How to Avoid the Summer Sugar Trap
Summer brings with it plenty of opportunities for indulging in seasonal favorites like ice cream, frozen treats, and ice cold sodas on a hot day. We’re all for indulging on special occasions. But in a long season like summer, it’s easy for special occasions to turn into “every night” occasions!
Refined sugar is a staple in many processed foods. Let’s look, for example, at the sugar amounts in some typical summer treats:
1 cup of vanilla ice cream: 28 grams (that’s 7 teaspoons of sugar)
1 (16-ounce) root beer float: 57 grams (over 14 teaspoons of sugar)
1 ice cream bar: 22 grams (over 5 teaspoons of sugar)
It’s amazing how quickly all those teaspoons add up!
Make Smart Sugar Choices
To avoid the summer sugar trap this season, it’s all about choices. Keep these tips in mind to stay healthy and keep your nutrition on track:
Plan your splurges. That’s right, plan them! If you know you have several special occasions when you’ll want to indulge in some sweet treats throughout the season, make a note of those and give yourself the freedom to eat what you want. The rest of the time, stay dialed in with your nutrition and keep added sugar to a minimum.
Prioritize protein. Cravings for sweets are much more likely to hit when your body is in need of protein (and fat, too). Aim to eat a source of protein with every meal so that your blood sugar is always in balance and never craving a pick-me-up from quick carbs.
Try homemade sweets instead. When you cook your own food, you control the quality of ingredients and the type of ingredients used. There are thousands of recipes online for healthy desserts made exclusively with fruit or sweetened naturally with honey or maple syrup. Try a few new recipes and find some healthy favorites!
Balance your sweets with real food. In the cases where you do indulge, eat a balanced meal before eating dessert. This will help reduce the blood sugar spike from the sugar and leave you with less sugar-induced fatigue.
We encourage you to indulge wisely this summer. Emphasize the good stuff, enjoy a little bit of the not-so-good stuff, and live your best summer life!
