Cakes, donuts, candies, caramel, chocolates… even thinking about these can make your mouth water. If you are one of those people who are sugar addicts and can’t go a day without pleasing their taste buds with some sugary, then it might seem a Herculean task to quit those bad habits but with these easy, quick tips, fending off sugar can be simple.
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Replace the sugary sweets by whole fruits
Fruits are rich in fructose, a natural sugar that the body metabolizes very differently from your usual refined sugars, but they still are a treat to your taste buds. Beware that fruits shouldn’t be eaten in excess. Try to start with a few grapes or cherries at first which are very abundant in fructose, coupling them with avocados, olives, berries or kiwi to set up a proper starting balance. Keep juggling with the combination of fruits until you no longer feel the urge to grasp a candy or a chocolate bar. Don’t forget that fruits are low in calories.
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Break the bond with artificial sweeteners
Your diet soda is full of artificial sweeteners may be even worse for your metabolism than real sugar. Aspartame, sucralose, saccharine are all the different types of artificial sweeteners made from various chemicals. Once you’ve had a taste they make your brain send signals to consume even more. Hence, a sip becomes half a glass, leading up to a full glass or two, thereby contributing to weight gain.
Related: 7 Healthy Foods to Help You Burn Calories
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Have some water
Each time a sugar craving hits you, drink a glass of water. This technique is very effective for individuals trying to lose weight. When your body sends the signal that it wants to consume something, this doesn’t necessarily means that it needs food. Water is often the answer to that. Thereby, each time you feel a sugar craving spike, have that glass of water without thinking twice. Here’s an additional tip, try to keep a bottle of water by your side all the time so that whenever an urge to sweeten your tongue comes have some water to cut it off.
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Distract yourself
To avoid grabbing that sugar rich toffee in case a craving rises, try to engage yourself into some activities that will keep your mind off it. Try listening to relaxing music, read a book, or watch a movie without cramming your stomach with confectionery. Try deep breathing to resist the urge.
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Clean up
Whenever you think that you can’t resist the temptation to have a ‘bonbon’, take control of the situation by tidying up. If you’re at home, try using that energy to clean up, wash the dishes, doing the laundry, or tidying up your work space. This is a win-win situation since you will find yourself living in a cleaner environment and also burn off some calories while avoiding taking in more empty calories.
Related: 24 Ways Sugar Harms Your Health
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Boost your magnesium levels
Yearning for sugar on a regular basis may be because your magnesium levels are low. To fight any longing for sugar, try to include magnesium rich foods such as nuts, tofu, green leafy vegetables, and legumes into your diet. Remember that if you are deficient in magnesium then you most probably will seek sweets for often.
