How My Kids Decided to Do “No Sugar”
At the beginning of March, my three oldest boys voluntarily decided to do a No-Sugar Challenge until Easter. We were shocked. Teachers and coaches kept asking if they are doing it for Lent, and I’m afraid that while we are very much Christian, Lent has never been part of our Easter observance and my kids responded with “What’s that?”
It has been amazing to hear them come home from school or church almost every day and telling yet another story about how they passed on cupcakes, cake, candy and more. I’m not sure we totally expected them all to stick with it, especially the five-year-old.
Probably my biggest concern has been that people are going to start thinking I have coerced this somehow! I have great kids, don’t get me wrong, but they love treats, they fight, they break things. We have plenty of what you’d expect in a house of four boys. I find myself asking them their response when adults and children ask, “Why?” and hoping they make it clear it was their choice and they were not forced by their mom the anti-sugar nazi (which you might already think I am, I know). I enjoy a treat every once in a while, even ones that aren’t whole foods or plants, but it feels like treats have become one of the expected meals of the day: breakfast, lunch, treats, dinner, treats.
It seems that nearly every extracurricular activity, every church class, school activity and more comes with obligatory processed, packaged treats. It’s as if we only expect people to do what they should and be where they should be unless there is some food bribe involved. Generally speaking, the treats they receive from any one person 
or place would be fine as an occasional treat, except that they receive them everywhere they go. When it all adds up, the sheer quantity of sugar my kids get, without me buying any of it, is sickening. Literally. The no-sugar challenge really opens your eyes to just how prevalent it is and how much we consume on a regular basis.
We all know sugar doesn’t exactly top the super food list, but do we know the real impact of too much sugar? It’s not only linked to weight gain, but also cardiovascular disease, cancer growth, depression, diabetes and more. 1 2
Where did they get this idea?
One son had had a rough week emotionally, was frequently tired and trying to figure out what he needed to do differently. One night as he talked with Dad before bed, he declared he’d decided on his own to do a no sugar challenge. His two other brothers were quick to join him (no luck with the toddler yet 😉 and the parents couldn’t be left out so for a month the five of us were avoiding traditionally sweetened treats. Treats sweetened with dates, maple syrup, etc. were allowed, as were trace amounts of sugar that sometimes show up in non-sweets such as crackers, salad dressing, etc.. Generally these were only items that were consumed away from home, so it was pretty infrequent. The boys quickly realized what they had gotten themselves into when they were suddenly turning down cakes, cupcakes, candy and more at Cub Scouts, church, school and soccer nearly every day.
Years ago, 2005, around the time I began training for my first triathlon, a roommate and I decided to do no chocolate. I don’t even remember why we did it, but we were just so happy that Wendy’s was giving away free Frosty’s the day our no chocolate challenge ended that we stopped more than once on our way home from the race. It was great to open my eyes to just how frequently I ate it, and how most of the time I was eating it just because it was there. Every once in a while there was an especially delicious treat I was really regretting having to miss out on, but the vast majority of treats were eaten rather mindlessly. Now I can’t believe I did no chocolate over no sugar, I guess I hadn’t discovered the amazingly delicious and healthy combination of dates, walnuts and cocoa powder yet!
About 5 years later my husband and I decided to do a no sugar challenge for several months. I don’t even remember the motivation, but yet again the hardest part was declining the lovingly homemade desserts presented at family dinners. It can be hard on those around you, feeling that they have been deprived of the joy of indulging in those treats with you. It is eye opening to see how often the biggest hurdles are social and not at all related to our taste buds or self-control.
I talked a lot about the benefits of these, how they helped with weight loss and improved health. And I loved the way the no sugar challenge made it so much easier to say no–it’s not your delicious, lovingly prepared treat, it’s this no sugar challenge.
Then during a visit with my sister, she and her husband shared they were planning on doing no sugar for an entire year. My husband was pretty quick to join them, but I was not so sure! I was the biggest health nut of them all, but I had learned that I enjoyed an occasional treat here and there and thought I had pretty good control to avoid it. Finally I decided to join them for the last six months.
A few of my takeaways from this experience:
Our social and emotional ties to food are strong
The very hardest moments for me in the no sugar challenge have been the social moments, when a lovingly prepared gift of something sweet and delicious is shared. I do not want to be ungrateful for this very kind gesture! I hope that we can transition our culture to think of other ways to show love, because again, while I don’t have a problem with an occasional treat, they have become so frequent that our efforts to show love actually endanger our long-term health.
Finding good replacements for favorite foods has dramatically improved our emotional ties. I think the very hardest emotional ties are before you have decided to make a change. You picture all of your favorite foods (maybe especially the holiday ones) and can’t imagine your life without them. You feel like you will be so deprived, the FOMO sets in and you think any approach isn’t doable and isn’t worth it. I remember these feelings well. But looking back I realize that life is so much better with foods that are nourishing and support our body’s systems. Now I look at treats and ask myself how I can make a version that supports my health instead of endangering it.
I recognize that our healthy treats are still treats and truthfully I’d love to make them a less often. But living in a culture where processed sugar is the norm, I feel like we are making great progress in the right direction. And truthfully I worry that by not having processed treats at home my boys are more prone to pig out when they find the treats away from home.
I’ve wondered at what point we consider our ties to food addictions. While most of us probably don’t consider ourselves addicted to food, going without sugar, etc. can really open our eyes to the stronghold these foods can have on us.
The Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
So often in life we become good at something and have a hard time understanding why everyone else isn’t diving in and mastering it too. Whether it’s healthy eating habits, exercise, sleep, punctuality . . . you know those things you’re good at and have to search for patience for the people who aren’t. My family has kindly listened to me promote the benefit of my latest favorite super foods, healthy habit and more for years. We can all probably think of a time though where someone did this to us and it rubbed us the wrong way, leaving us more determined NOT to do whatever was recommended to us.
But with time, our example can have far-reaching effects. The Rising Tide Lifts All Boats was one of my favorite takeaways from my health coaching experience. We don’t have to force others to change their habits, but through our example and our increased capacity we naturally lift others.
When I embarked on that first no chocolate challenge I never would have dreamed that it would lead to literally pounds of sugar being avoided by my husband, my boys, my sister & her husband and the three toddlers between us who didn’t have to say no to treats in public, but didn’t have any sugary treats being offered at home.
When Easter Sunday arrived, the boys were excited and ready for the end. Boy #3 called his sweet roll paradise. But they also realized that they had been offered something what felt like nearly every day of the challenge. They recognized that the truly special occasions when they want to have the treat, and that they can let some things pass. The fact that it even happened has given me hope that they are soaking up a thing or two and that hopefully our efforts to have the best health possible will stick with them throughout their lives.
