In America, we take dessert seriously. While our European peers stick to basics, we take sweets to another level. Chocolate with nuts, apple or pumpkin pie, bourbon pecan pralines, Oreo and peanut butter pie, mango and macadamia tart, peanut butter brownies, chocolate chip cheesecake cookies, vanilla fudge ice cream.. The land of the free has a historic relationship with sweets; nothing unites Americans like their love for sweets. Every state has its contribution to dessert culture, justifying the term, “United Sweets of America”. Sugar, in all its forms, can make long evenings more pleasant, can improve our mood, and create long-lasting memories. Sugar rehab- 6 substitutes that can fight sugar cravings.
However, the times have changed. The “United Sweets of America” is under attack, with diabetes, hypertension, insulin resistance and all sorts of diseases plaguing our nation. Popular culture should adapt to integrate best practices, all without taking away our liberty to indulge our sweet tooth. Today, it is important to exercise healthy moderation when consuming sweets. The World Health Organization recommends limiting the intake of added sugars to less than10% of the total energy value of the daily diet. Boring! But true nonetheless.
Suddenly cutting on sugars may present some tough withdrawal symptoms. Yes, sugar is addictive, as is coffee and other American household staples. Identifying possible substitutes may help you survive this long, arduous journey.
DARK CHOCOLATE
When it comes to low-calorie sweets, dark chocolate reigns supreme. The higher the content of real cocoa, the better. It is also worth noting that dark cocoa and its products are characterized by a significantly higher content of antioxidants than most other foods. However, you should remember not to eat a whole bar at once. Check the serving size on the “Nutrition Facts” label on the back. If you have a craving for something sweet, you should revive your lust for 2-3 cubes of dark chocolate.
HONEY
When it comes to calories, there is no difference between regular sugar and honey. The contrast lies in honey’s distinct health properties. When we add honey to tea for instance, it benefits our immune system and body performance, among a range of healing and restorative effects. However, to reap the benefits of honey, one must wait 20 minutes before adding honey to a boiling tea. Otherwise, the heat would jeopardize the health benefits of the honey, depriving it of its health properties.
Still, honey will still give you that sugar rush. Therefore, if we care about having slim figure and we drink a lot of tea each day, it may be better to learn to appreciate a bitter, unsweetened tea. Or maybe we don’t have to add honey each time we make tea.
HOMEMADE MUESLI BARS
Chocolate with nuts, coconut with caramel filling.. Convenient store checkout registers are with these easy-to-grab delicacies. When was the last time you endured a long queue at the store with kids and a big trolley? It is then that we usually instinctively reach for small “healthy” bars to snack on. These bars, however, are far from healthy, and they tend to contain more sugar than your body can handle. The best alternative to snack bars from the convenience store are homemade granola bars. All you need is some resolve and time. The web offers all kinds of recipes to satisfy all sorts of tastes and diets, so that you can incorporate your favorite fruit, nuts and keto-friendly sweetener in a seamless manner. Et voilà!
HEALTHY COOKIES
Coffee and cookies go hand in hand. Probably most of us drink at least one cup of coffee a day. And usually, at that moment, our sweet tooth begins to itch, a persistent craving for sugar. However, this presents a long-term risk, with adverse effects such as weight gain due to high caloric intake. A good remedy is to make such cookies yourself, or to make dough from alternative flour types that don’t spike your blood sugar levels. Consider spelled, millet and coconut flour, which are readily available on the market shelves. Diabetics tend to go for almond flour, coconut flour, chickpea flour, and oat flour too. Additionally, a great addition to our home baking can be dried fruit, nuts, or bran. They work well with coffee, but serve as healthy snacks generally.
FRUIT & VEGETABLE CRISPS
Chips and crackers are often the snack of choice when watching movies, football games, or during parties. Due to all sorts of additives and unhealthy industrial practices, such snacks should be weeded out of your diet. Make your healthier version instead! A version without aromas, preservatives, or flavor enhancers. Fruit and vegetable chips can be a good substitute too. There’s a wide range of products to choose from. Carrots, bananas, apples, beetroots, and tomatoes.. There is something for everyone. To enhance the flavor of your chips, we can top it all off with a sprinkle of basil or oregano. Interestingly, Middle Easterners on the Mediterranean tend to top it off with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of za’atar (basically, thyme).
Also, make sure you check out the now-trending Vegetable chips. They can accompany your soup of choice. In turn, banana or apple chips work splendidly well with porridge, yumm!
FRUIT COCKTAILS
Now let’s get a bit creative. In addition to our favorite fruits, we can add yogurt, cow’s milk, plant-based milks (e.g. oat milk, rice milk, almond, spelt milk).. Add to that various grains, such as linseed, chia, sesame, nuts, or sunflower seeds. Complex carbohydrates in the form of oatmeal or bran make for great complements. In this way, our cocktail options are endless, with nothing short of a nutritious, fulfilling snack or lunch. Check out our article about most interesting food here.
CONCLUSIONS
Next time your cravings kick in, do not give in. Substitutes abound, with healthy options and ingredients alike invading supermarket shelves and offering alternatives. Instead of yielding and reaching out for that same-old bar of chocolate, that candy from childhood, that soda, or jellies, you can learn to explore health-conscious alternatives. Muesli bars or doughnuts we can easily prepare at home. And so, for example, instead of sugar we use honey. Simple. It is known that it will contain sugar, but honey is at least a “lesser evil”.
Moreover, if we will make them at home, we know the exact composition and ingredients used. It is different with bought products, especially those with thirty lines of ingredients. What the hell is an emulsifier? Therefore, I encourage you to check out the above-mentioned substitutes and implement a couple into your diet. Next time your cravings kick in, or you’re just having one of those days, or you’re on your period, you know you have choice. And with choice comes freedom to enforce change into your lifestyle and wellbeing.
