You have probably already heard the buzz about sugar being the cause of tiredness and weight gain and tried a sugar detox but have you really eliminated the stealth sugar fructose?
Dr Robert Lustig aka “the sugar guy” claims that fructose is a fattening poison that is as toxic to the liver as alcohol.
Fructose is a sugar found naturally in many fruits and vegetables so how can it be harmful?
It is very different from other sugars because it is metabolized differently. When you eat something containing fructose it goes to the liver to be broken down to glucose which, if not needed for energy, is stored as fat.
If you take fructose in liquid form in products such as some fruit juices, sodas, or flavored milks, then it reaches the liver even quicker and even more fat storage occurs. This is one cause of Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease.
Lustig and other scientists believe that excess fructose in the diet may be the cause of many serious diseases of today, including obesity, type II diabetes, heart disease, cataracts, premature ageing, and even cancer.
You might be surprised to hear that fructose is the number one source of calories in the US. You can find it as high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in all sorts of processed food such as baked goods, bread, soft drinks, sauces, yogurt,and prepackaged foods.
Take a look at the infographic below for a breakdown of the many foods that cantain fructose.
After fat got a bad rap in the 1980s, manufacturers took oils out of their products and added high-fructose corn syrup instead. HFCS is a super cheap ingredient. It’s a lot cheaper than sugar or artificial sweeteners.
They started out by using small amounts but gradually the amount they add has crept up and up because they know it’s addictive and it makes you eat more.
Anti-Sugar Guru nutritionist Dr Brooke Alpert says that in her practice the clients with the most dramatic weight loss results and the most dramatic improvements in health were the ones who cut out sugar.
So, are you ready to detox fructose?
What to eat on a Fructose Detox
I recommend eating natural wholefoods, plant-based foods including dark leafy greens, whole grains, pulses, raw nuts and seeds, and organic poultry, a little grass fed meat, and wild, low mercury fish.
Fruit is healthy and delicious so over eating it is easy. Eating fruit as a snack is obviously better than eating cake or cookies but while you are doing the fructose detox it’s better to limit fruit and stick to the low fructose fruit like apricots, nectarines, peaches and cantaloupes.
Discover the fructose content of common foods, beverages, sauces, and even sugar substitutes in our infographic “Fructose Overload.” Use the embed code to share it on your website or visit our infographic page for the high-res version.
