Austin has decided to try and eat no sugar for ONE FULL YEAR! Can you believe it? We were leaving Walmart the other day and the kids had chosen a drink as we left- both ended up with Lemonade. After Austin chugged his, I realized it's probably pretty sugary and here we are at 9 pm at night. I happened to look at the label (yes, I do nerdy things like that often) and saw that there was over 70g of sugar in the bottle. Mind you, they like to say it's 35g but you have to look closely to see that the bottle is 2 servings. I hate it when they do slimy things like that with nutrition facts. But anyway...
Austin's last treat- Tim Tam S'mores
As we drove home, the kids and I were talking about sugar and how much you should have in a day. I said that the bottle of lemonade had about twice as much sugar as one should eat in a WHOLE day (if we're talking about adults, not kids) and it made me sick to think about it. We got to talking and next thing I know, Austin is saying "What will you give me if I don't eat sugar for a whole year?" I was thinking, "There is no way this kid can go a whole year without sugar!... But if he did, I would give him something really good." So I said, "an iPod Touch" since I know he really wants one. Now some of you might be thinking, "What were you thinking telling him you'd buy him that?!" I wanted him to know that I meant it. And if he does go an entire year without sugar then I think he will definitely have earned it.
So here we are, two weeks later, and Austin hasn't eaten any sugar and now his sisters are on the bandwagon. I am also happy to say that it has made me think more about the sugary treats/sweets that I am eating. It's definitely my biggest weakness, so it will be great if this one decision by Austin ends up improving our whole family's health. Just today, we talked about getting a treat and instead of ice cream we got yogurt parfaits instead. To clarify, he can have things with sugar in them (cereal, bread, yogurt, etc) but not things like candy, ice cream, or popsicles.
Have you ever gone without sugar? Was it hard? What would it take to get you to go one year without sugar? Do you think we're crazy? (maybe don't answer that last one)
11 comments:
I have gone a month and a half without sugar and carbs, although my diet food is pretty sweet, and it hasn't been as hard as I thought. I have a book called Beat Sugar Addiction Now, and it explains all the many health problems associated with eating sugar, it's kind of scary.
Good luck, I think it's awesome. We considered getting Ike an Ipod touch so no I don't think you are crazy to offer that.
I cut my sugar WAAAY back about a year ago but I do still enjoy the occasional treat. I try to eat my day to day food without much sugar added (low sugar cereals, breads, yogurts, peanut butter etc) but definitely enjoy a good piece of chocolate now and then. I am so impressed that Austin is doing this. I think he will find what I did, that after going without sugar and all the processed foods, foods with natural sugar like fruit and even things like carrots can taste sweet on their own!
Oh and my zucchini penne dish you commented on, yes I blogged about it before and posted a recipe for it so that may have been where you saw it before. I think when I originally posted it I linked to the Williams Sonoma website.
Keep us updated on Austin's progres!
My niece is going a year without candy or soda (she can have cookies and cake) and at the end she gets $100. I think its good for kids to learn self control. But childhood is so short it just makes me a little sad for them to miss out on Halloween and Valentines day. Because lets face it, those holidays are all about the candy. I think maybe the better lesson is balance. Making good food choices and not getting caught up with dieting fads.
I am so impressed! He is like a man in a 9-year old body. I love how his choice has affected his younger siblings, too! I think that is a great goal to work for….definitely something I need to work on. I made the chocolate pumpkin marble cake Sunday night and have been in cake heaven. :)
Btw, we bought my dad an iPod Touch for his bday. We got a refurbished one from Apple's website. It was a great deal, since you may be looking for one a year from now.
Wow. Impressive. I don't know that my kids, especially my 9 year old son, would think anything was worth giving up sugar for! (Sadly).
I eat way too much sweet, but a lot of it is sugar substitute. (I really don't know if that is much better?)
Chantel, I know what you mean about the holidays. I had to clearly explain to them that this rule would include Halloween, Christmas, Easter, etc. and they still wanted to do it. They said they would save the candy. Sadly, I think it will still be good!
I also have to point out that I am not forcing them into this. They totally did this on their own. Even the other day as Olivia and Ashley were considering a sugary treat in front of them and asked, "Can we have it, Mom?" I said "No, if you're doing No Sugar for a Year you can't... but if you really want to eat it, and don't want your prize, then yes." Was that manipulative? I wanted to make it clear that it's their choice.
Robyn, you are an awesome mom. I just found your blog, and I did go without sugar...for one month! I thought that was hard. I did avoid all sugar and I think that was my mistake. Now your kids have inspired me to try it again!
Wow that is pretty ambitious! A year is a really long time! especially with fall and all the pumpkin goodies coming up!
I love that everyone at your house is two wheeling! Ashley is growing up fast! And you are looking pretty hot in your little purple shorts! :)
It's fun to catch up with what you've been up to --- recitals, back to school etc.! I missed you at book club last week! Hopefully we'll get together soon!
Wow. That is a long time. I told Anders and he was....slightly horrified. I don't think he could believe someone would choose to go without sugar for so long. :)
Ashley is getting so big. That is a sweet bike she has there. Pretty darned cute!!!
UPDATE: The girls are so totally out of the running. They lasted like 6 days... but at least they tried. Surprisingly, Ashley has been saying "No thank you" when offered treats or telling me that she told her teacher she can't have any more, etc. She also will eat only part of a cookie then throw the rest away. Austin is holding strong!!
That is AMAZING!!!! We have TOTALLY cut back on sugar in our house for a couple of years now and so my kids just think it is normal. We don't have treats on any day except for our Family Home evening nights we have a dessert. It make the FHE just that much more special.
May not sound like a big deal, but This is coming from a mom who used to eat a box of Hot Tamales every day!!! Ü
Way to go Austin!! I am rooting for you.
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