6 Benefits Of Lowering Sugar Intake

There is a lot of discussion about the total mind and body benefits of cutting excess sugar out from your diet. With this article, we’ll visualize what that looks like. Journey through your body and see how limiting sugar in your diet will benefit your overall health. That means you will learn the benefits of lowering sugar intake and how much you can improve your overall health when you do that.

6 Unparalleled Health Benefits Of Limiting Sugar Intake

1. Reducing sugar will make your brain more alert

If you find yourself glossing over reports and articles multiple times to grasp the information and make associations, cutting down on the sugar in your diet will help. The chemical Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) assists the brain in learning and making memories, without which cognitive abilities and responsiveness slow down. An excess of fructose – a form of sugar- impairs the production of BDNF and, in turn, productivity. And it does not stop there. Low BDNF has been linked to far more severe cognitive disabilities like dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The cost of this is far more than taking longer to read a document. Consider healthy alternatives like unsweetened tea for a drink and almonds for a snack. With time, your brain will thank you.

2. Sugar and your skin

Research indicates that a lifetime of excess sugar can make your skin dull and wrinkled. Our bodies combine excess sugar in the bloodstream with proteins to form Advanced Glycation End Products. Appropriately acronymed, AGE products weaken collagen and elastin, the proteins that keep skin firm, leading to premature wrinkles and sagging. However, while the sugars in sweets and candy are bad for you, good sugars in complex carbohydrates (like brown rice) in combination with healthy fats (like olive oil and avocados), and antioxidants (like berries) are perfect building blocks for maintaining great skin.

3. What reducing sugar will do for your smile

If ‘sugar is bad for you’ is not an adequate argument, consider this. Sugar is an ideal food source for bacteria in the mouth to reproduce quickly, causing plaque buildup and bad breath. This bacteria then proceeds to irritate your gums and cause gum disease, dental decay and cavities.
A clean smile is important for more important reasons than aesthetics. Infected gums are a gateway for an infection to travel deeper into the body. So oral care is also total body care.

4. Less sugar for a healthy heart

The impact of sugar on the pancreas is discussed widely. Excess sugars can make the pancreas produce more insulin than normal to stabilize blood sugar. Over a period, the overworked pancreas stops being able to release the hormone efficiently – sometimes contributing to a later Type 2 diabetes diagnosis. Added sugar in diets also lower levels of HDL (the good cholesterol) while elevating levels of LDL (the bad one) and triglycerides. This combination winds up clogging arteries and blood vessels, putting pressure on your heart.
The biggest contributor to all these problems is sugary drinks. And the most surefire way to cut it out of your system is to quench your thirst the way nature intended it, with a glass of clean and cold water.

5. Sugar and weight-loss

Another obvious health benefits of lowering sugar intake is that it helps in weight loss. Leptin is, essentially, the weight-loss and weight control hormone in the human body which works by triggering the message of being full to prevent overeating. When your diet is packed with sugar, the insulin spike hinders leptin from reaching the brain to communicate the cut-off. So, you are not just eating a lot of empty calories; you also have no idea when to stop.
A good strategy to control your sugar intake is to consciously leave out sugar-loaded products from your grocery list. On days when you crave something sweet, you always have the option of getting to an ice-cream parlour or treating yourself to a well-deserved dessert.

6. How reducing sugar will keep you active

If the mid-afternoon sluggishness is making your productivity slide, it may be a call to curb your sugar intake. Orexin cells in the body signal wakefulness and keep you on your feet. Excess sugar in the diet turns these cells off, causing a dip in energy.
Eating or drinking too much of table sugar, fructose, and honey will also cause a drop in the ability of the body’s white blood cells. This lowers your body’s immunity, significantly impeding your sense of well being.

On a final note, sugar has complex ways of altering the body’s biochemistry, creating unhealthy dependencies and a host of health issues. So the true sweet spot does not lie in a tub of ice-cream. Instead, practice moderation. If you are willing to practice moderation, by reducing sugar intake in your diet then you will definitely gain this benefits.

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AUTHOR’S BIO

Dr Nathan Brooks, DDS, lives out his lifelong dream as the owner of Anderson Dental Care in Cincinnati, Ohio. He leads a welcoming, family-focused clinic that offers comprehensive general and cosmetic dental care. With a Master’s in Biology from Purdue University and a Doctorate of Dental Surgery from Indiana University, he continues to pursue dentistry education to serve better and care for patients. On weekends, you’ll find Dr Brooks, his wife, and their children adventuring outdoors or playing together indoors, depending on the season!

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