It’s the Most Sugar-ful Time of the Year!

It’s that time of year again! With Thanksgiving just a couple of weeks away, the holidays are upon us, and with them typically comes a dramatic increase in sugar consumption.

The sugar season really began several weeks ago when the Halloween candy first started hitting the store shelves. The stores are well-aware that those bags of candy that get purchased in September by those “stocking up early” will be long gone come October 31^st . It’s those early bags of Halloween candy that start the official annual sugar binge that will last through New Year’s, possibly even until the resupply comes for Valentine’s Day.

After Halloween, there’s the Halloween candy clearance at the stores, followed quickly by Thanksgiving pies and other desserts, and then the Christmas cookies, Hanukkah sufganiyot and babka, and other winter holiday sweets.

It truly is a joyous time – for the big sugar producers!

The most obvious consequence of eating all the extra sugar is weight gain, but I have long suspected that it also has something to do with the spike in colds, flus and other illnesses this time of year.

High sugar consumption is associated with weaker immune function.

It also makes you more susceptible to stress (not that anyone has any of that right now), and can contribute to anxiety, depression, and chronic fatigue.

For these reasons, I strongly recommend minimizing your sugar intake as much as you can. I realize that can be difficult, both from a sugar craving standpoint as well as potentially awkward social interactions. But there are some relatively simple steps you can take that will at least reduce the potential for major binges.

First, get rid of any remaining Halloween candy that might be lying around seductively tempting you. And by “get rid of,” I mean put it in the trash and then take the trash out of your home for final disposal – not eating it in one final binge! A lot of us (including me) have trouble doing this because we were taught as kids not to waste food, but candy really isn’t food, and dumping it really is the best thing for you and your family!

When it comes to holiday sweets, it can be awkward to turn down desserts and such altogether, at risk of offending the person who lovingly made the sugar bombs in question. In these situations, I recommend you think portion control and forgo the a la mode on any pie you might choose to enjoy (whipped cream is relatively low in sugar, but ice cream is not!).

Cookies and other small treats are mainly a numbers game – having a cookie or two isn’t so bad, but when one or two becomes half a dozen or more, that’s when the damage starts to set in, especially if that happens multiple times throughout the holidays!

One thing that can help you to moderate your intake of sweets is to focus more on good quality protein and fats to help satiate you so that you’re not hungry – perhaps even feeling full – before the opportunity of the sweets presents itself.

Some mindfulness of what you’re about to eat weighed against the potential negative effects (weight gain, fatigue, increased susceptibility to getting sick, etc.) may also help you abstain or more strictly limit portion sizes.

Finally, staying physically active also helps mitigate some of the adverse effects of excess sugar consumption, so it’s highly recommended to get some exercise at least 3 days a week. Time can be short during the holidays and it can be difficult to make time for the gym. But every bit counts – a 15 minute walk or some quick body weight exercises (pushups, squats, planks, etc.) can usually be squeezed in even with the addition of holiday activities to the schedule.

With a little planning and discipline, you can avoid a lot of the problems of the sugar season.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Until next time…

George F. Best, D.C.