Die Fastenzeit ist eine Zeit des Verzichts und sie bietet uns unendlich viele Möglichkeiten. Am weitesten verbreitet ist das Zuckerfasten, meist das Fasten auf den Industriezucker. Das bedeutet, dass Du auf jede Art von Süßigkeiten und Süßgetränken verzichtest. Es kann zu einer wahren Herausforderung werden, wenn der Mittagssnack kein Schokoriegel mehr ist und der Wachmacher am Mittag kein Energydrink mehr. Zusammen mit unserer Ernährungsexpertin Dr. Ulrike Fischer klären wir in diesem Beitrag welche Effekte und Einflüsse das Fasten auf Industriezucker hat.
What is the function of sugar fasting?
Firstly, giving up industrial sugar creates an awareness of your own consumer behavior. It makes you aware of what you consume throughout the day and what habits you have developed. This includes, for example, the sugar in your coffee or tea. Small habits that creep into your everyday life, but which you become aware of during Lent.
What do you need to watch out for during the sugar fast?
It is important that you do not replace sugar with sweetener, as the sweet taste can trigger your sweet tooth, which makes fasting even more difficult. Our nutrition expert Dr. Ulrike Fischer explains why this also reduces cravings. "Your body gets used to sugar as an energy source, but if you give it up, your body will switch to another energy source other than sugar after a while. You will automatically crave healthy alternatives as your body learns to obtain the energy it needs from other nutrients. For example, if you first drink a glass of water and then eat some vegetables when you have a craving, you will be able to cope with this attack with a healthy alternative."
Our nutrition expert also points out that your perception of taste also changes during the fasting period, as the taste of sugar seems much more intense after fasting.
What happens in your body during the sugar fast?
Dr. Ulrike Fischer explains four positive effects of sugar fasting on your body.
1) Stabilization of your blood sugar level
When we consume sugar, our blood sugar level rises, but then drops again after a while. We then feel weak and tired, suffer from poor concentration and get headaches. These headaches also occur more frequently during sugar fasts, as they are a withdrawal symptom of your body's reaction to the lack of sugar. However, this reaction subsides after a few days and you feel more alert and fitter afterwards.
2) Influence on your intestinal flora
The gut is our body's second brain, explains Dr. Fischer. The gut also gets used to the food we eat and demands it accordingly. It sends signals to our brain and demands the food we are used to. So if you consume a lot of sugar in your diet, your gut will crave it. However, if you abstain from sugar, your eating habits will normalize, as the "sugar-addicted" intestinal bacteria will leave your body during the fasting period.
3) Healthy teeth
The third positive effect our nutritionist mentions is the positive impact on our teeth. She explains: "During the sugar fast, the harmful bacteria in our mouths receive fewer nutrients and die off."
4) Losing excess body fat
Finally, you can lose excess body fat during the sugar fast, as you are not consuming empty carbohydrates by not eating sugar. High-quality foods also provide your body with higher-quality proteins, fats and fiber. In contrast to sugar, these high-quality nutrients keep you feeling fuller for longer, so you don't have to snack between meals.
A good start to Lent
Changing your diet from one day to the next is often very difficult. Use the LiveFresh juice cleanse as the perfect start to the fasting period, for example if you want to start with sugar fasting. The detoxjuice cleanse is also well suited as support during the fasting period or offers you the option of short-term fasting.
