Get the Sugar Out: 501 Simple Ways to Cut the Sugar Out of Any Diet (Paperback)

by Ann Louise Gittleman PH.D. CNS (Author) "Many sugar-cutting tips have multiple uses..." (more)
Key Phrases: sugar savvy, teaspoon natural vanilla extract, peach applesauce, Two Sweet Teeth, One Sweet Tooth, Three Sweet Teeth (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
"Avoiding sugar is the easiest, safest, and most permanent way to stay slim" is the bold promise nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman makes in her book Get the Sugar Out. Gittleman, who also authored Beyond Pritikin, gives the hard facts about why refined sugar contributes to weight gain, mood swings, weak immunity, diabetes, and more. Low-fat diets, the book claims, frequently let people down, because manufactured fat-free foods often contain more sugar than their full-fat counterparts!

Don't be fooled, though: ridding your diet of sugar will not be an easy task. The 501 tips provided in the book may seem rather daunting at times. Luckily, Gittleman doesn't expect you to incorporate all of them into your life. She notes, "Even if you incorporate only one-tenth of the tips in this book, you're sure to reduce the sugar in your diet and change your life in a positive and noticeable way." So even if you find it's too difficult to give up your diet sodas, you can still improve your health by learning all the names sugar hides under (including tongue twisters such as xylitol, sorghum syrup, mannitol, and maltodextrin) and avoiding products that contain them. Some of Gittleman's suggestions, though, are not only simple, but fun. For example, you can substitute frozen grapes, raspberries, and blueberries for hard candy. This easy-to-read book even has 50 delicious recipes (how about Peanut Butter Muffins or "Gone Nutty" Frozen Bananas?) and a week's menu to get you started. So if you're ready to get going on "a satisfying, high-energy, low-sugar regimen," this just may be the book for you. --Jenny Brown

From Booklist
Her antisugar message may fall on deaf ears, since Americans consume more than 150 pounds of the sweet substance per capita each year. Some of her more than 500 tips place too stringent a regimen on those used to eating moderate amounts of desserts. Nonetheless, Gittleman proffers sound advice amid the harsh proselytizing. Scattered throughout the tips are 50 recipes, from carrot butter to frozen parsnip dessert, that help encourage everyone to eliminate sugar and learn to enjoy a more healthful lifestyle. Barbara Jacobs

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Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press; 1 edition (September 3, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517886537
• ISBN-13: 978-0517886533
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #130,910 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

175 of 177 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was very practical and certainly kept my attention, May 31, 1999

By A Customer

I felt that this was an excellently written and was easy to read. I had read "Sugar Blues" immediately before this and "Get the Sugar Out" was most definitely a far superb book. It seemed to stick to the subject and appeared to stay more with facts. "Sugar Blues" seemed to be more opinionated and outdated. All in all "Get the Sugar Out" was very helpful and useful to me. After reading it I can certainly never look at sugar the same or eat it without feeling guilty. The book brings up points about sugar that I have never thought of before. I have began to eliminate sugar from my diet and I am amazed at where sugar is hidden in every day food that I never dreamed would have sugar. I have already began to notice a tremendous difference in my energy level and have lost a couple of pounds. I would highly recommend reading this book to anyone who is interested in bettering their physical and mental well being.

105 of 106 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, some practical tips!, January 19, 2001

By	S. Brett (New Orleans, LA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

One of my biggest complaints about change-your-diet books is that they spend a lot of time convincing you why you should/shouldn't eat <fill in the product here>. This book isn't like that! She gives a brief overview of why cutting sugar out is a good idea, then gives sensible, helpful tips on how to go about actually doing it. I'm hypoglycemic and was recently told to follow a sugar-free diet, and this book has been a my roadmap. Everyone interested in their health should read this book!

88 of 88 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Written before low-carb craze, and still perhaps the best, January 22, 2005

By	Patricia Tryon (Longmont, CO United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Before the rafts of low-carb diet and cookbooks hit the shelves, Ann Louise Gittleman understood the threat sugar might pose to health. She does not tar all carbs with a single stroke, but breaks things down according to the glycemic index and to the source of the sugar. This information has been invaluable to me as I work to stop a slide into middle-age type II diabetes.

Rather than imbed data points in lengthy expository text, the information is presented in easy-to-take bullets organized by types of food (breakfast, entrees, soups, salads and more, including desserts). Thus, it is possible to glean useful information quickly, without having to "digest" chapters at a time. A helpful chapter on eating out suggests how to navigate menus, but frankly the emphasis of this book is that we have most control over what's in food when we prepare it, ourselves.

Other strengths of this book include its extensive bibliography and an index. In particular, the latter is lacking from many recently published non-fiction books. Its inclusion here only increases how easy the book is to use.

Finally, the distinctly non-faddish tone of the book appeals to me as a reader who is more persuaded by science than by anecdote. Gittleman nails this and has written a book that will be worth having long after the low-carb craze has passed into the cultural sunset.

I happily use Amazon's opportunity to re-sell books when I finish them. Rarely does a book earn more than temporary space on my shelves. This book, for me, is a keeper. Get your own copy *grin*