Читать книгу The Viva Mayr Diet: 14 days to a flatter stomach and a younger you - Dr Stossier Harald - Страница 25

When I ask Dr Stossier what type of sugar is best for us to eat, he is very firm when he responds.

‘No sugar – that’s the best sugar you can have.’

But that’s totally and utterly impossible. How can anyone possibly live without sugar? I mean, even if you wanted to, how could you avoid it? Is there such a thing as sugar-free shortbread biscuits?

‘I know it’s difficult,’ he concedes, ‘but the fact is that you don’t need any more sugar than you get from the food you already eat. We get so many different forms of carbohydrates that it is not necessary to add more.’

I ask him if brown sugar is better. Apparently it is not. How irritating is that? I have spent the last 20 years taking brown sugar lumps instead of white ones because I think they are healthier. I don’t even have any white sugar in the house; I do everything with brown sugar, even baking – which is not easy if you’re trying to bake a white fluffy sponge.

‘Brown sugar is very often only white sugar that has been coloured brown to give it the appearance of natural, healthy sugar,’ explains the doctor. ‘In fact, natural sugar wouldn’t even taste like sugar. If you have a sweet tooth then use the plant Stevia instead.’

I have tried Stevia in its raw form and also in a chocolate mousse. It is delicious and sweet enough for anyone. You can buy it online or in health-food shops. But be aware that a craving for sweet things is a sign that your cells are asking for sugar because they need energy to digest your food. This means you have not given your body the best chance to digest, and is not good news. You are either eating the wrong thing at the wrong time, not chewing enough (see here), eating too much protein (see here) or eating when you are stressed (see here).

Fruit is a better option than sugar. Instead of sugar, sprinkle fruit on your cereal. An ideal breakfast would be muesli and some fruit followed by eggs (preferably not fried, sadly, which will upset my daughter who likes nothing better than to start the day with one or even two fried eggs), and some raw vegetables. While I was at the Viva Mayr Clinic, I had an avocado with linseed oil for breakfast – surprisingly delicious and one of the most nutritious ways to start the day. But if you can’t imagine going on without your daily fix of doughnuts, Mars bars or fizzy drinks, please do me a favour and just give it three days; that’s all it will take to break your nasty habits, for your taste buds to mellow, and for those things to seem like sugary, unhealthy and fattening blasts from the past.