This is an easy question. Adopting a low glycemic, Mediterranean style eating pattern with 5 to 6 portion controlled meals per day, along with increased activity levels (as we do in the Symtrimics program) will quickly result in the reduction of cravings for sweets. You will be astounded at how easy it is to maintain a healthy energy level when you are feeding your cells the right nutrients each day. Weight loss, along with a multitude of other health benefits are a side effect to this healthful lifestyle.

Great point. This is why we chose to use a meal replacement that has an extremely low glycemic index/glycemic load. The results, in weight control, satiety, compliance and appeal are terrific. The other point is, if a sugar source is balanced with the right amount of protein, good fats and fiber, it can be a perfect food source, as carbohydrates are required for energy and brain health. So just looking at the grams of sugar without putting it in perspective can sometimes be misleading. For instance, there are approx 21 GM of sugar in one medium apple with the peel, but I doubt you would say an apple is unhealthy. That is because it has a lot of fiber, nutrients, etc which cause it to be a very healthy food choice. The problem with the Jamba Juice is too much sugar COMPARED to the amounts of protein and fiber. If they halved the sugar and doubled the protein and fiber, would be much better, eh?!! :)

One other random comment: I hear from nutritionists and diabetic instructors that teaching people to just read the label can result in patients only buying foods that come in a box, which of course would not be as healthy. Just another thought on food choices.

Super comment, Daniel!! :)

If I may be blunt, I think you may be asking the wrong question. Or rather, a question that depends on a more fundamental question: why do you/we crave sweets in the first place?

There are two reasons: first, we are born liking sweets, for reasons related to the time-honored survival benefits of eating sweet foods. But second: the more sweets we eat, the more we crave.

Whether or not 'sweet' (not just sugar) is actually addictive remains a topic of debate- but if not a true addiction, it's very close. We know for sure that the more you bathe taste buds in sweet- whether from sugar, any of its many aliases and analogues, or artificial sweeteners- the higher your tolerance for sweet, i.e., the more you need to feel satisfied. The more you get, the more you want, making you get more, and want more, and...You see where this leads! Feed a sweet tooth, grow a sweet fang.

Here's the silver lining: it works just as well in reverse. If you can dial down the level of sweet in which your taste buds habitually bathe, you can whittle down that sweet tooth to a very manageable level. You can, as you propose, swap out foods you want to eat for better foods- and perhaps you should- but there is a better, easier, and more fundamental place to start.

If, like most people, you eat a lot of processed foods, you are consuming potentially huge amounts of 'stealth' sugar. Sugar in salad dressing. Sugar in pasta sauce (often more than in ice cream topping! really!). Sugar in bread. Sugar in crackers. Sugar even in potato chips! This is stealth sugar because these are not 'sweet' foods- you are not expecting sugar to be added here. But routinely, it is.

Eating these foods increases your exposure to sugars in foods you don't even think of as sweet- and thus increases the sweetness you need to feel satisfied when you DO actually want a sweet food.

So- read ingredient lists, and eliminate stealth sugar. There is no reason for added sugar in bread, pasta sauce, salad dressing, and so on. Removing stealth sugar is easy- because it's not sweetness you wanted in the first place, so you won't miss it. But doing this can take a LOT of sugar out of your diet. As it does, you will likely find your sweet craving begins to subside- and minimally, it will take less sweet to fell satisfied when it does kick in. You might even find you develop an aversion to some very sweet foods you now crave, because your rehabilitated taste buds will be so much more sensitive. I have been through just this process with many of my patients.

Once your taste buds have been 'detoxed' and your sweet tooth filed, you will find it much easier to start making those food substitutions that will further improve your diet and health, and cut down on your sugar intake.

Stay the course over time, and you will discover your taste buds will adapt- and learn to love the new, improved, more healthful foods they are with.

Best,
DK