Most of the time I hear people say “No Soda September” so it was all about challenging oneself to refrain from taking soda drinks throughout the month. I have never opted for the challenge, but I can say I am practicing the challenge almost every month. This is because I hardly take soft drinks. I take them once in a while. And most times I just take them when I need something cold.
But still, if we are to talk about no sugar intake then we have to stop taking all carbohydrates because they end up as sugar in our body. So there is no way we can do without taking sugar.
Where the problem comes is taking excess of it. This is where the problem lies. You get diagnosed with a high sugar level and it would in one way or the other affect your body system. In the same way, it’s advisable to take sugar, it's always important to make it clear to avoid taking excess of it.
Someone I know so closely recently was diagnosed with a low sugar level. Ooh ooh. I was surprised that there could even be a low sugar level. Wow. That means his intake of sugar was so low. I don't know what could be the cause but I am sure he had to take more sugar to balance his sugar level.
So taking excess of anything is bad as it comes with its adverse effects, in the same way not taking them at all or in minimal quantities could also have negative impacts. An adequate and moderate amount is okay and healthy.
Though we have different body systems and different ways we react to things. Someone might take ten cubes of sugar in just a mug of tea and won't even feel they have taken sugar, meanwhile, someone else would just have two cubes and anything above that is excessive for them.
As for me, I take sugar at a moderate level. And there are times when I don’t even take them at all. So I can survive without having sugar in some of my meals. Other things I see people make use of in place of sugar are honey, rice syrup, coconut sugar, fruit sweeteners, and many more. But the drawback here is that most of these other options are at times way more expensive than refined sugar.
My experience with not taking sugar was limited to only using honey as a substitute before. When I take tea I use honey in place of sugar, and I have also done something similar to pap. It gave a nice and satisfying result. It even appeared more natural than using sugar itself.
Then another wonderful experience was during my service year when I had to have a taste of fruit bread. Wow. It tasted so different. I love the taste of it. It was baked with fruits as a sweetener. Then I also bought a Zobo drink from a friend of mine who happened to be a chef. I have always drunk zobo with sugar as a sweetener, but having a taste of her fruit zobo got me drinking it without control.
She used fresh pineapple as a sweetener, some with oranges, and I can tell you they taste so great. What I love about them is the natural taste that comes out of them. So in conclusion there are many more available options to opt for if I decided not to take sugar again.
This is my response to the HIVE LEARNERS weekly prompt in hive learners community for the Week 125 Edition 3 and the topic to be discussed is SUGAR IS BAD
