As cancer survivors, you may be avoiding sugar because you’ve read that ‘sugar feeds cancer’.
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Whilst some of the research is sketchy, other studies are showing that cancer isn’t that fussy and will use whatever it can as a fuel source! Regardless, sugar is not a health food.
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Fortunately, most people have grasped the fact that we don’t need to be afraid of whole fruit, with all of its fibre and nutrients intact. And that fruit juice is nicely packaged liquid sugar and should be left on the shelf!
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The confusion comes with the sugar alternatives like honey, rice malt syrup, agave, maple syrup, coconut sugar etc.
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But sugar is sugar, even if it’s organic or a trendy sugar alternative.
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Without the fibre, all sugar rushes into the blood stream like a tsunami, raises your blood glucose and sets off a chain of events that are not only addictive but damaging to your health.
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Fibre is the key.
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When we eat whole fruit, the fibre slows the absorption of the sugar down to a trickle into the bloodstream. Fruit also contains powerful cancer-kicking nutrients, unlike sugar and it’s alternatives.
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Yes, honey straight from the bees has some nutritional healing qualities but it is still a liquid sugar that needs to be used sparingly. Yes, dried fruit is superior to sugar because the fibre is still intact.
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My goal is to help my clients get their sweetness from whole food sources like fresh whole fruit and dried fruit. Ideas include:
- Use fresh fruit as dessert.
- Puree a banana and a punnet of strawberries. Add a tablespoon of chia seeds and refrigerate for about an hour until thickened.
- Bake good old-fashioned baked apples. Core your apples ( I usually use granny smiths) fill with raisins or your choice of dried fruit, sprinkle with cinnamon. Cover and bake in a moderate oven, for about an hour. Enjoy hot or cold.
- Mash a banana and add about 1/4 cup oats and a dash of cinnamon. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes and then drop teaspoons of mixture onto a baking tray linked with baking paper and bake until golden. These tasty treats are crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle.
- Or you can make my current favourite Black Bean Brownies .
Getting creative with fruit and dried fruit for our sweet treats, sets us up for success and helps to make eating healthy a lifestyle.
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If you would like more information on how to set yourself up for success after your cancer journey, so you can feel confident that you are ‘doing enough’ so you live a long and healthy life, check out how to work with me here.
Empowered Eating Plan
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