Artificial and Alternative Sweeteners
Some of you are probably asking, “What about diet mixers? Can I have rum and Diet Coke or one of the new sugar-free daiquiri mixes?”
The answer is “No.”
We are dead-set against artificial and other non-sugar based sweeteners and not for health reasons. We have no idea which alternative sweeteners are healthier than others. For all we know some of them may be extremely dangerous while others have the power to heal. They may all be bad. They may all be good.
We’re not convinced anyone really knows for certain all of the implications of consuming alternative sweeteners. We remember when saccharin was going to save us all from the scourge of obesity. Then one day that all changed; suddenly saccharin became the health equivalent of doing shots of Drano.
The answer is “No.”
We are dead-set against artificial and other non-sugar based sweeteners and not for health reasons. We have no idea which alternative sweeteners are healthier than others. For all we know some of them may be extremely dangerous while others have the power to heal. They may all be bad. They may all be good.
We’re not convinced anyone really knows for certain all of the implications of consuming alternative sweeteners. We remember when saccharin was going to save us all from the scourge of obesity. Then one day that all changed; suddenly saccharin became the health equivalent of doing shots of Drano.
Fact: We went to bed one night in a world in which saccharin was a miracle elixir and woke up to find that Tab Cola had sprouted a warning label that read like the back of a tube of model glue. “If ingested unintentionally, induce vomiting immediately . . .”
For more than 30 years, we lived with the knowledge that saccharin is deadly. But it turns out that the last word on the subject had yet to be uttered. In December 2010, the EPA removed saccharin from its list of hazardous chemicals. In the EPA’s own words, “Saccharin is no longer considered a potential hazard to human health.”
Our issue with artificial and other alternative sweeteners has nothing to do with the health effects. Our problem is that these sweeteners taste sweet.
If Drink Your Carbs is followed strictly, your taste buds will adjust to your new diet. After a few weeks of removing most sugars from you diet you will find that your body no longer craves sweet food or drink. It can be difficult at first to avoid a favorite dessert. It is simply a matter of staying motivated and drawing on every ounce of willpower you have. Given a short time, usually a week to 10 days, sugar cravings will diminish.
As they fade, you will learn to enjoy eating healthy foods. This has happened to everyone we know who has decided to dedicate themselves to Drink Your Carbs. Their desire to cheat has gone down while their enjoyment of fresh fruits, vegetables and non-sweetened cocktails has increased exponentially.
Sweeteners interrupt this process. If you eat and drink sweetened foods, even foods without any additional calories, you will continue to crave sugar. The Monkey Brain does not know the difference between real sugars and fake. It’s not supposed to. Countless lab rats died in pursuit of chemicals designed specifically to fool it.
If Drink Your Carbs is followed strictly, your taste buds will adjust to your new diet. After a few weeks of removing most sugars from you diet you will find that your body no longer craves sweet food or drink. It can be difficult at first to avoid a favorite dessert. It is simply a matter of staying motivated and drawing on every ounce of willpower you have. Given a short time, usually a week to 10 days, sugar cravings will diminish.
As they fade, you will learn to enjoy eating healthy foods. This has happened to everyone we know who has decided to dedicate themselves to Drink Your Carbs. Their desire to cheat has gone down while their enjoyment of fresh fruits, vegetables and non-sweetened cocktails has increased exponentially.
Sweeteners interrupt this process. If you eat and drink sweetened foods, even foods without any additional calories, you will continue to crave sugar. The Monkey Brain does not know the difference between real sugars and fake. It’s not supposed to. Countless lab rats died in pursuit of chemicals designed specifically to fool it.
The Monkey Brain: Our Most Questionable Scientific Theory
Fact: If proponents of the Paleolithic Diet can ignore evidence that Paleo Man most likely ate more bugs than meat, we too can play fast and loose with evolutionary history.
The Monkey Brain is that part of the human mind left over from our simian ancestors that functions on pure instinct. It is a poo-flinging brute of a creature that has clung to us throughout 65 million years of evolution to wreck havoc on our lives. It is similar to Freud’s concept of the Id, except that Freud saw the Id as unconscious while we see the Monkey Brain as very conscious and actively trying to sabotage our plans and intentions.
We have not discussed this theory with an evolutionary biologist. People more qualified than us might deny the Monkey Brain’s existence. We nonetheless believe that there is a part of each of us that is still loaded with the original instincts that helped us survive in small bands roaming the savannas of Africa.
It is no surprise that we delight in sweet foods. These foods are calorie packed and, to our distant ancestors, the more calories the better. Imagine if one of our distant ancestors came across a Hostess Sno-Ball dangling like a fruit from a tree. Sno-Balls have so many calories packed into such a small space that, of course, it would taste fantastic. These kinds of dense, easy to obtain calories should taste fantastic to a beast that does not know from where his or her next meal will come.
Unfortunately, the Monkey Brain still believes that every calorie you eat might be your last. As a result, it steers you toward dense calories. The denser, the better. The Monkey Brain implores you to skip the protein salad and instead order a Donut Burger.
If you’re not familiar with the donut burger, it’s a hit at state fairs across the country. It is a burger with bacon and cheese served with a glazed donut in place of the bun. A donut burger can pack more than 1,000 calories. To the Monkey Brain, it may be the perfect food.
We have not discussed this theory with an evolutionary biologist. People more qualified than us might deny the Monkey Brain’s existence. We nonetheless believe that there is a part of each of us that is still loaded with the original instincts that helped us survive in small bands roaming the savannas of Africa.
It is no surprise that we delight in sweet foods. These foods are calorie packed and, to our distant ancestors, the more calories the better. Imagine if one of our distant ancestors came across a Hostess Sno-Ball dangling like a fruit from a tree. Sno-Balls have so many calories packed into such a small space that, of course, it would taste fantastic. These kinds of dense, easy to obtain calories should taste fantastic to a beast that does not know from where his or her next meal will come.
Unfortunately, the Monkey Brain still believes that every calorie you eat might be your last. As a result, it steers you toward dense calories. The denser, the better. The Monkey Brain implores you to skip the protein salad and instead order a Donut Burger.
If you’re not familiar with the donut burger, it’s a hit at state fairs across the country. It is a burger with bacon and cheese served with a glazed donut in place of the bun. A donut burger can pack more than 1,000 calories. To the Monkey Brain, it may be the perfect food.
Fact: The people who best understand the power of the Monkey Brain are vendors at state fairs. As proof, we will simply point out that deep-fried Snickers Bars have been recently replaced by deep-fried sticks of butter. This is absolutely true. These people are the gods of cheap, fast calories.
Tame your Monkey Brain. If you avoid added sweeteners the Monkey Brain re-calibrates. It will still crave sugar, but it can be retrained to crave the natural sweetness of fresh fruits and vegetables. This may sound ridiculous, but try it before you reject the idea. Avoid all added sweeteners, including those without calories, for two full weeks. Then eat or drink something sickly sweet. We think you will be amazed by the near-instant appearance of sugar cravings.
To this day, if either of us drinks even a sip of diet soda we immediately crave dessert. The Monkey Brain is a powerful force. It cannot be fully defeated, but it can be fooled into craving healthier sweets.
To this day, if either of us drinks even a sip of diet soda we immediately crave dessert. The Monkey Brain is a powerful force. It cannot be fully defeated, but it can be fooled into craving healthier sweets.
Fact: If Darwin had known that we would spend eight hours a day in front of a screen and drive to any place further than 200 feet from our front door, the obesity epidemic would have been predicted in On the Origin of Species.