a third, which can make all the difference. Lastly, stay active during the holidays. Moving more will help you make up for all of the sugary treats that you’ve eaten and help keep your heart healthy, even if it’s just a walk around the block. Being active will also reduce the stress that you feel during the holidays, and that can help you sleep better, which helps combat mindless eating.

How Nutritional Assessment Can Benefit Your Health

While all of these tips are great recommendations to keep your sugar levels down and your health where it needs to be, a nutritional assessment can help you stay healthy throughout the rest of your life. A nutritional assessment is designed to give patients an overview of their food-related health and what lifestyle changes need to be implemented to ensure that one’s nutritional needs are being met. Most nutritional assessments involve in-depth blood testing to determine iron, calcium and B12 deficiencies, along with pinpointing culprits in your diet that are causing weight gain and dissatisfaction. Pre-existing conditions and medication use are also evaluated to identify malabsorption of necessary vitamins and minerals, along with determining the need for supplementation in your diet. Diet plans are typically established to help you achieve your weight loss goals, correct nutritional deficiencies, reach your fitness goals and work side-by-side with the chronic conditions you may be facing. They’re an extensive form of treatment for patients who are looking for actual results that only a medical professional can provide, but nutritional assessments do require dedication and commitment on the patient’s part for true success. If you’re ready to make a change in your life for healthy living, a nutritional assessment will be paramount during this process.

Stay Healthy During The Holidays With Our Help!

At Texas Spine & Sports Therapy Center, Dr. Shaner and his staff are dedicated to your health during the holidays and over the course of your life. Whether you need tips on how to avoid sugar in your life or are looking to lose weight, we can help! Call our office at (512) 806-0015 to schedule a nutritional assessment and get your health back on track!