Cut Out All Sugar...Then Have a Free Donut.

A friend was asking me recently what some easy things were that she could do to adjust her diet to lose weight...a question I'm becoming more and more accustomed to.  The question itself is a sensible one, and one I wish more people would ask--but it almost always comes with the repetition of some kind of poor advice the person has received in the past and whose validity they are now rightfully questioning.  But this one was a gem: she told me "I heard you should cut out all sugar."

Now, let me start by saying that any fitness tips that advise cutting out any food group entirely, forever, are probably not correct and may even be dangerous to follow.  If someone had said to this woman, "You should try to cut out sugar that comes from packaged foods and preservatives and obviously harmful and nutritionally useless things like candy, and limit your intake to sugars that come from whole foods like fruit," I'd have been able to say "Good advice." 

What I'm trying to get at here is not an attack on sugar, but an attack on poor terminology and clarification.  Sugar overload IS what's killing us and it IS a huge problem, but simply telling people "cut out sugar" is not going to help a damn thing unless they understand exactly why it can be so harmful and what they should really replace it with.  I understand that usually when most health professionals comment on lowering your sugar intake they are speaking in the sense of limiting foods and drinks that are obviously overloaded with sugar, and replacing those things with more naturally sweetened or unsweetened food items with higher protein and good fat (yes, I said good fat) content. 

But that understanding is the problem...not a lot of people share it, and for the average person with no nutritional knowledge being told "stop eating sugar" can easily translate into thinking switching from Mountain Dew to flavored sparkling water sickeningly sweetened with aspartame is a healthy switch when in reality it will probably give them cancer.  Sweet, huh? (Pun totally intended.) Incomplete advice is almost as bad as no advice at all if it's going to result in someone replacing their usual amount blatantly sugar-loaded food items with a similar amount of things that are full of sodium and artificial sweeteners instead (because carbs are the opposite of sugar, right?....says the clueless consumer.)

The ending of this rant (for now) brings me to a slightly unrelated but equally disturbing topic...National Donut Day.  I went in to Dunkin Donuts for my usual iced coffee last week (speaking of sugar, I'm learning to drink it with less and less!) and not only was I offered a free donut (which is fine, I guess even though no one needs that crap) but when I turned it down I WAS ARGUED WITH BY THE EMPLOYEES!  Not unpleasantly of course, more of a "but it's free!" type of thing, and I'm inclined to believe the chain actually told them to play it up like that and they were probably doing their jobs well in the eyes of DD at that moment.  One of them will probably get Employee of the Month.

I have to say, I really have a problem with this.  The concept itself of giving away free samples of your trademark item is fine; a donut once in a while isn't going to kill anybody and Dunkin's really does have the best donuts I've had so far in my 26 years.  But how does it hurt the store for someone NOT to want a free donut?  Also, I really believe food choices are up to the consumer to control and be aware of, but that's not to say that it's easy!  And for some people I understand it's just downright impossible to turn down their favorite foods when they're offered.  Not literally impossible of course, but I'm sure you all know what I mean.  Temptation can get the best of anyone, and what if someone who's making their best effort to fight the good fight even though they happen to LOVE donuts and is just running in for a coffee is accosted in this way?  I'm sure that happened thousands of times from all the chain locations combined on just that one day because they were pushing donuts on people, and plus, they were FREE! 

Sometimes it can make all the difference in a dieter's day to have someone just refrain from offering them something they know they shouldn't have; self control is so much easier said than done.  That's what makes it important and helpful to let your friends and family and maybe even coworkers know when you're trying to change your habits, and I shudder to think how many people's good intentions for the day were shattered by what for some is as good as a forced failure.  The offering is one thing; the realizing someone has reasons for saying no and continuing to push them is entirely different and completely offensive. 

For shame, Dunkin Donuts.  You want to sell artery-hardening food all day?  By all means, do so--I won't say I don't indulge on occasion.  But don't try to sell (or give) me what I've already said I don't want.  Next time just shut the hell up and save that donut for the next willing victim.