Woo! We’re on the third week of going without natural or refined sweeteners (Beyond Sugar Challenge)… is that possible? Before we started, I wondered how we’d (okay, how I’d) ever get through it!
This post will be somewhat like a diary entry, okay? I’m just going to write my reflections of how it is going so far.
I continue to crave sweets, chocolate in particular. The afternoons are the hardest. I feel unwell and strongly desire to open the freezer and grab some. So far, I’ve held off. Thank you, Lord. I will be really thankful when a day passes that I don’t feel the longing.
When I crave chocolate (hmm… thinking out loud here, maybe it is the caffeine in chocolate I want, too?) I will snack on something else. I usually find satisfaction in: a whole fruit, a fried egg, a handful of soaked/dehydrated almonds or hazelnuts or pumpkin seeds, or cold tea or water. Or a nap to get through the unwell-feeling.
I am surprised to find that I am enjoying unsweetened tea. Last week at Trader Joe’s I found a new tea: Organic Ruby Red Chai Rooibos (I may have the words mixed up some). It is yummy! I even added it to the last batches of Kombucha and will know in a week or so if that was a good decision. I am keeping a half-gallon of this cold tea in the refrigerator. We all enjoy drinking it.
I made carrot bars over the weekend. Everyone was really happy about having a whole fruit-sweetened snack. I can go either way, thinking whether that was a good move or not. But we all enjoyed it. I had half as much as I usually would. So did everyone else, actually. Sweets are not so much on the radar anymore. We are reaching for other foods. I think that is great!
As far as the kids go, it is hard work keeping them fed. They’re hungry and sadly, we relied on cookies and sweets more often than not for snacks. It takes a concerted effort on my part to have other snacks around. We’ve been having biscuits and scones alot, as well as those soaked/dehydrated nuts/seeds. Really big salads (the u-pick farm keeps us well supplied!).
Here’s an intriguing thing I’ve been reading. I’m not sure I believe it; I want to. For sure, I want to! I recently purchased the book, Sprouted Baking by Janie Quinn. All the recipes feature sprouted grain flours. Janie Quinn writes that the major benefit of sprouted flour is that its “nutrients are in a state that can more readily be absorbed and digested by the body.” Unsprouted, grains are seeds. Sprouted, grains are plants/vegetables.
How is this possible? The sprouting process converts the complex carbohydrates (dormant nutrients, vitamins and minerals) into smaller parts, called simple sugars. The body “recognizes and readily digest simple sugars for quick energy, as opposed to starches that can be stored as fat.” The implication here: sprouted grain foods can be considered as vegetables, rather than starchy carbohydrates. What do you think? Certainly, this has implications not only for more readily-assimilated vitamins and minerals, but also for weight-loss and carbohydrate limits! (Still, moderation in all things is key.)
If you’re cutting back on sweeteners in any way, please share your thoughts. How is it going for you? Do you have any tips for us or for anyone else?
This is one of a series of posts during the month of May, during which time the Harmon family has vowed not to consume any sweeteners, natural or refined. We call the challenge “Beyond Sugar” and would love to have you join us, in whatever way you feel led! (Get the button here for your own blog or website.)
Hello ,
Just a small suggestion … if you really crave sugar … is it possible for you to have some organic raisins or kismiss{ Arbaic word} for black current, or even prunes .Dry fruits are the best to quench your craving for sugar as they have natural sugar in them .
Regards
Sudeep
Thank you for the suggestion, Sudeep! I have been trying to avoid dried fruits because of the concentrated fruit sugars in them. But I suppose it would be allright if I would drink a big glass of water with them. I will keep it in mind-thank you!
Hi Wardeh – congratulations! I’m not so sure I could make it that long. We don’t eat sweets for snacks but they are a big part of Friday nights for us. We have dessert once a week and of course lots of syrup on pancakes.
Have you ever tried cocoa nibs? They are simply roasted cocoa beans split apart so you can eat them straight. If you get raw ones (meaning they haven’t been heated under high temps) they are a super food even. I find these will really curb my chocolate cravings. You can also grind them up with your coffee beans when making coffee to get a mocha.
Sounds like stevia is off limits to you as well, otherwise cocoa made with cocoa powder, whole milk and stevia is a nice healthy treat. Maybe you could mix cocoa powder with peanut butter since that feels really decadent as well. Keep it up!
