10+ Sugar Detox Tips for 2024 (No Withdrawal)

One of the best ways to kickstart your sugar detox is to quit your soda habit. Replace both regular soda and diet soda with sparkling water, unsweetened herbal tea, or plain water.

Regular soda has anywhere from 20-48 grams of sugar per eight-ounce serving (and most cans are more than eight ounces). Diet sodas aren’t necessarily a great alternative to regular sodas, either, since scientists think there are some health risks with diet sodas too.

Instead of consuming soda, sugary drinks, or any type of sugar-sweetened beverage, it’s probably best to switch to hydrating beverages like water.

Water is essential for so many reasons, but it is also very much tied to our detoxification system and other health benefits.

You can make water more interesting by adding lemon slices, cucumber slices, or try sparkling mineral water. Check out these recipes for Lemon Cinnamon Water or Apple Cider Vinegar Weight Loss Drink.

If you want something even more nutritious and hydrating, try a homemade sugar-free juice like Celery Juice, Beet Juice, or Celery Cucumber Juice.

Another great step to take in your sugar detox is to increase your intake of healthy fats. This change can help reduce your cravings for sugary foods. See my full list of ways to reduce sugar cravings.

Healthy fats include avocado, unsweetened coconut products, grass-fed butter or ghee (unless you have a dairy allergy), and nuts and seeds. Aim for 1-2 tablespoons of healthy fat with each meal. 

Increasing your fat intake may be the best way to help reduce your cravings for sweet foods. Fats are essential for overall health and are very satiating to the taste buds. Eating more fat overall can reduce your sweet tooth and can help you make better choices.

Replace sugary desserts with fresh fruits to help support your detox from sweets. If your default habit is to reach for sweets like ice cream after your meal, try weaning yourself off of desserts by replacing them with fresh fruit.

Fruit has natural sugars, but it also contains nutrients and fiber to help slow the absorption into your bloodstream. Fruit can be a healthy alternative to dessert, especially antioxidant-rich, low-sugar fruit like berries.

If you’re truly detoxing from sugar and want to avoid even natural sugars during your detox, then you might want to avoid fruit for a limited time. Most people should consume at least 1-2 servings of fresh fruit a day as part of a balanced diet.

In the summer months, try frozen grapes or frozen blueberries for a refreshing natural treat. You can also try my recipe for Ambrosia Salad which is naturally sweetened. If you are pre-diabetic or diabetic, stick with low-sugar fruits like berries or green apples.

Learn more about natural sugars vs. added sugars.

Make sure you’re eating enough protein at breakfast. Eating enough protein with your morning meal has been shown to help with weight loss and satiety.

What you eat at breakfast also influences what you eat for the rest of the day. If you break your overnight fast with sugar and carbohydrates instead of protein or fat, you will set yourself up for a blood sugar roller coaster and cravings for the rest of the day.

Try a recipe like Overnight Protein Oats, or add a scoop or two of these clean protein powders to your next smoothie. Or, try eating lean proteins like chicken sausage and eggs for breakfast and see if it helps reduce your cravings for a sweet treat.

Try these recipes for a Creamy Detox Smoothie or this Anti-Cancer Green Breakfast Smoothie. I also have a Strawberry Protein Smoothie that includes 25 grams of protein to start the day.

Eating enough protein is also part of my healthy weight loss tips for women.

Unless your doctor has advised it, there’s no need to completely lower or cut out carbohydrates even if you’re watching sweets. It is the refined, simple carbohydrates like pasta, bread, and sugar can spike and crash your blood sugar.

On the other hand, starchy vegetables like sweet potato and winter squashes provide you with a nutrient-dense source of carbohydrates. Sprinkling a baked sweet potato with cinnamon tastes like a treat, but provides you with stable blood sugar from the complex carbs and the cinnamon.

So, choose complex carbs like sweet potato and butternut squash when you’re detoxing from sugar. Don’t forget to eat your veggies, too. Remember, real foods are healthy foods!

Craving bread? See my list of the best bread alternatives, especially if you are on a low-carb diet.

You may also want to check out these complex carb recipes recipes for Instant Pot Chicken and Sweet Potatoes, Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes, or Air Fryer Sweet Potato Cubes.

See my list of the best gluten-free carbs. And, don’t miss my guide on how to freeze sweet potatoes.

Have an abundance of healthy snacks ready during your sugar detox.

If you stay prepared with healthy, low-sugar snacks, you won’t need to reach for the packaged goods and sugary treats.

Having healthy snacks on hand also helps you if you notice cravings creeping up during your detox.

Healthy snacks without too much sugar include:

• celery sticks with nut or seed butter
• hard-boiled eggs or deviled eggs
• greek yogurt or coconut yogurt with blueberries
• almond flour crackers with almond butter
• sugar-free turkey or beef jerky
• smoked salmon on a gluten-free cracker with regular or dairy-free cream cheese
• olives
• smoothies made with protein powder

See my entire list of healthy clean eating snacks. Try to avoid fruit juice or anything made with artificial sweeteners as you are doing your sugar detox.

Stress can cause you to crave hyperpalatable foods such as sugary snacks. Stress also depletes your body of important nutrients like magnesium and B-vitamins, which can drive cravings.

It’s important to get support to help manage stress during your detox.

Make an appointment with a health coach or a functional health practitioner to make sure you get the support you need. Or, grab a buddy who can do the detox with you.

You can also join my Sugar Free Challenge that I host every month. It’s free to join and you will find tons of support and resources there.

Another way to manage stress during a diet change is to do light exercise. I personally love doing mat pilates or reformer pilates (see my article about the benefits of pilates).

Aim for natural, daily movement like walks outside or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. If it’s appropriate for you, a few sessions in the gym a week can help you eliminate toxins via sweating (a sauna is great for this, as well).

Stress hormones can also lead to other health issues like heart disease and weight gain, so it’s a good idea to learn how to manage stressors in general.

Sleep deprivation can lead to cravings for calorically dense foods, which most often include those high in sugar.

A single night of poor or insufficient sleep can reduce insulin sensitivity the next day. This can make your blood sugar less stable and you more prone to crave sweets and carbohydrates to keep your blood sugar up.

So, even now more than ever, prioritize sleep while you’re doing a sugar detox to help your body reduce symptoms and feel better.

If you’re trying to get off sugar, this is not the best time to introduce intermittent fasting. Your body will be going through a slight period of stress as you retrain it to stop craving sugar, and intermittent fasting can also be a stressor on the body.

In addition, unless you’re fasting purposefully and safely, skipping meals will drop your blood sugar and make you crave sweets and carbohydrates to bring it up again.

Plan to eat 3 balanced meals throughout the day and allow for 1-3 sugar-free snacks if you get hungry between meals.

Ideally, you would do some meal prepping during your sugar detox to help keep your meals consistent and balanced. See my list of the best meal prep tips for beginners.

Going sugar-free is not easy, especially if you’ve used sugar for energy or comfort. One way to stick with your goal of going sugar-free is to set a goal or intention.

Rather than trying to lose weight or look a certain way, focus on how you want to feel. Are you trying to get rid of symptoms like bloating or joint pain? Or, do you want to sleep better or have more energy?

These types of goals can be motivating when your motivation starts to wane after a few days. Set your goal, write it down, and celebrate when you reach it!

Additionally, it’s important to practice extra self-care when you are detoxing from sugar. Your body and mind will be going through a lot, so you need to be extra kind to yourself.

Schedule a chat with a friend, go for a massage, take a bath, or read a new book. You are doing hard work and you should take good care of yourself while you’re going through this change.