Sugar Busters

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Sugar Busters diet is a low-carbohydrate diet focused on eliminating foods containing refined carbohydrates such as refined sugar, white flour, and white rice, as well as naturally-occurring carbohydrates rating high on the glycemic index such as potatoes and carrots.

The Sugar Busters Diet was developed in the 1990s and works in a similar way to the Zone Diet. It was developed by a group of professionals: Samuel S. Andrews, M.D., Morrison C. Bethea, M.D., Luis A Balart, M.D., and H. Leighton Steward, MSc and CEO of a Fortune 500 energy company. Like the Zone Diet, the Sugar Busters Diet recommends that daily calorie intake is split into a 40/30/30 ratio. However, unlike the Zone Diet, where the higher 40% ratio is made up of carbohydrate, the Sugar Busters Diet recommends that 40% of daily calorie intake is made up of fat, 30% is made up of protein, and the final 30% is made up of carbohydrate

The theory behind the Sugar Busters Diet is that sugar is toxic to our bodies and can cause an increase in insulin. This then causes weight gain. It particularly discourages consumption of refined sugars such as those found in cakes and sweets. The authors claim that, although the body does need certain amounts of insulin, too much of it can be bad for the health and that this diet will ensure that insulin levels are kept at a low, healthy level. The diet also prohibits foods that are highly ranked in the Glycemic Index (GI). This is an index that rates all food by the effect it has upon the insulin levels in the blood. GI prohibited products in the Sugar Buster Diet include potatoes, pasta, and some vegetables. The Sugar Busters Diet does encourage the consumption of meat, poultry, unsaturated fats, dairy products, and fruit/vegetables. Like all other diets, there are pros and cons to this diet.

Advantages of the diet include:

The diet helps to eliminate consumption of refined sugar

This diet does not involve calorie counting

The diet cuts out many foods that are clearly unhealthy

The diet encourages exercise along with the diet.'

Disadvantages include:

The diet also eliminates some valuable minerals and nutrients

This diet is not suitable for vegetarians

Weight loss is probably down to the automatic calorie reduction and not the 40/30/30 ratio

The diet restricts some fruit and vegetables, which are essentially healthy for us.

The Sugar Busters Diet does encourage dieters to take exercise as well as drink plenty of water, which is important in any diet. The writers of the diet claim that this diet discourages - and is in fact wary of - saturated fats, not only because they can cause weight gain but because of the effect they can have upon vital organs, in particular the heart. They also advise that all meat should be lean and should have the fat trimmed off it. Plenty of high fibre food is also encouraged in this diet, although some high fibre foods, such as bananas, are prohibited because they also contain high levels of sugar.

However, nutritionists argue that their claim that sugar is toxic to the body is complete nonsense and that, although sugar has no nutritional value and counts as 'empty calories', it is in no way toxic. They also argue that this diet, although it has its advantages, cuts out far too many nutrients that are essential to our health, as well as healthy foods like potatoes and bread. There are also concerns about the high levels of protein encouraged in this diet. A review and analysis was carried out on the diet, led by UK Professor of Medicine and Clinical Nutrition at the College of Medicine, James Anderson, M.D. The study was published in The Journal of the American College of Nutrition. Anderson stated that Sugar Busters was one of several diets that condoned "...almost double the recommended daily allowance" of protein. He went on to say that: "This high protein load may lead to kidney damage."

Dieters that have tried this eating plan have given mixed reviews. Many said that the diet was easy to follow and provided them with plenty of energy as well as promoting a feeling of being full. However, on the downside, many dieters stated that the plan was difficult to stick to on a long-term basis, and could be quite time-consuming trying to find out about hidden sugars in everyday foods.

This is another diet is another diet that may be suitable for those that suffer from allergies to ingredients found in starchy, carb-rich foods like bread, as these are already eliminated from this diet.

However, this diet does encourage consumption of proteins found in food such as fish, nuts, and eggs. As three of the most popular allergy-related foods, it is important that dieters are aware of any allergies to these and other recommended foods on this eating plan to ensure that they will get the best out of the diet without endangering their health.