You wouldn’t think twice about saying ‘no’ a Mars bar, but did you know that some shop bought muesli can have as much as 23g of sugar per serving?

2014 has been a ground breaking year in the world of sugar; this white powder is now known as the perpetrator behind diseases such as diabetes and our growing obesity epidemic. The problem is that sugar is now in everything we eat, often masquerading behind names such as glucose or different syrups. Then there’s also the problem of fructose which is a naturally occurring sugar, found in fruit and honey- can we have too much of a good thing?

I used to consume a lot of sugar without realising it from seemingly healthy sources such as low fat yoghurt and bread! Every day I was spiking my insulin levels with these so called healthy foods which were actually draining me and making me feel constantly anxious.

There’s a lot of research which suggests that sugar is a highly addictive substance; the average Briton consumes 22 teaspoons of sugar per day whilst French researchers have reported that in recent tests, their laboratory rats chose sugar over cocaine… even though the rats were in fact addicted to cocaine!

3 Signs You’re a Sugar Addict:

• You crave something sweet after each meal
• Once you have a taste of something sinfully sweet, you want more and more
• Sugar is your comfort blanket; you want something sweet when you are feeling low

3 No Fail Techniques to Conquering your Cravings:

Keep your blood sugar level stable

This is the key to long term success in steering clear of the sweet stuff. Add spices such as cinnamon to your breakfast and eating 5 small meals

Get a Natural Fix
Keep yourself motivated by having a weekly treat. Raw cacao is an indulgent antioxidant rich way to get your chocolate fix. Why not try my Raw Chocolate Tart or Gluten Free Vanilla Cake?

Replace your treat

Pick yourself up when you’re feeling low by painting your nails or contacting a friend who you have lost touch with. Often our cravings are signs that we are dehydrated or bored so have a glass of water or go for a walk and let that craving pass…

Treat this like a detox

When you begin cutting out sugar, your body will undoubtedly go through a slow detox stage. You may suffer from fatigue and headaches for the first few days; go to bed early, eat lots of greens and give your body the rest it deserves.