The Benefits Of Doing A Sugar Detox

Sugar is one of the building blocks of life. Take photosynthesis, for example. During this process, plants create sugars in their bodies using sunlight, and it's these sugars that act as their food, as their life force (via Britannica). Humans, too, require sugar to survive. Our glucose levels need to be consistent, especially because irregulation can lead to type 2 diabetes, per WebMD. However, this can be hard when sugar is in nearly everything, especially pre-packaged foods. This has led to more and more people committing to occasional sugar detoxes, which help them reset their bodies' sugar levels.

What happens to your body when you cut out sugar is rather interesting. You're breaking a sugar addiction, which means you'll experience symptoms of withdrawal rather immediately. Thankfully, just as with caffeine withdrawal, these symptoms won't last too long. Still, it's important to understand the benefits of detoxing every now and then, and there are sure signs to tell if you're addicted to sugar. If you see them, it may be time to cleanse your body.

The thing about sugar is that it's good for you when it's natural and consumed in moderate amounts. After all, fruits and vegetables contain natural sugars that fuel the body. It's processed sugars that contribute to weight gain, spiked glucose levels, and other harmful side effects (via Business Insider). If you want to detox to afford your body time to cleanse itself, you should understand the myriad benefits of this process.

Committing to a sugar detox can be hard, especially once withdrawal symptoms settle in. However, it can be amazing for your body. According to Business Insider, benefits of sugar detoxes include losing weight, lessened sugar cravings, consuming fewer calories, less risk of developing diabetes and other chronic illnesses, and better oral health. Sugar is a leading cause for cavities, after all, and dentists are one of the first specialized doctors that tell us as children to limit our sugar intake for this very reason.

Weight loss inherently accompanies sugar detoxes because sugars are high in calories, no matter if you're consuming granulated sugar, powdered sugar, or brown sugar. According to Livestrong.com, a gram of sugar contains four calories, and a teaspoon contains 17 calories. Think then about how many teaspoons of sugar are in a sweet coffee drink or a baked good. Those calories add up quickly, so cutting them out in favor of unsweetened coffee or fruit for breakfast instead can be very beneficial for your body.

"Once you take sugar away from your diet cold turkey, your palate recalibrates, and you start tasting natural sugars again," dietitian Brooke Alpert told CNN. According to Alpert, the recalibration of the palette is one of the biggest benefits of detoxing from sugar. It helps us realize how much sugar we've actually been consuming. However, while she recommends quitting cold turkey for a detox, it's important to remember that life is short and no one is perfect. As Business Insider notes, an "all or nothing" mentality isn't healthy for a detox like this.

Happy detoxing!