Improve Your Immune System through Sugar Alternatives

The general population has become a lot more health savvy in recent years. We all know, for example, that our general health depends on how our immune system is working. When the immune system is working well, our body is able to combat most viruses and diseases. What most people don’t realise is how sugar smothers the immune system.

How the immune system is attacked by sugar

The immune system consists mostly of white blood cells, which fight against foreign invaders such as bacteria, viruses and parasites. It’s a little like the old Pacman video game, with the white blood cells consuming anything bad in their way. Sugars – such as honey, table sugar, and fruit juices – reduce the ability of white blood cells to fight these foreign invaders. This happens in two ways: First, sugars cause internal inflammation. The immune system begins to work so hard to battle this; it can’t keep up with the need to produce white blood cells. Second, sugars in the gut cause a negative imbalance of good bacteria. If this gets too bad, it’s even possible to cause auto-immunity when the immune system sees everything as foreign invaders. Unsurprisingly, children are most at risk because their immune system is not yet matured

Avoid sugars to build the immune system

To keep the immune system healthy and working the way it should, our sugar intake needs to be within recommended levels (approximately 90 grams per day). That’s a harder task than it sounds, but here are four steps to achieving a strong immune system by reducing your sugar intake:

1. Be aware of how much sugar you’re eating. Look out for hidden sugars, and avoid sugar traps. For example:

• • Health food bars contain as much as a quarter of the recommended daily sugar intake;
• • Tomato ketchup contains 27 grams of sugar in every 100 grams of sauce;
• • Cereals, muesli, and even low-fat yoghurts have high sugar content.

2. Avoid processed foods

Most processed foods contain high amounts of added sugars: sugar is addictive, and manufacturers have increased the amount they add to our food to persuade us to buy more.

3. Bake at home, and use stevia to sweeten

By baking your own foodstuffs, using fresh produce, you’ll avoid the added sugars with which manufacturers pack their produce. Using stevia products to sweeten will maintain taste while reducing sugar.

4. Substitute fruit juices and fizzy drinks with stevia sweetened soft drinks

Even fresh fruit juices contain high sugar levels. Far better is to use stevia to sweeten your lemonade. Naturally Sweet also produce a number of refreshing tonics and low calorie drinks, ideal for drinking throughout the day. Don’t let added sugars ruin your health – use stevia products for the sweetness you crave and the healthy immune system you deserve.