![Sugar and Candy]( "Sugar")
Sugar: Our Bitter-sweet Relationship with it
Some of us have a sweet tooth and some of us don’t – or so people say, but even the people who think they don’t crave sugar are often astounded vast consumption of ‘hidden’ sugars when they actually look closely at what they eat on a day to day basis.
This is also the case with many children who are growing up in the western world. They are exposed daily to sweet foods, which are often high in refined sugar and refined flour, a combination that is completely devoid of the building blocks of wholesome foods.
One of the basic energy supplies for our body is in the form of sugars, the prime source coming from carbohydrates. The human body is designed to prevent sugar levels from dropping below a certain point. However the over consumption of refined sweet foods is creating havoc with the health of our children.
What Parents Can Do
Parents need to teach children how to manage their own blood sugar levels; which doesn’t mean reaching for a mars bar because we have forgotten to eat a wholesome breakfast, but on the other hand the answer is not to deprive them of all sugary foods. Rather investigate what your child’s optimal eating pattern is so that they are nourished and filled with a balanced diet that will keep them healthy and vital throughout the day. As children grow their taste for certain foods will grow, so start of with good intentions and a healthy mindset as to how you eat in front of them and this will rub of onto your children.
There are general guidelines to optimal eating, but some children fall outside these guidelines, tune into your own children and see what they need. A protein (e.g. eggs) based breakfast for most children is the perfect way to start the day. However a good complex carbohydrate meal, such as porridge will also suffice to keep them going until their mid morning snack. However if they have had a carbohydrate breakfast then the snack should be in the form of protein and vice versa for the protein based breakfast.
My son is very hungry in the morning but my daughter isn’t. Her main morning meal is around 10.30ish (this is also the case with many children I treat). As she is at school part time I balance this for her by making her mid morning snack more of a substantial protein based meal and her lunch is more of a snack. After school children are often ravenous so it is vital to use this opportunity to fill them up with a wholesome meal rather than a sugary snack.
Sugar Is a Survival Instinct
Interestingly I have read a theory that explains why humans are so instinctually drawn to sweet foods. It stems back to our survival; mother’s milk is naturally very sweet and this is a taste that is introduced to babies at birth. Once they are ready to wean they will naturally draw to sweet foods to survive. The theory behind this is that early hominids would eat sweet ripe fruits and vegetables and this kept them away from the potentially poisonous sour fruits.
There is also numerous references to sugary foods being a popular substitute for love, in fact scientists have discovered a chemical compound in chocolate called phenyl ethylamine, which is believed to mimic the physiological sensation of love…………I digress!
Anyway back to our little ewe lambs – their systems are developing and this includes their digestive system. The key thing to note here is that their gut flora is developing, which rely on a healthy environment to proliferate. If children are eating a diet high in sugary, refined foods and being exposed to multiple courses of broad spectrum antibiotics then the chances are that the gut flora is going to become imbalanced as it develops. A side effect of this imbalance will be a compromised immune system. This is the reason why many Doctors and Nutritionists are now advising regular probiotic ingestion in young children as part of a regime to boost the immune system.
Creating Healthy Habits
If children’s taste buds are being gently exposed to foods that are sweetened naturally with honey, maple syrup etc after a wholesome meal then they will create a balanced relationship with sweet foods being a deserved treat not a meal in itself. Also don’t panic when they go to a friend’s birthday party and the table is laden with refined sugary foods. Offer your child a wholesome snack or meal before the party and then let them enjoy the party, this helps to neutralise the sugar hitting the bloodstream and will help to minimize the physiological side effects of the sugar rush. It also allows your children to mix with their peers in relaxed way.
Explain your reasoning to your children and encourage them to listen to their bodies. This, like much of parenting, will be a gradual process and children may need to experience the mood swings and the stomach aches before they start to understand what and why they are experiencing such reactions.
Refined white sugar carries negligible traces of bodybuilding and repairing material. It satisfies the hunger momentarily, but it cannot sustain and nourish a person so the cravings will return. Excess sugar in the diet encourages tooth decay, obesity and is implicated in conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, hypoglycaemia, immune deficiency diseases, digestive disorders and allergies.
Some of the natural sweeteners that are good alternatives:
Raw Honey – Unheated honey contains high levels of amylases, enzymes that help to digest carbohydrates. This is why honey compliments porridge or toast as the honey helps to break down the grains. Honey is not recommended to babies due to the bacterial spores Clostridium botulinum.
Maple Syrup – The concentrated sap of deciduous trees. It is rich in trace minerals including calcium. It is best to buy organic or Canadian Maple Syrup as this will ensure that it will not contain traces of formaldehyde.
Rapadura - the commercial name for dehydrated cane sugar juice. It is rich in minerals including silica. It closely mimics sugar so is a good substitute when following recipes.
Molasses – A ‘waste’ product from the production of refined sugar. It may contain many minerals including iron, calcium, zinc, copper and chromium.
Avoid:
- Fructose or High Fructose Corn Syrup
- Concentrated Fruit Juices
- Artificial Sweeteners such as aspartame, Nutrasweet, saccharin and so many others!
Use other spices and foods to sweeten foods such as fruits, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice etc. If you add these along with a healthy sugar alternative then the amount of sugar will be less, but the overall taste will be sweet and nourishing.
Also try and find the sweet things in life away from food, such as a hug from a loved one, a smile from one of your children!
By Alexandra Field, Naturopath
Photo Credit: terren in Virginia
