Steps to fend off the lure of sugar


 ByJEN MULSON
 THE GAZETTE COLORADOO SPRINGS, COLO.)

 My name is Jennifer, and I'm a
 sugarholic.
 As of this writing, I have four days
 clean and sober from the white
 stuff. However, I probably should
 admit that there are three Brachs
 Peppermint Christmas Nougats
 lurking in my pocket that I'm dying
 to have with a hot cup of coffee.
 I turned to an expert for help.
 Cassandra Green is a certified
 holistic health counselor who just
 happens to co-own and teach at
 Cambio Yoga in Colorado Springs,
 Colo. She's teaching a four-part "Kick
 Sugar to the Curb" workshop, starting
 at the best time of year after our
 post-holiday feasting extravaganza.
 Letting go of the white stuff can be
 a challenge, my fellow sweet-toothed
 friends, but it's a worthy battle.
 "Every time you spike your blood
 sugar, it creates inflammation in
 the body, and that's the root of all
 disease," Green said. "It's closely
 linked to cancer, heart disease and
 all degenerative diseases."
 I always observe that sugar oper-
 ates as crack in my body the more
 I eat, the more I want. Your body gets
 accustomed to having it, Green said,
which instigates a large release of
insulin to deal with it.
 "What goes up must come down,"
she said. "You go through a cycle
of high blood sugar and insulin is
released, then blood sugar plummets
and you crave sugar again. And sugar
releases dopamine. People can be
addicted to it just like drugs."
 She's not lying. Here are her
recommendations:
 *Eat five mini meals a day to keep
the blood sugar level steady. Make
sure to consume whole foods and
not processed foods, as those tend to
unwind as sugar in the body, Green
said. Try almonds and a piece of fruit
as a midmorning snack. A healthy fat


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and carbohydrate, such lia ,ii ipple.
can help keep you fi':,'i feeliiing
hungry.
 Once the blood sugai is srtabilized.
the body is less like to cii\ e tiugaii
 "The body is mouning iiiiihit ugaii,
she said. "But once it's s ralilized. lie
body can react more dipli:,initic;ill\
You can have huge cliiainge in pei -
sonality due to blood tiug;-i i iou c;in
manage stuff in life ai Iort betteii e lien
blood sugar stabilizes i "
 *Take a multi-vitainiiin iind ai hli ,,il
pill, which contain minciciliuiiewi,e
and healthy fat. Due t lHie S tiiidaiid
American Diet (appiop ii-tek called
SAD), many folks dclii't get ie piopei
nutrition their bodies ieqtiiie. liincli
can lead to sugar crai\ ii-g
 *Fats can help conmbit ci\-ing, s,.
have some nuts or a piece if clieese
One also can mistake liiungei fi,


thliiSt s-,t ;i\ Ivd-irIted Ciiinniamon-ii1
is lo ;i as laVin -spice to) l-ai e s-i it
c;en help c0n1i:,ol blood i-gii Gleen
recommend l ;i balked applie witlh
c il' tl -. :,i dessei, i [ c;F i in ies h tt iit
tin, is ;i deliciol, l h ti ii;ii e i
 *Sti ck il itu Bv ;i\ 5 of ;i sug;ii
cleanse, lhe l-ci VIings will dldisipaite
Be ai\ ,of lhoth t cup of coffee. t,, .
she said (CA ffeiiie caln tu.i ei iug;-ii
cl;i-MVII Ilt's like shes le;-idlig in\
l i d I
 It's psochiologiccal \\e'ie used
[1) lih; -i\ ll: c le es e ca ke a ln d ;i c u p ,: ,
coffee.- she said Foi ai lot of uls.
tlhe caiffeiie ine ;i i a;itllal i m eta, olisin
speedei, ;iand it piomps \,ou to l~\e
inol,,e \eets lh-iii V\o inoiono ill\
,,ould Ca effllie ;iland su ;-i o l:-hand In
hand "
 Of coui-Se. moderationn in ;ill things.
i gits Emat ell 80 peicen to ,,90


