Is One Sweet A Day Ok?

If you’re a cookie-and-candy-craver, don’t despair. Sweets can be part of a healthy, lifelong eating pattern. But for the least harm and — don’t forget this — the fullest enjoyment, they should be eaten in moderation. That means in small amounts, or only a couple of times a week.

Sweets can be part of a healthy, lifelong eating pattern. But for the least harm and — don’t forget this — the fullest enjoyment, they should be eaten in moderation. That means in small amounts, or only a couple of times a week. Even a woman who has made a career out of eating candy admits they have cut back their consumption to one day a week.

If you’re counting carbs, you might want to choose them only occasionally and not every day. Also, don’t make sweet potatoes your only vegetable choice in a day. Eat plenty of green veggies, too, like broccoli, green beans, kale and other greens, which are lower in carbs and calories.

Is it okay to have dessert every day?— A.F., Boston Have your cake and eat it, too. The more important thing is getting added sugar out of your meals and snacks. “If you spend all day avoiding added sugar but you have something sweet to satisfy the sweet tooth at night, the intake is still going to be really low,” Priven says.

How often do you feel hungry?

This keeps your digestive hormones on an even keel and you won’t get out-of-control hungry. It’s normal to feel a twinge of hunger every three or four hours. Eat more slowly. According to Gillespie, scarfing down dinner too quickly doesn’t let your digestive hormones cycle through.

For some people, the scariest part of starting off on a new, healthier way of eating is the idea of giving up their favorite sweet treats — forever!

Such romanticization aside, the smorgasbord of candy — not to mention cheeseburgers, cookies, cakes, pies, fries, chips, barbecue, and ice cream — that Americans consume has helped lead to skyrocketing obesity rates and a near-epidemic of diabetes.