There’s just one thought I cannot reconcile after more than 6 months of quitting sugar. Dr. Robert Lustig and so many others are pretty sure that eating ANY sugar at all is deadly and shouldn’t ever happen. Yet, I have more trust in nature than I do Lustig, (who I’m a fan of, however).

So why, then, did we evolve to have sweet receptors (taste buds) on our tongues? Nature doesn’t do anything without a reason. The fact that we evolved to have sweet receptors and can specifically detect sweetness in food is significant, if you ask me, but it’s also confusing when I consider the current science behind the effects of sugar on our bodies. My present line of thinking is that there must be a reason for it. If that’s true, then my next logical conclusion is that eating sugar isn’t all bad. However, eating too much sugar is definitely very bad. And that’s where the problems begin.Because of this, I will be starting some new experiments that will involve eating sugar in various forms and seeing if I can identify a threshold where eating sugar becomes bad, or at least bad for me. How much sugar is okay to eat and how much is too much?

I’d say that eating too much refined sugar and (simple sugars in general) is what causes our health to decline. The best way (that I know of) to determine what any sugar is doing to me is to monitor my blood sugar levels, since many doctors and health scientists have already identified a range that appears to be “safe” and a range where blood sugar levels begin to cause problems. I realize that these ranges are not a hard-and-fast rule, but it’s a good starting point.

Friends, if you’ve been reading here for a while, you might know that my goal is to become super human–or as close to being super human as possible. Therefore, this update is possibly one of the most important I’ve written so far, here on Quitting Sugar. If you want to do some good in life and truly help other people, you’re going to want to shout this out from every rooftop, Twitter, Facebook, and social networking feed that you have. Not only that, but email the heck out of this article to everyone you know. Yeah, it’s THAT BIG!

On February 26th, Jamie Saal VanEaton (who is wickedly funny and has a must-follow healthy food blog!) told me about a book that had the potential to change my life. So before I go any further, I gotta give a shout-out to mah girl, Jamie….Hey, Jamie!  Woot!!  The book, which has now made history in my life, represents a turning point in my state of health. But before I reveal this book, let me share a snapshot of my results, as if the title of this article doesn’t say enough.

Recently, I posted a quick exercise for developing conviction on the Quitting Sugar Facebook page. I think having conviction is critical for quitting sugar and staying strong enough to resist temptation. In fact, if your conviction is strong enough, temptations and cravings can be greatly reduced or even eliminated altogether.

Yes, I know it seems unlikely that you can eliminate the feeling of temptation, and you’re probably thinking, “Scott just doesn’t understand! I cannot live without [favorite sugary treat]!” Maybe you’re right. But I was in your shoes once. Read my post, “Me: On The Floor In A Blissful Sugary Fog” and see what I mean. I never even entertained the possibility of giving up sugar until fate handed me a powerful wake-up call that changed my life. If I can do this, you can do this too.

Below is a brief exercise that will only take a few minutes. You may want to record yourself reading the steps and play them back or find a partner and take turns reading it to each other so you can focus completely on getting into the right state of mind.

Since quitting sugar on October 24th, 2011, I’ve adopted a low carbohydrate, moderate protein, and high fat diet. Basically, the Atkins diet. That’s been going really well.

Though I’ve lost a lot of weight, it was never my primary focus. Sure, I’m stoked about being leaner. It feels great to fit into some of my old clothes. Also my abs are beginning to resurface, which totally rocks. And one of the benefits of the Atkins diet (if you do it right), is that you never…and let me emphasize this point…NEVER(!) have to go hungry. There’s always something you can eat when you’re hungry. In fact, if you’re keeping only fresh and mostly unprocessed foods in your refrigerator and pantry, you can almost eat whatever you want when you’re hungry and not gain any weight.

So when I hear about people following other diets, I almost pity them. I want to pull them aside and explain how awesome the Atkins approach is. I’m pretty much convinced that it’s hands-down, the best diet, period.  …or is it?

Alright, I’m rolling up my sleeves now, friends. I recently had some blood work done to track the changes in my blood cholesterol since I quit eating sugar. I’ve been on a strict low-carb diet. And I say with all honesty, that I’ve been firmly sticking to it and have never once eaten sugar except that which occurs naturally such as in some vegetables. I’ve lost 20+ pounds. I feel better and healthier and look much healthier.  So when I looked at my recent cholesterol results, I was hoping to see some good news.

On my lab results page that I received from my doctor’s office was a comment that said, “Excellent Chemistry _____” I couldn’t make out the last word. So I was excited to see that, though I didn’t realize that this probably referred to other tests that were done, not to my cholesterol results. Naturally, I assumed my doc was talking about my cholesterol and that the results were excellent. But my cholesterol results weren’t on this specific form. So I arranged to pick up a complete copy of my results from my doctor’s office. When I got home and looked them over, oddly, the cholesterol results weren’t included. But that was probably because the lab that checks LDL particle size also had the overall cholesterol results as well. So I logged into my online account to see if the updated lab results were available. They were. When I looked at them, I suddenly felt a sinking feeling. The results I got were disappointing. They weren’t all bad, but still, while some markers got better, some got worse and it left me wondering what went wrong.

It’s been 3 months since I quit eating sugar. In this video, I talk about getting my blood work done again. I’ll tell you about how I almost ate sugar. And I give an update on my search for  low-carb bread recipes. And last, but not least, I talk about trying Quest Bars. If you prefer to read the text, keep reading for a summary.

For those of you who have ever attempted to quit eating sugar, you know how difficult it is. But for most people, quitting sugar is terrifying. The mere thought of giving up sugar sends ripples of fear down their spines. Some of you have actually attempted to quit sugar, maybe even several times, but found it far too difficult to resist your urges. Most people would agree…it’s not easy.

I have made a personal commitment to quit sugar, not only for 30 days, but for life. Eating too much sugar will kill you, one way or another…usually slowly and painfully. If you could make one change in the way you eat, there is probably nothing more dramatic (and more challenging) than quitting sugar. So if you made this sacrifice, this change in your lifestyle, I’m sure you would feel incredibly satisfied. And knowing that you are going to be among the healthiest people on the planet is probably something you will value thoroughly.

The Secret That Nobody is Talking About

But, I must caution all of you who are interested in quitting sugar. As good as it will make you feel, there is a downside that I have never heard anyone speak of. I’ve never heard this mentioned in any podcasts, TV programs, or radio broadcasts, nor have I read about this anywhere else, but I have a feeling this downside is something that all sugar quitters everywhere will or have experienced. But before I tell you about this, here’s a disclaimer.