Avoid THIS if you're trying to lose weight

Cutting out sugar? Trying to lose weight? Many reach for sweeteners to replace those sugar cravings but a new study has found that artificial sweeteners actually increase metabolic dysfunction. 

How sweeteners mess with your metabolism

As it turns out, sweeteners aren't so sweet after all. The study found that consuming sweeteners caused fat-producing genes to go into overdrive, increasing the amount of glucose storage¹.

"We believe that low-calorie sweeteners promote additional fat formation by allowing more glucose to enter the cells, and promotes inflammation, which may be more detrimental to obese individuals" explains the study's author.

But that's not the only reason why you should ditch artificial sweeteners...

Another study last June found that sweeteners were associated with long-term weight gain and also found they were associated with an increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease².

Effective ways to reduce your sugar intake

1. Adding protein and fibre to any meal or snack allows sugar to be released into the bloodstream more slowly. This also reduces the carbohydrate content, making your meals less sugar heavy and preventing cravings later in the day.

2. Magnesium, B vitamins and chromium are key nutrients for balancing blood sugar levels so taking your supplements will help support your body as you wean yourself off the sweet stuff.  

3. Spices such as cinnamon are a great natural way to help your body balance insulin levels. Some studies have also shown cinnamon to help improve insulin resistance, helping you undo the damage of sugar consumption3. 

4. One of the best things you can do to beat sugar cravings is to reset your taste buds. The more sugar and sweeteners you consume, the more your taste buds develop a ‘sweet tooth’. This is made worse by the fact that your taste buds then become desensitised to sugar, making you need more of it to obtain the same sweetness.  If you cut out sugar for an extended period of time, you will find that your sugar tolerance levels drop and you won’t crave as much sugar as before.

Trying to lose weight? Download the VITL app for Nutritionist Alli Godbold's weight loss meal plan available on VITL Pro!