I haven't posted recently because I'm sick with a horrible cold. Its been OVER A YEAR since I was last sick! I had this great streak of good health because I was working out and eating right. Last flu season I went home sick from work several times. This year I had been doing well- co-workers were coughing all around me but I held up!
My diet and exercises were keeping my immunity high. Then last week I had my braces off (yay!!!) I had tons of candy given to me. My orthodontist gave me a bag of candy I hadn't been able to eat with braces- tootsie rolls, lollipops, gum, chocolate (first time a dentist has ever given me candy LOL). My co-worker gave me amazing toffees from Hawaii. Ty surprised me with a bunch of balloons tethered to little candies all over my room
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| he knows my love of balloons! |
I didnt eat all of it, but I did eat more sugar than I had in forever!! And then I got sick. Days of coughing, fever and lethargy. There is a lot of research out there that says SUGAR LOWERS YOUR IMMUNITY- its true!
There is something called a "phagocytic index" which tells you how rapidly a particular macrophage or lymphocyte can gobble up a virus, bacteria, or cancer cell. It was in the 1970's that Linus Pauling realized that white blood cells need a high dose of vitamin C and that is when he came up with his theory that you need high doses of vitamin C to combat the common cold. |  |
We know that glucose and vitamin C have similar chemical structures, so what happens when the sugar levels go up? They compete for one another upon entering the cells. And the thing that mediates the entry of glucose into the cells is the same thing that mediates the entry of vitamin C into the cells. If there is more glucose around, there is going to be less vitamin C allowed into the cell. It doesn't take much: a blood sugar value of 120 reduces the phagocytic index by 75%. So when you eat sugar, think of your immune system slowing down to a crawl.
PS. I also didn't work out that week for the first time in months. I was trying to catch up to school work and work work and house work and all the gazzilion and one things I had to do. I think that was a factor too.
PPS- I also recently read about how sugar FEEDS CANCER CELLS. And a friend of mine told me that when her sister goes in for her MRI they activate the cancer by giving her sugar water. It helps the cancer cells light up in the scan. Wow!
I hope this post helps scare you off sugar. The excessive quantities we have availible to consume if we choose to us are poisonous to our bodies.
Check out these stats:
- In 1700, the average person consumed about 4 pounds of sugar per year.
- In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
- In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pounds of sugar per year.
- In 2009, more than 50 percent of all Americans consume one-half pound of sugar PER DAY—translating to a whopping 180 pounds of sugar per year!
A little now and then is OK, but even then I think we underestimate how much sugar is already in our diet. Its in our yogurts, our granola, bread, peanut butter, pasta sauce, and ketchup. I'm an admitted sugarholic, so realizing how unnecessary it is to sustain my body and how it really is just a matter of indulgence is important.
I lost weight funnily enough, even though I ate a ton while sick (lots of micro-nutrient filled soups and smoothies) and did nothing to burn of the energy but sleep! Maybe its because I didnt eat out at all and made my own healthy foods.
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