A couple of years ago I started looking at sugar in my diet. I did not fully understand the affects of sugar on the health of our bodies. Our country is suffering from a massive overdose of sugar. How sweet is our love affair with sugar? Let’s just say we are beyond infatuation. The average American consumes an astonishing 2-3 pounds of sugar each week. In the early 1900’s it was estimated that we consumed less than 20 pounds a year and now it is over 150 pounds a year. The increase in our sugar consumption is not surprising. We eat more processed foods which consist of highly refined sugars in the forms of sucrose, dextrose and high-fructose corn syrup. These sugars are being processed into many foods such as bread, breakfast cereal, mayonnaise, peanut butter, ketchup, spaghetti sauce, and a plethora of microwave meals.

It is important to look at the food you are eating and to examine what it is you are eating and the way it makes you feel. As most of you know, sugar gives a high and then it causes a crash. Many are in this addictive cycle and need to break free of the harmful side effects. The best way to do this I believe is to educate yourself and make better choices. What helped me tremendously was reading the books by Michael Pollan. He explains what happened to food in our country and how it is you can eat to feel better. If you think Wall Street took advantage, you need to know what the food industry has done to us. It is a good read. His newest book tells you how to eat. It has great suggestions and the biggest thing I learned from him that I carry around in my head is, "Eat less, more often, mostly plants."