Are you addicted to sugar?

If the answer is yes, don't feel bad. You're not alone. And you've been set up!

Unless you carefully read every food label, it's very likely that you consume way more sugar than you think. And when we consume sugar, it can dramatically alter our brain chemistry and metabolism, causing intense cravings.

What? How?

Scientists have studied the brains of men and women after a high sugar meal, showing increased blood flow in the nucleus accumbens, the part of the brain that regulates cravings, rewards, and addictive behaviors. Just like an alcoholic who has a drink or a drug addict who takes a hit of a drug.

When this reward center lights up, it reinforces the desire for that stimulus, which, over time, becomes an addiction.

Here's what to look out for on nutrition labels. All of these terms are just a sneaky way to say 'sugar':

• Anything with the word 'agave'

• Anything with the word 'corn' (except whole, real corn), especially high fructose corn syrup! Avoid that like the plague

• Brown rice syrup, or similar

• Anything with the word syrup

• Anything that begins with the word 'cane'

• Fruit concentrate

• Any word with the suffix '-ose' like fructose, dextrose, etc

• Anything with the word 'malt' like maltodextrin or malt syrup

• Anything with the profile 'iso-' like is-glucoses or is-maltose

• Anything sweet like molasses or honey

• And of course, anything with the word 'sugar' like beet sugar, brown sugar, coconut sugar, etc

Of course you can have some sugar in moderation, but with so many of our packaged foods and drinks laced with sugar, we have to be careful not to overdo it. It's sugar that causes heart disease, diabetes, cancer and more!

Now let's say you ARE addicted to sugar. What can you do?

1. Eliminate sugar and processed foods, plus most fruits and all starch and grains for 10-14 days.

Instead, eat whole read foods like tons of veggies, eggs, wild caught fish, grass-fed organic meat, nuts, seeds, olive oil, a small amount of berries, herbal teas and plenty of water.

2. Take high quality supplements

As your body resets and detoxes the sugar, it'll be great to supplement with:

• A multivitamin

• Purified fish oil (EPA/DHA)

• Vitamin D3

• Magnesium glycinate

• Chromium, alpha-lipoic acid (great for blood sugar control)

• Zinc

After a couple weeks of detox, you can slowly reincorporate more of your favorite whole, real foods like fruit, quinoa, sweet potato, rice, legumes, and even some maple syrup or honey.

It's not the sugar YOU add to your food that will hurt you. It's the crap hidden in our food that will.

You are not your sugar addiction! A couple weeks of "detox" and being wary of what's on your plate can change your life.

Happy Sugar-Free Friday!