8 Incredible Things That’ll happen to Your Body When You Give up Sugar

Icecream, soft drink, cake, biscuits and chocolate… Sweet as its name suggests, sugars are delicious and mouth watering. The intakes of sugar ultimately leads to the release of a chemical called dopamine in the brain. Once your body and brain get addicted to this “reward” chemical, it’s very difficult to cut it out. However, have you ever imagined this sweet and innocent thing could have great side effects on our bodies and in so many negative ways. Too much sugar in the regular diet can cause not only obesity, but also many health problems, from anxiety and depression to heart disease and even to cancer. Here are the 8 amazing health benefits that happen when you quit sugar.

1. You feel more energetic

An excess of refined sugar in our diet can affect us in a variety of ways. A desire for more sugar can lead to cravings, mood swings and that all-too-familiar energy crash which often leaves us reaching for more sugar in order to pick us back up again! But unfortunately that short benefit gets offset by the longer term effect of the raised blood sugar level which will leave you feeling more sluggish and lethargic than before you ate the sugar. So when you stop filling up on the sweet stuff, you could start feeling full of stamina!

2. The pounds will fall off

When you eat too much refined sugar your insulin production increases, which can prohibit your body from using fat as fuel. Instead, your body converts excess sugar into fat and weight gain can be a result. By quitting sugar, you'll keep insulin levels low, allowing stored fat to be used up, as well as preventing your liver creating extra fat from fructose.

And once you free yourself from sugar addiction, it means you'll make better overall food choices. It’s a win, win!

3. You’ll get fewer colds

Sugar has a direct effect on your immune system. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that consuming as little as 100g of sugar lowered the body’s white blood cells ability to kill off bacteria by up to 50% for as long as 5 hours!

So by quitting sugar, you’re also likely to be quitting the sniffles and sneezes as you’ll literally be giving your immune system a fighting chance against illness.

4. Improved Gut Health

There are a host of ways that an excessive intake of sugar can negatively affect both your digestion and your gut health. When the amount of sugar in your body is too much for your bloodstream to absorb, it will make its way through your digestive system. Bacteria in your bowels loves to feast on sugar, which can lead to bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhoea and flatulence, and it can also lead to an overgrowth of parasites and harmful bacteria.

Giving up sugar will not only alleviate all of these, but also improve your digestion, regulate your hormone levels and minimise food intolerances.

5. Lowered risk of diabetes

Sugars enhance fat deposition in the liver that hamper functioning of the pancreas resulting in impaired insulin production, and in turn leads to type 2 diabetes. Quitting sugar gives a natural detox system a chance to do their job in your body.

6. Better dental health

As kids we are all told that sugar is bad for our teeth, and unfortunately we never get the full rundown of ailments it can also cause. According to Healthy Food America, adults who regularly consume one to two sugary drinks per day have 30% more dental disease than adults who consume no sugary drinks.

7. Have Younger Looking Skin

Sugars, from a process called glycation result in inflammation that affects skin proteins collagen and elastin cells of skin making it wrinkle prone and age early. This process can be slowed down by quitting sugar in your diet. Cut down your sugar, and get visibly clearer looking.

8. Better mood

Ditching added sugar for a month not only has positive effects on our bodies but on our minds, too. For instance, according to a study, higher sugar intake in a diet is associated with a higher risk of depression. Cutting on sugar intake calms your mind and also improves cognitive abilities making brain sharp and active.