pelce of t lie rnie. depeidmi:g -,i
\01.1i ;-ICI\I [I\ level. ;-Iia tie t vo-, elf
eei o\'ice III ;-i hlile. iIccolidmig I ,
;-iI -i cide o-,i l hve,-til:_ co_'in
 Ia mi\be I'll liia\e onie 'f hli-,,e
temptmilg tieeit, iii mI\ po-cket. ;iftei
;i nice big bIl ,f kaile Anmid tlieii Ill
blm tli InI\ teetli,. ihclich I\ Imn;iai;i
;id\-ised me t,:, d long go, Shie M ile,,
fought tli lie iuga-ii dein',ns. in',otl\
1-\e i ;- caii' -ii -11 ice cie;im ;if[lei
dililei eei\ inglit Slie \asl ul:_ih,.
rli-tl:ghli ;- i irt in' _-tllh doe, l help
SI,-p ;i tIg;-ii bli _ge iII Itr ilick-s
 If \\e Ioo:,k baick before pi','cessed
foo-_d \\a-, ieidilh ai\anllble. \\e s.ee
tlhat people died o:\ei nine. fioin
iifectnl-, disease.- (ileii ,aid Tlie\
didn't li a\e ; I, lot of degeieiliat\e
disease, N' ,\\ \e see \eLie d\1 i1
of de'geneiait\e diseaises Tlie\ e
rt-imig -, ut i, ;i Icellulahi le\el"


Try these tricks to recharge youri healthy-eating resolutions


 By NICCI MICCO
 EATINGWELL.COM

 Most goals are a work in progress.
Sometimes it's helpful to take a step
back and re-evaluate your promises
to yourself.
 The key to staying committed to
a health goal whether it's to fit in
exercise three times a day or to cook
lower-calorie, low-carb recipes at
home more often is to renew your
vows. Then troubleshoot the ob-
stacles that are getting in your way.
Here's some help:
 The problem: You're too busy to
plan and cook healthy meals.
 The solution: Simplify. Don't try to
prepare gourmet meals every night of
the week; stick to speedy dinners that
require few ingredients and are ready
in 30 minutes. If your schedule tends
to be unpredictable, skew toward
recipes with ingredients that aren't
super-perishable.
 The problem: You miss your
favorite foods.


 The solution: Eat tliem If \o,_tie
giving up all the foods \_ ,tl Ilo\ e.
your "I will eat healtliei" ies,,tluini,,
needs tweaking. Ify,,iii g',il ts ,:' eait
healthier forever, it's aicrtuill\ e-ssen-
tial to make sure thai lie chiainiges
you're making are ones \,:,i cain
live with. Budget desseeits -- sm.ill.
reasonable portions. ,of c,:,msie -
into your eating plan iM.iake looimi foi
a slice of pizza occasi:,iiall\
 The problem: You blew it.
 The solution: Get ,o\ei it F',i 'l s
of people, going ovei bo ':d ,:n. s;\.
brownies or pizza setrs off ai d, ,ii-
ward spiral of eating hliait cain last f,:,i
days. (Oh, well, this \eek is sh,,li I'll
start again on Mondai\ i Leaii n tii, see
little lapses for whai tlie\ aie little
lapses. Acknowledge. foigik ee aiind
forget. Get right back oin riiack b\
planning a delicious, lighlit ne\xt meil
that will remind youth jti, Iio,:, \iimm\i
low-calorie, nutritious meielsk caiin be'
 The problem: You're working hard
to eat healthier, but the scale isn't
budging.


 The ,,lution GiCl e \,:,ul-elfa about ,-s bg ,l ;i g,:,If biall
lefiesliei ,-It poiii i-, izes It c utld N Ie-itliie -ul t tl e lecinineiilded
be \,:,ti'ie eatigii mioie thain i\ou tilink poititiin ,- ceieal before \,:1 dtiin p it
\ou ;iie Tlhiee tluiilce ,_-, ineait 1 in \iii v-t b,-iv ;-iid ,ee lio t;-i i t ills
otiei pioteiiii 1ook- like i deck of tre blt Find omut lio inuicli \,_,Li
ciid,. ai minediumin p,:tati 'lih ldhe be s.oup ladle lioi ,l, If it' .'4 'f 4 i cup.
the size o-f i coinptiei nln,_-t ie aiid i \'oi'll ,,foievei kiii- thi ih t t c, -,, p
qiai tei cup of,, a \thilmig hliulcl be equal a ,;ati4 img 1 -1. 12 cup se,\ik g


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