Wow. Hard to believe it's Friday already. We have a welcome cool down in temps and it looks like it's going to be perfect biking weather after dinner!
I'm off in a few minutes to get my blood work done (from my April physical). I was supposed to do this a couple of weeks ago, but forgot about fasting until it was too late. Think I'll take along some strawberries to enjoy in the car, on the way home.
A quick tour of the garden this morning yielded one additional gardenia (with a couple of full buds waiting in the wings) and one of my tomatoes is turning light yellow. I can almost see the squirrels and birds circling the bush, waiting for what they think is
their crop to ripen! Also my little lace cap hydrangea is blooming. It had a hard winter, so I'm happy to see it growing well. I'll take pix later.
I heard recently that Americans eat 135 pounds of sugar per year. I wanted to check that statistic, because it seemed unbelievable. Don't believe it. Americans actually eat
156 pounds of sugar per year! That's in all forms. Twenty-nine pounds of that total is eaten in it's crystal form. 33% of it comes from sugar-filled sodas. Read about it
here. I cut way back on sugar a few years ago. I don't buy the 5 pound bag of sugar anymore. The 2 pound bag lasts us for several months. (Except when I made 9 batches of brownies around the time of my Dad's funeral!) I do have a "sweet tooth." I like the taste of sweet, but adding fruit usually satisfies that need.
How about you? How do you keep your sweet tooth satisfied without consuming 156 pounds of sugar each year?
It hasn't been easy! Sugar is my number one problem I'm tackling right now. I switched to splenda several years ago for most things but there are times and things where nothing but sugar will do. It's evil I tell ya! hahaha Once I've been without sugar for a few weeks it is AMAZZING how alive and sensitive the taste buds become to the subtlest hint of sweet in anything however. I love that. I believe that about the pounds of sugar consumed. I think I remember a grande frappe @starbucks has something like 10-11 teaspoons of sugar alone in it! that's just CRAZY! and why I am making my own sugar-free frozen coffees now. :D
ReplyDeleteWhen I am eating "on plan" I pretty much have no refined sugar products. I get mine from fruit:) I'm a fan of artificial sweeteners, tried to give them up but just love "sweet" tastes.
ReplyDeleteI'm with Karen. I like my sweets. I've tried to give up the artificial stuff, but haven't been able to yet.
ReplyDeleteSince we know quite a few folks that are well below the average consumption, that means a lot of folks eat way more than that. It's a little scary for me to think about.
BTW, this year 65MD and I planted some extra cherry tomatoes around the permiter of our little garden for the 'wildlife' in our nieghborhood. We're hoping they get what they want there and not venture further in to get what we really want. I'll let you know if it works.
Lori
I don't eat sweets very often. I love ice cream, so that's probably where I splurge, if I do. I found a no sugar added blue bell which is really good and low sugar. I don't bake except at holiday time, then I do make candy, but this year not as much. Remember, a lot of that sugar statistic comes from soda and other sugary drinks. I stick to my rule of not drinking my calories and that limits it a lot.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad *someone* is having cooler weather. :)
ReplyDeleteAs you know, I satisfy my sweet tooth by having sweets. :) Not very often, and not in abundance, but if fruit, veggies, or yogurt don't scratch the issue, I'll reach for the Hershey's stash. (One of the dark chocolate kisses is only 25-30 calories, and if you just let it melt in your mouth, it lasts a really long time. :)
I have a sweet tooth too! It's not the sugar in the bag of sugar you buy that gets you, it is the amount of sugar in so many products you buy that s the killer.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's sobering. I don't know that I do great on this one. After my bad weigh in last week I've eliminated late night eating, which has helped cut the sugar. And I don't drink sugary drinks, so that's a good thing.
ReplyDeleteNice touch with the wedding photo :)
I've heard those stats about sugar before. It's hard to believe. I do have a sweet tooth, but I try to avoid sugar for the most part. One think that has been working is using very ripe bananas or dates as a natural sweetener.
ReplyDelete