The Elephant in the Room
The elephant in the room is.....
SUGAR.
Over the past six weeks, I have frequently been asked how our immune system can be supported in the best way possible.
My answer is going to be the same whether we are in the middle of a crippling pandemic or not.
There are many elements that will support your immune system.
Stress reduction. Sleeping 7-8 hours per night. Moving your body daily. Having meaningful relationships. Mindfulness and deep breathing. Hand washing. Zinc, Vitamin D and a few other supplements. All of these have their place, but there is not one of them that will protect or enhance your immune system as much as reducing/eliminating SUGAR.
Pictured above is a mound of sugar and 1 sugar cube. They both represent 1 teaspoon or 4 grams of sugar. Take a look at an item in your pantry or refrigerator and look at the total sugar on the label. If it says 20 g, that means it contains 5 teaspoons of sugar. I will be going more in depth with sugar content of various food items soon!
Pictured is what the American Heart Association recommends for sugar intake per day.
Women less than 6 teaspoons.
Men less than 9 teaspoons.
Average intake per day is... 17 teaspoons!
Sugar and Your Immune System.
Our immune system is so incredibly amazing and complex. The important take-away that has been more prevalent than ever, is the need to reduce sugar consumption to allow our immune system to work at its full capacity.
The cumulative effect of sugar over time leads to high levels of sugar (glucose) in our blood called hyperglycemia. Constantly having too much sugar in our blood causes inflammation. Chronic inflammation and hyperglycemia are the underlying features of heart disease, diabetes, liver disease, and obesity. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6723551/
When we have chronic inflammation, our immune system is unable to function properly. How do we lower inflammation? The best place to start to start is….
Eat LESS Sugar.
Every time we consume sugar, our immune system is suppressed for 2-4 hours. Most Americans are eating sugar ALL day long leading to chronic immune suppression.
There are so many variables that we are unable to control right now.
The one constant that we do have control over is the food and beverage we CHOOSE to put in our body.
Over-consuming sugar is not your fault. Big food has us addicted to their processed food. Up to 70% of packaged foods contain sugar.
Start with one thing to reduce or eliminate. Or, do you need to do an overhaul of your cabinets to create an environment with less temptation?
Cheers to a stronger immune system and metabolic health!
