Whether or not you have an obvious sweet tooth, the truth is that it’s pretty hard to avoid eating sugar. And by sugar, we don’t mean just desserts, or even that teaspoon or two of sugar you take with your tea. Almost EVERY processed food has a significant amount of sugar disguised in medical terms such as fructose, sucrose, maltose, and dextrose — none of which do the body good
Sugar gets broken down into glucose in our bodies, which raises our insulin levels. Insulin spikes are a major trigger for inflammation in our bodies. Chronically high sugar levels can also lead to diabetes, even autoimmune inflammation, which has catastrophic effects on multiple organs, including the skin.
The inflammation caused by high sugar intake can worsen a variety of skin problems, like eczema, acne, and rosacea. These skin ailments are triggered by sugar, which can lead not only to further and prolonged breakouts and flare-ups, but also dull skin tone, and premature aging. But, if you’re someone who generally eats a well-balanced diet, has clear skin, and only reaches for jalebi and gulab jamun once in a while, your skin will probably forgive you.
Nobody in their right mind would want to completely get rid of sugar from their diet, especially since it triggers dopamine releases in our brains and makes us feel all giddy inside, so the next best thing to do is to incorporate high fibre foods into your diet, along with all the sweet. Fibre can help slow absorption of sugar by the gastrointestinal system.
No form of sugar is good for the body and skin, but natural sugars found in vegetables and fruit are your best bet to clear, happy skin. These whole foods are absorbed much slower by the body because they are complex carbohydrates coexisting with fibre. Dates, raisins and apples are some of the foods rich in natural sugars.
Then again, life is short. Eat that cake! But in moderation. Balance is key in everything, even glowing, clear skin!