Sugar Busters

Reviewed By:
Lynn Grieger, RD

Sugar Busters basics

The idea is that eating foods high in sugar causes overproduction of insulin, which inhibits weight loss.

Refined sugar found in cakes, candies, and sodas as well as potatoes, white flour and pasta, is toxic, according to Sugar Busters. Eating these types of foods causes the body to produce increased amounts of the hormone insulin, which leads to increased amounts of body fat and weight.

The Sugar Busters diet aims to turn the tables on the traditional high-carbohydrate, insulin-producing diet. People on this diet are encouraged to eat fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains and lean meat, and avoid all types of refined sugars.

Some proponents have claimed that this diet can help people avoid diabetes through its ability to control insulin production. However, this concept is highly controversial .

Upside of the Sugar Busters Diet

• Decreasing sugar intake is never a bad thing. Most people consume approximately one pound of sugar per week!
  
  
• Increased fresh fruit and vegetable consumption and decreased reliance on refined foods is a healthy goal.
  
  
• The diet gives clear guidelines on which foods to avoid, making it easy to follow.

Downside of the Sugar Busters Diet

• There is no scientific justification for the premise that healthy people who eat foods high in sugar will automatically gain weight.
  
  
• Lumping whole foods such as potatoes, corn, and carrots with the "forbidden" sugars makes no nutritional sense.
  
  
• The diet doesn't encourage exercise, which is an essential part of losing weight and keeping it off.

Is the Sugar Busters Diet for You?

This chart can help you see how the Sugar Busters diet fits your goals and lifestyle concerns.

Sample Sugar Busters Menu

A day on the Sugar Busters Diet might look like this:

Breakfast:

• Egg-white omelet with broccoli and mushrooms
  
• Slice of high-fiber whole-grain toast
  
• Cantaloupe with blueberries
  
• Coffee or tea
  
• Water

Lunch:

• Greek salad with olives, garbanzo beans, tomatoes, roasted chicken, low-fat feta, sugarless dressing made with olive oil
  
• Peach or apple
  
• Water
  

Dinner:

• Grilled salmon or tuna
  
• Lightly sautéed spinach with walnuts
  
• Baked sweet potato
  
• Sugarless low-fat yogurt, frozen yogurt or ice cream
  
• Water

Snacks:

• Raw zucchini and celery sticks, nuts, high-fiber sugarless snack bar (not late at night)
  
• Water
  

Lynn Grieger, RD on the Sugar Busters Diet

Sugar Busters carries a good idea - reducing our intake of refined foods - a bit too far by eliminating foods such as potatoes and pasta. You might find it hard to stick to this diet, and some of the foods that are eliminated just don't make much sense.

iVillagers on the Sugar Busters diet

After I weighed in at a whopping 325 pounds, my daughter-in-law introduced me to Sugar Busters. I am now down to 285 pounds and still shrinking. The system encourages us to rethink the way we fuel our bodies. All it takes is some long overdue lifestyle changes. -- iVillagerjeswill01

"I have tried this diet and was then directed by my physician to use the Type II Diabetes diet. The Type II Diabetes diet is a more stringent Sugar Busters diet. This would make me believe that care should be taken when deciding to use this diet. Check with your doctor first." -- iVillager fabenner

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