White Death

When I was young, I loved to bake and cook with my grandparents. I remember my grandma helping me up on the step stool so I could help her make cookies. I recall her telling me, “The recipe calls for 2 cups of sugar, but I never use that much sugar.” Every time I see a recipe with sugar, I always remember that and think of her wisdom. After learning how harmful white sugar was to our health several years ago, I started gradually cutting back and eventually eliminating it from our diet completely (except for our organic ketchup that I haven’t been able to figure out yet).

White sugar (or white death as I heard it referred to at one time) is stripped of its nutrients and fiber, and this causes it to rob our bodies of magnesium and B vitamins to name a few, it feeds pathogens and yeasts, and elevates our blood sugar quickly which causes a multitude of problems in the body. Eating sugar releases opioids and dopamine in our bodies, and this could be the link between added sugar and its addictive qualities. Refined sugar (white sugar) has been shown to paralyze white blood cells for 5 hours, and white blood cells are those important cells that fight infection and disease. No wonder we were sick so much of the time before changing our diet! Another interesting fact about sugar is that in order to do a PET scan, radioactive glucose is administered into a vein, and then a scanner rotates around the body to take a picture of where the glucose is being used. Malignant tumor cells take up more glucose than normal cells. In other words, cancer cells LOVE sugar!

I could write more about the damage refined sugar causes, but I don’t want to lose you by going too deep into the physiological processes that take place when one ingests sugar. If you haven’t considered refined sugar to be a problem, I highly encourage you to do some research on this subject

I’m going to be honest. I was hesitant in writing this post because sugar is one of those ingredients that is serendipitous to many of us. It brings back memories of our childhood, makes us feel good for the first few bites, and it’s just really fun to make candy, cookies, and the like. Thanks to the government’s subsidy program it’s also cheap! Before subsidization, ladies would hide their small bowl of white sugar and only pull it out for guests.

We used to eat a lot of sugar, and until we cut it out, I had no idea just how bad it was for our health. I don’t judge people for eating sugar, but I don’t think there’s enough education about how toxic, addictive, and harmful white sugar is, and I simply want people to be able to make an educated decision about what they eat. You always hear, “Eat sugar in moderation,” but what’s moderation? I don’t know about you, but if I eat food with this highly addictive poison I want MORE! When I eat homemade foods with good quality ingredients and maple syrup or honey, I feel satisfied and energetic.

My husband and I were travelling to Nehawka last night to pick up some smaller sized, treatment free bees and had a little time to visit on our 4-hour trip. I shared my post with him about sugar, and his comment was, “I can tell my taste buds have changed, because I just don’t crave the sugar like I used to.” His suggestion was to cut back on white sugar, and I think that’s a great place to start. I personally had to completely cut it out, because I don’t do well with “moderation.” Since I have cut it out of all of our food, I have to wonder if that’s why he doesn’t have the cravings anymore (not because he has cut back, but because he has had them eliminated from his diet).

I used to drink one pop every day and eat some form of candy most days. I remember looking forward to it so much and taking that first bite or drink and thinking, “This is fantastic.” After a few more it just tasted okay, and by the end it wasn’t even enjoyable. The cycle continued for years. Since I have no self-discipline, I have found that complete elimination was key for me. I still try not to use a lot of honey or maple syrup in my recipes even though they are better options.

Raw, organic honey (or sourced from a trusted beekeeper) has antioxidants, vitamins, and enzymes and will not contain corn syrup, antibiotics, or other additives. It’s highly digestible and the Bible says it’s good (the Bible is my number one source on everything). Buying local honey directly from a farmer you trust is the best option, so you know exactly what you are getting, plus there are added health benefits to buying local.  

Organic maple syrup (or sourced from a trusted farmer) is another one of our favorites. My son and I harvested sap from about 20 maple trees over the winter so we have been using more maple syrup lately. Maple syrup has essential minerals, including magnesium, potassium, and zinc. Two tablespoons provide half of your daily needed manganese.  It also contains prebiotics and so much more. I didn’t like maple syrup until I bought the real stuff (beware, the real stuff is way more expensive).

It’s nearly impossible to avoid white sugar since it has been added to almost everything, including many organic products (organic white sugar isn’t that much better for our health). One must read labels and be prepared to be shocked at just how many products it’s added to. To give you an idea of where I am today, when I make a recipe that calls for 2 cups of sugar, I will often add ¼ cup of honey. That amount would probably be way too little for most people, but since we have adjusted over time, we are very happy with most of our recipes. I tend to use more when we are making food for others to enjoy with us. I am hoping to share more recipes that use honey or maple syrup over the next several months, and I will try to remember to list the possibility of using more honey or syrup. Do you have a recipe that uses honey or maple syrup? We love to hear from you!