I spent the last 30 days sugar free.  No sugar, honey, agave syrup, etc.  Seriously, not even one bite of my kid’s ice cream and I thought I would share some things I found:

1) it’s not as hard as I thought. The first few days were for sure tough but once I started seeing the benefits of being sugar free, the benefits outweighed the need for dessert.  Now I can bake my kids cookies and not even take a bite of the dough!

2) my skin is loving me.  I have struggled with rosacea for 4 years which has been painful and embarrassing. Really red skin, big bumps and acne, plus it hurt.  A lot.  Going grain-free/dairy-free helped, but getting off of refined sugar has made all the difference.  My skin is still not perfect but it’s the best it’s looked in 6 years.

3) my digestive system has improved.  I am not a health expert by any means but after years of dealing with SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth), cutting out sugar gave a chance for my gut to heal because the bacteria from SIBO doesn’t have as much to feed on.  I will repeat the same thing as I said with my skin: my digestive system isn’t perfect, still lots of healing to do, but it’s the best it’s been since I first got SIBO.

4) cravings go away.  Every day I wanted dessert. Every single day.  I just don’t have the desire for it every day now.  I really crave meals (salads, burgers, etc) but not desserts/snacks anymore. If I get the occasional sugar craving, I will whip up some sort of monk fruit/almond butter/coconut cream concoction or fat bombs but a few bites makes me feel content and satisfied.

5) I don’t feel like I’m missing out.  This is such an important one to me because the idea of sugar free before was thoughts of missing out or being deprived.  But I don’t feel that way anymore. I took my kids for ice cream yesterday and didn’t ask for bites of each flavor like I usually do.  I watched them laugh and eat and I just laughed and smiled along with them.  I didn’t feel like I was missing out because I knew I was making a small sacrifice to help heal my stomach and that is much more important to me.

Full disclosure, I do eat some small amounts of stevia and monk fruit but I try to limit that as well.  After 30 days, I’ve seen the health benefits so I’m keeping on with this sugar free journey!  I will keep you updated with any more benefits I see!