Family Matters
Last Week's Column

Sugar Fix
by Janet Tubbs

hen sugar is removed from the kitchen, a small revolution may take place. Children have been programmed by television to demand certain cereals, desserts, candy, and soft drinks--this, after all, is the purpose of advertising.

Additionally, as their bodies are conditioned to sugar, they may actually experience slight withdrawal symptoms, such as irritability or sleepiness, as they crave a "sugar fix". If you must use a sweetener, try honey, which is 20% sweeter than sugar and has a fair amount of vitamins B and C, plus the trace minerals copper, calcium, iron, and chromium, which are important to health.

The average person consumes well over 120 pounds of sugar per year, 70% in manufactured or processed foods. Sugar is sugar, whether raw, honey, turbinado, or brown--which is simply white sugar with molasses added for color and flavor.

Have researchers investigated the link between poor diet and the rising crime rate? Have they questioned the coincidental increase of juvenile delinquency with the high consumption of junk foods or whether the caffeine, sugar, and artificial flavorings have contributed to abnormal behavior, distorted thinking and impulsive criminal acts? According to Paul Harvey, in his syndicated newspaper column, depression and contemplation of suicide have been virtually eliminated in many people who have changed their diet. All of the letters written to him regarding chronic ill health and suicidal thoughts describe the dramatic improvements when the writers changed from sugar, pop, and fast food to a nutritious and balanced diet.

The behavior of prisoners has been modified by removal of sugar and additives from their diets, which would reinforce what many mothers have discovered in their homes. There appears to be abundant evidence that food can alter personalities, and it's much healthier and safer to experiment with diet than drugs.

Children who have eaten a forbidden cookie or candy bar have said they feel as if a motor is running in them and they can't sit still. This confuses them and irritates their mothers, but in time the children become more responsible and able to resist what is, in effect, a poison to them.

__________________________________________________

Janet Tubbs is founder and president of Children’s Resource Center, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

She is also one of the Founders of People for Children & Animals, Inc. Her column, Family Matters, is a regular feature of VegSource On-Line Magazine.

You can visit Janet's home page by clicking on this link:

Children's Resource Center