Want to kick the sugar habit? How to plan, what to expect and the benefits.

2. Sugar
It is important to understand
the effect sugar has on our
body. Sugar can be used to
celebrate something
awesome, to calm your mind,
and used for your muscles for
quick energy. However, the
standard American adult diet
tends include way too much
sugar.

3. Suggested limit
According to the American
Heart Association, the
maximum amount of added
sugar you should eat in a day
25 grams or 6 teaspoons. The
average American consumes
22-30 teaspoons every day.

4. Consuming excessive amounts of sugar can lead to
fat storage, and many other illnesses and
complications.

5. Sugar
causes:
Weight Gain
Type 2 diabetes
Increased risk of heart disease
Skin issues, acne and aging
Increased risk of diabetes
Increased risk of cancer
Increased risk of depression
Drains energy
Fatty liver
Increased kidney disease
Poor dental health
Increased risk of Gout

6. Sugar detox
Detox can cause unpleasant
physical and mental
symptoms. How the body
reacts to quitting sugar is
different for everyone. Which
symptoms you experience
and the severity of these
symptoms depend on how
much sugar you were
consuming.

7. What is Sugar
Withdrawal?
When your body is used to high amounts of
sugar on a regular basis, it can be a shock to
the system to cut it entirely from your daily
lifestyle. When this happens, some people
experience a variety of symptoms of
withdrawal.

8. What causes sugar
withdrawal
symptoms?
One reason why sugar withdrawal occurs is due to
hormones in the body. Your body releases certain
hormones and compounds in the blood. When you
consume sugar, your body releases dopamine into
the bloodstream. Dopamine is widely known as the
“happy” hormone that is present when your mind is
the most euphoric. This euphoria is a level of
satisfaction and when that threshold is met, the
brain may feel as though it is satisfied. When you
bite into a creamy chocolate bar or drink a sugary
soda, your brain releases dopamine, which is why
you feel so happy when you consume sugar.

9. Sugar is similar to
drugs
Sugar withdrawal may have
serious consequences to your
mental and physical health,
similar to what is seen with
addiction to drugs. Drug use
may seem more challenging
to overcome, the brain craves
sugar in similar ways as it
does drugs, so it feels like
addiction.

10. Euphoria
High amounts of sugar result in similar
hormonal responses that drugs do, it
appears that your body adjusts to sugar
consumption similarly to regular drug use.
The brain may crave higher amounts of
sugar in an attempt to reach a certain
dopamine concentration in the blood,
signaling euphoria. However, as the body
reacts to continuous amounts of this
nutrient, you may need to consume more,
which could explain why adults crave such
high amounts of sugar. This continuous
cycle of sugar consumption, hormone
release, and euphoria can play a major role
in how the brain responds and creates
behavioral patterns.

11. Common
sugar
withdrawal
symptoms
Fatigue and Weakness
Extreme Cravings
Confusion
Headaches
Behavior Changes
Muscle Aches and Pains
Poor Sleep Quality
Weight Loss
Flu-like Symptoms
Light-headedness

12. Some tips to help you beat the side effects and avoid
or at least limit some of the symptoms of sugar detox.

13. Quit cold turkey
Cutting sugar from your diet gradually
may help lessen the intensity of your
symptoms, but it also means those
symptoms will stick around longer. By
cutting out sugar at once, your body
will become used to living without it
sooner, which means a faster end to
withdrawal symptoms. Do this by
cutting out all forms of sugar, including
those in prepackaged foods,
sweetened beverages, and white flour.

14. Eat more protein
Add protein to every meal to
help you avoid hunger and
low energy levels during your
sugar detox. This will help you
avoid the temptation to reach
for a candy bar or other quick
fix. Eat fish, poultry, and lean
cuts of meat. High-protein
vegetables, nuts, and seeds
make great snacks.

15. Increase your
dietary fiber
Eating high-fiber foods can
help you stave off hunger.
Because this helps control
blood sugar, it may also help
you avoid sugar detox side
effects like headache and
nausea while keeping
cravings at bay. Aim for
high-fiber vegetables, beans,
and legumes.

16. Drink more water
Staying hydrated will help you feel better
overall and can help keep you regular. This
is especially important when you increase
your fiber intake, which could cause
constipation. Fiber-rich foods and adequate
water intake are needed to help keep from
getting constipated.
In addition, thirst is often confused with
hunger. Having a glass of water may help
you resist the urge to overeat and keep
your cravings under control.

17. Avoid artificial
sweeteners
Swapping out sugar for artificial sweeteners may
seem like a good idea when you’re breaking up
with sugar, but it can actually derail your efforts.
Research shows that artificial sweeteners
encourage sugar cravings and dependence.
Staying away from sweet foods — even those that
are sugar-free — is the best way to cut sugar from
your diet once and for all.

18. Manage your stress
There’s evidence that stress affects food
preferences and increases cravings for
sweets. Sugar also appears to have a
calming effect on stress hormones, which
contributes to your desire for sugar when
feeling stressed.
Keeping your stress in check will make it
easier to cut sugar from your diet and help
keep cravings under control. Taking a walk,
talking to a friend, or just reading a book
are just a few simple ways to relieve stress.

19. Exercise
Exercise is beneficial in several ways
when doing a sugar detox. Exercise
increases energy and reduces stress,
which can help combat withdrawal
symptoms like fatigue, low energy
levels, and stress-induced cravings.
Even short bouts of exercise, such as
a brisk 15-minute walk, reduced
cravings for sugary foods.