Warmly,
Annette
http://www.sustainableeats.com
My nutritionist told me that when I crave sugar, it’s a B vitamin deficiency. I thought that was interesting!
not sugar, chocolate, was what i meant. when I crave chocolate.
My vitamin guru told me that we “sometimes” crave sweets when we are deficient in protein. He said that we should be eatin half of our body weight in protein everyday. So if you weigh 100 lbs. you should eat 50 grams of protein each day. If you only get 30 grams protein per day for a week then you are deficient by 140 grams, make that into weeks and years, you are deficient by many grams of protein.
Just some food for thought.
I also can’t remember if I ever told you about this book or not, it is very interesting. I haven’t read all of it, or retained all of it, but I think you would enjoy it, and it may help with the changes you are making also.
It is called “God’s Key to Health and Happiness.” It is based on the Law of Moses. I got mine on amazon for $2.00
GREAT job staying off the sweets!
I just thought of another snack. It may fall into the category of too sweet, but it is REALLY good, and it might help with the chocolate cravings.
I mix carob chips and dried cranberries together. For some reason this combination makes the carob taste more like chocolate to me.
Carrots and almonds. Soy thin-mini crackers. Homemade nutella. Yogurt with cocoa and stevia.
Thanks for the great ideas, everyone! You’re the best. I think I should take a good look at protein intake and also vitamin and mineral deficiency. To have deficiencies would not surprise me. I know of some already. Ironically, that is one of my goals in reducing sugar – to cut it out because it interferes with mineral absorption. But also, that is why we want raw milk – the fat in it aids in vitamin, mineral and protein absorption!
I don’t know if you are looking for vitamin supplements or not? These are the ones I use.
http://www.perfectfoodsnutrition.com
They have another website in the works.
http://www.promisedlandhealth.org
All of their vitamins are natural and made from food.
Thanks, Tiffany – I will keep those in mind. At this point, I prefer to see if diet changes will make a difference. I appreciate you mentioning them, though!
I keep saying that I am going to totally go off of all sweets soon, but it has been hard. Our anniversary was yesterday, so we went out to eat and had a lot of leftovers that we finished off today. I think I will definitely be on track for starting tomorrow!
That being said, I have already cut WAY back on my sugar and grain intake. I have been eating mostly sprouted breads, no sugar in my tea (that is a great tea from Trader Joe’s by the way! I also like the Good Earth Original tea, but I am not sure how “natural” it is) and have at least switched fro milk chocolate to the occasional square of dark chocolate. I think we may have the same vices.
I could totally identify with the “constant drip of sugar all day” that you mentioned when you started this challenge. That’s me in a nutshell! 
My naturopathic doctor that I see told me that because of the fungus overgrowth I have, its actually the fungus that is making me crave the sugar, because it needs sugar to stay alive. She told me that once I break the cycle, it should be easier to eat less sugar.
It is so encouraging to me to read your journey. What a great God we have that He would have you start this journey just enough ahead of me to give me the courage and encouragement I need to try it myself!
Kimbrah – I imagine it would be hard with anniversary and leftovers. I have “leftovers” of a big dark chocolate purchase in the freezer. Man, they are hard to resist (but I have so far). I think we do have the same vices.
That is so interesting about the fungus craving the sugar. Thanks so much for participating. We serve a very good God. I am so thankful for internet friends (like you!) and real-life friends who join me on the journey of good health and good food!
Sustainable Eats – Haven’t tried the cocoa nibs, I should! I’m not sure if stevia is off limits or not. We have been having it a little. I bought some green-leaf stevia from Mountain Rose Herbs. I think my whole family would enjoy the cocoa made with it-very much! Thanks for the great ideas!
(By the way, your comment was lost in spam; I just found it!)
Sudeep – we have raisins and dried cherries around and do have them every once in awhile. I’m trying to limit dried fruit because the fruit sugar is concentrated in them. But we still have some of them. They give a nice sweetness to our breakfast porridge!
Hi, Wardeh:
I’ve looked at my local libraries for Sprouted Baking, but I haven’t had any success. I was wondering if you thought it was worth purchasing. What in particular have you tried and liked from the book?
Sonya