Ma Chukar’s Healthy New Year Tips

How to Ramp Down Sugar Consumption After a Season of Sweets

For many of us, cutting back on sugar after the holidays is a difficult process. Here's how I go about limiting sugar intake, but please tailor this friendly advice to what works best for you—and drop us a note on Facebook or Instagram with your ideas!

I start the morning with protein and veggies: scrambled eggs with spinach are my mainstay. For lunch and dinner, I select fish or lean meats and a variety of vegetables.

Here’s the cherry on top: throughout the day—and especially after dinner when I crave sweets—I grab a handful of no sugar added, naturally dried Bing or Rainier cherries. As suggested by many dietitians, I chew slowly and focus on discerning the textures and flavors. Doing so helps satiate my sugar cravings.

Sipping hot green tea with the dried cherries enhances the flavor and creates a sense of ritual. The balance of natural sugar and acid in the fruit is satisfying, and the glucose in cherries is slow to release, keeping sugar cravings at bay. Here’s to cherries!

About Chukar's Sugar-Free Dried Cherries

Did you know that Chukar's entire line of Northwest dried cherries is made without added sugar or preservatives? Our secret is starting with tree-ripened, local cherries that are bursting with natural sweetness and flavor.

Delivered directly to our Eastern Washington facility shortly after being picked, top quality sweet cherries, such as the fresh Rainiers pictured above, are slowly dried in our custom-built air tunnels. We use low heat and a long drying period to retain the cherries' natural sugar, flavors, and nutrients.

The result? The sweetest sugar-free treat that you'll find anywhere! If you struggle with sugar cravings or simply want to enjoy a nutritious snack, you owe it to yourself to try this unique Northwest treat.