3 ms·

Anecdata: during a period of essentially eliminating all added sugar (save for a small piece of dark chocolate a day which amounted to 2-3g of sugar), I never f

by kif 3y ago

Anecdata: during a period of essentially eliminating all added sugar (save for a small piece of dark chocolate a day which amounted to 2-3g of sugar), I never felt better. It was two to three months long. I'm hoping I can repeat that again.

craftkiller 3y ago
Since we're sharing anecdata: I eliminated all sugar from my diet for a month[1], it didn't change a thing. I didn't feel better or worse. I didn't have more or fewer sugar "cravings". Food didn't taste more or less sweet than before. [1] This was during the early pandemic so I was staying inside, cooking all my own meals from scratch, and since I was dieting I was strictly controlling what I ate.
- Aerroon 3y ago
  Have you tried supplementing magnesium or zinc or some other minerals? One of the troubles with processed food is that it reduces the minerals you get out of the food. Maybe the grand parent had a positive reaction because their alternate foods with less processing. Eg dark chocolate tends to contain a lot of magnesium. I personally felt a big difference with magnesium supplementation.
  - craftkiller 3y ago
    My multivitamin has 11mg/day of zinc but it looks like it doesn't have any magnesium. I'll have to try that, thanks!
- vorpalhex 3y ago
  Before you changed your diet, did strawberries taste actually sweet to you? Post diet change, do they taste sweet now?
  - craftkiller 3y ago
    I don't think I ever ate strawberries pre-diet. After that month I went back to eating sugar like normal (but still successfully dieting to lose weight, just abandoning the sugar experiment). The only strawberries I remember ever eating were on some pancakes and covered in syrup, and they were sweet, but the syrup may have influenced that.
- kif 3y ago
  Interesting. So my cravings went down significantly, almost to zero. Normally I have such a sweet tooth, that I cannot resist desserts. During my no-sugar period, I was completely indifferent to it. Food tasted the same, but my sensitivity to sugar was significantly increased. For example, half the usual amount of sugar in my tea would be enough.
hedora 3y ago
I've recently increased the amount of fiber, decreased added sugar and decreased salt. (I check the percent daily value of each on the back of the package. Fiber has to be above the carbs percentage, and the other two have to be below my target calorie percentage.) I highly, highly recommend doing that. Such a diet has been shown to reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. As importantly, I feel much better, and am slowly (sustainably?) losing weight and decreasing my body fat percentage, despite eating how much I want, and regularly cheating on the diet. Following it even half the time is a huge improvement. The only real discipline it requires is at the grocery store, which is easier than when I'm hungry.

by kif 3y ago

craftkiller 3y ago

Since we're sharing anecdata: I eliminated all sugar from my diet for a month[1], it didn't change a thing. I didn't feel better or worse. I didn't have more or fewer sugar "cravings". Food didn't taste more or less sweet than before. [1] This was during the early pandemic so I was staying inside, cooking all my own meals from scratch, and since I was dieting I was strictly controlling what I ate.

Aerroon 3y ago
Have you tried supplementing magnesium or zinc or some other minerals? One of the troubles with processed food is that it reduces the minerals you get out of the food. Maybe the grand parent had a positive reaction because their alternate foods with less processing. Eg dark chocolate tends to contain a lot of magnesium. I personally felt a big difference with magnesium supplementation.
- craftkiller 3y ago
  My multivitamin has 11mg/day of zinc but it looks like it doesn't have any magnesium. I'll have to try that, thanks!
vorpalhex 3y ago
Before you changed your diet, did strawberries taste actually sweet to you? Post diet change, do they taste sweet now?
- craftkiller 3y ago
  I don't think I ever ate strawberries pre-diet. After that month I went back to eating sugar like normal (but still successfully dieting to lose weight, just abandoning the sugar experiment). The only strawberries I remember ever eating were on some pancakes and covered in syrup, and they were sweet, but the syrup may have influenced that.
kif 3y ago
Interesting. So my cravings went down significantly, almost to zero. Normally I have such a sweet tooth, that I cannot resist desserts. During my no-sugar period, I was completely indifferent to it. Food tasted the same, but my sensitivity to sugar was significantly increased. For example, half the usual amount of sugar in my tea would be enough.

hedora 3y ago

I've recently increased the amount of fiber, decreased added sugar and decreased salt. (I check the percent daily value of each on the back of the package. Fiber has to be above the carbs percentage, and the other two have to be below my target calorie percentage.) I highly, highly recommend doing that. Such a diet has been shown to reduce your risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. As importantly, I feel much better, and am slowly (sustainably?) losing weight and decreasing my body fat percentage, despite eating how much I want, and regularly cheating on the diet. Following it even half the time is a huge improvement. The only real discipline it requires is at the grocery store, which is easier than when I'm hungry.