20. Get enough sleep
Insufficient sleep can worsen
symptoms of sugar detox,
such as fatigue, cravings, and
depression. Not getting
enough sleep has been
shown to increase cravings
for sugar and other unhealthy
“comfort foods.”

21. Getting a good
night’s sleep has
been linked to:
better food choices
lowered stress
higher energy levels
improved concentration and memory

22. Stages of Sugar
Withdrawal:

23. Stage 1: Motivation
This first part is when motivation is highest, and it
can truly drive your ability to accomplish your goals.
Similar to a New Year’s resolution, hitting stage 1
hard means you are likely to be very motivated for
a new you. When you start to experience sugar
withdrawal symptoms your motivation will need to
be strong to overcome them.

24. Stage 2: Intense Cravings
As you cut out sugar from your diet, it
should be expected that you’ll have
cravings from time to time, and yes, the
intensity can be very overwhelming at
times. When you hit the intense cravings
stage, it is best to try and find healthy
substitutes that bring you joy or activities to
help distract your mind. Otherwise, you
could spend a great deal of time fixating on
your cravings and it could eventually turn
into you giving in to temptation.

25. Stage 3: Headaches
Typically, headaches appear after the cravings
stage and this is usually something that
progresses with time. Cravings can appear
soon after cutting sugar from the diet, but it
typically takes some time for headaches to
start appearing. For some people, this may be
a day or two, but for others it could be longer.

26. Stage 4: Aches, Pains, and
Other Symptoms
Stage 4 is typically when you can expect a
wide range of symptoms to take full effect.
Within this time, you may notice dull aches,
pains, chills, tremors, as well as mood
changes. At the peak of all the symptoms, it
could be a time when depression sets in
and even a time when the sugar-free
lifestyle comes to an abrupt end, but this is
truly where you should stick with it. This
stage can test your willpower, and as long
as you continue to remain motivated, you
have the best chance at succeeding.

27. Stage 5:
Symptoms
Resolve
The previous two stages typically are the worst of all the
stages, but once you make it past those stages, the rest all
comes together. One of the biggest reasons individuals
make a lifestyle change and decide to cut sugar from the
diet is to feel better and to lose weight, and once the stage 3
and 4 symptoms resolve, the rest seems fairly easy. When
the symptoms resolve, you may feel energized, free, or
even as if you have been given an entirely new outlook in
life, health, and your appearance.
Withdrawal symptoms can last from a few days to two
weeks.
If you can stick to the plan for 10 days you should be past
the worst part. The longer your body goes without sugar, the
less intense your symptoms and cravings for sugar will be.

28. Triggers
You may find that your symptoms are
worse at certain times of the day, such as
between meals. Stress is also known to
trigger cravings for sugar, so you may find
your symptoms seem worse during times
of stress.

29. Cycle
Stage 1 is a powerful stage
in which your motivation
levels are the highest, but it
is in stage 5 where you feel
your best.

30. Before and After
Consider taking photos before you begin your
journey, to create the before and after,
consider sharing your experiences with friends,
family, and colleagues, and even consider
rewarding yourself with a new workout outfit,
shoes, or a fancy water bottle after stage five.
After all, you made it this far, so consider
making it fun along the way.

31. Habits
If you are going to cut sugar completely
from your life, you will need to cut out some
of your old dietary habits and choose
healthy alternatives. For starters, avoiding
sugar is something you will want to do, but
be mindful that sugar substitutes may not
be the best solution. Sugar substitutes tend
to trick the mind into thinking you are
consuming high amounts of sugar, when
indeed you are not. This can create a
confusing state for your brain and can
actually cause a stronger addiction to sweet
foods and beverages.

32. Whole foods
Try eating foods in their
pure state, such as
unsweetened tea, coffee,
vegetables without
sweetened dips, as well as
berries. If you are having
strong cravings for
chocolate, then consider
your options and make an
informed decision.

33. Read labels
It is always important to have
an idea as to what you are
putting into your body, so be
sure to read all food labels
before consuming anything and
if there is no label, do your best
with alternatives.

34. Accept that we all
slip up
Saying goodbye to sugar is no easy feat, so don’t
beat yourself up if you slip up. Write down your
motivating factors for giving up sugar to help keep
your eye on the prize when you feel yourself
slipping.
If you do give in to temptation, just start again. Use
any slipups as a learning experience to help you
avoid falling into the same trap the next time. For
instance, if you find temptation is worse during
certain times of the day, schedule activities to keep
yourself busy during that time or be prepared with
high-protein snacks and water to help get you
through.

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36. Disclosure
I support my clients spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically. Anything discussed in a course, live video, presentation, educational material, the group, through private message, email, phone or other
communication is said to be just suggestions and each individual is responsible for one's self, actions and must follow any and all doctors advice they have been given first and foremost. I am not a medical doctor,
dietician or nutritionist. I do not hold a degree in medicine, dietetics or nutrition. I make no claim to any specialized medical training, nor do I dispense medical advice or prescriptions. My goal is to help my clients
make gradual, lifelong changes that enable them to achieve their health goals and meet their ultimate vision of well-being. I am in the process of obtaining several certifications and have NASM certified coaches
helping with guidance, plans, fitness and nutritional information. By being in this group or purchasing coaching services, you confirm that you have read and agree to each statement below and that you wish to
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medication, I should discuss any dietary changes or potential dietary supplement use with my doctor and should not discontinue any prescription medication without first consulting my doctor.
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