Sugar Busters - Does any of the information apply to you?
Written: Jun 04 '01 (Updated Aug 06 '01)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: They will make money off from you (well... it's a pro for them)
Cons: The diet is restrictive, expensive, and will not necessarily help you lose weight.
The Bottom Line: I wouldn’t even bother learning about this diet; it will only give you false information and confuse you.
|
|
|
| Kris.'s Full Review: Sugar Busters! |
The basis of the diet
Sugar busters was developed by three doctors, plus a man who followed the Sugar Busters eating plan. They claim that we have been hoaxed by the nutrition industry into believing that calories are the answer to weight gain and loss. The real answer, in their opinion, is that our hormone levels (mainly insulin) control weight gain. Luckily our out-of-control hormones can be regulated by eating a diet that is low in sugar.
Healthy People = Diseased People?
The recommendations for this diet are based on the doctors' observations of diabetic patients. The question is, can you really extrapolate results from a diseased population and assume the same principles apply to healthy people?
The doctors are confusing cause and effect here. Diabetes caused the hormone imbalances seen in their patients. Any problems they face with sugar are an effect of the disease.
Will sugar affect the general population in the same way? Absolutely not. You would, by definition, be diabetic if sugar caused the problems claimed. None of the hormone regulation mumbo-jumbo is relevant to normal people.
Junk Science and Bizarre Notions
These are a few “facts” that raised red flags for me:
SUGAR IS TOXIC! (this is printed everywhere): This makes me wonder if they even know the definition of toxic.
You have to limit sugar to control blood sugar: Healthy people maintain normal blood sugar levels without restricting carbohydrates or sugars.
Calories do not matter: This is wishful thinking, and it goes against every conventional view of weight loss. There are tons of studies prove that calories are essential to reaching your desired weight.
Exercise will not influence your weight: One of the doctors proudly proclaims that he lost weight with no exercise “other than lifting his knife and fork”. They grudging admit that moderate exercise may be healthy, but stress it will not help you lose weight.
Chronic diseases like heart disease are caused by the overconsumption of carbohydrates: Ironically, reducing your carb intake could worsen the risk of some diseases. When you lower your carb intake, fat is likely to fill the void. Diets high in fat and saturated fat have been linked to increased risk of several chronic diseases including the number one killer: heart disease.
Paranoia and Conspiracy Theories
I’m not too sure what nutritionists have to gain by lying to us, but it must be something big. The doctors are absolutely convinced that they are systematically lying to the public. However they give no proof, or even a convincing argument why nutritionists would lie.
Insight On Doctors And Nutrition
A large number of medical schools do not offer a single nutrition class. Even if they do offer a class, very few require them. A medical degree does not imply that the person is trained or knowledgeable about nutrition.
Conclusions
There are a lot of diet plans that are based on faulty science, but at least most of them will result in weight loss because the diet plans turn out to be low in calories. So when clients swear by these other fad-of-the-month diets, I figure “the end justifies the means”. If the diets will help them lose weight, I let them continue but work to dispel the worst of the misconceptions.
This diet, however, does not even justify that much tolerance. Most of the science is grossly inaccurate. What reality-based “facts” you can find apply to so few people, that they might as well be lies. It just isn’t true for the general public.
The information that Sugar Busters is based on is more accurate for diabetics, but it still has serious flaws (regarding calories and exercise). If you have a diabetes or another medical condition that is aggrevated by what you eat, please don't self-treat using some fad diet. I would consult a professional to discuss what is best for you.
The diet would be very difficult to follow because so many enjoyable foods are restricted – not only sugary desserts, but potatoes, white rice, pasta, corn, bread, condiments (such as ketchup and salad dressings), and other common foods. Of course, you could use Sugar Busters! brand foods, but that will drain your wallet real fast. The diet is not necessarily healthy because it could be high in fat. Since calories are not controlled in any way, I would not expect people to lose weight unless they unintentionally started eating less.
I wouldn’t even bother learning about this diet; it will only give you false information and confuse you. If you are healthy and prefer to follow a low-carb diet, I would suggest the Carbohydrate Addicts diet instead. It is based on the same reasoning as Sugar Busters, but is structured differently so it is more likely to result in weight loss.
Recommended:
No
Food Variety Restrictions A short list of allowed foods
Restrictiveness of Portions Satisfying
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
Kris.
|
 - Top 500 |
|
Location: Austin, TX
Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 49 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.