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Bayfield dietitian promotes less sugar

Fran Sutherlin

Of the evils of unhealthy eating, sugar tops the list for dietitian Fran Sutherlin.

But the real issues many of us face when trying to eat better, she explains, are a lack of time and hectic lifestyles.

Being busy is an excuse to eat a doughnut and soda for breakfast. Her healthy replacement: one egg, half an avocado, and some unsweetened berries.

And yes, she's OK with caffeine in coffee and tea. Endless sodas and energy drinks, however, will keep your body fueled, but that is followed by a crash and more cravings for sugar.

"Breaking up with sugar" is the title of her free talk about cutting sugar out of your diet that she presents at libraries and other venues. It's a process, she explained, and cutting sugar out cold turkey usually doesn't work.

First, she recommends reading labels. People are surprised how much sugar is in granola bars, yogurt and salad dressing.

Sugar is extremely addictive, she explained, even four to seven times more appealing to our physiology than cocaine. But people like the sweet flavor, so as healthier replacements, she recommends pure maple syrup, raw local honey, or pure liquid stevia. Eating breakfast, then having a lunch and dinner, or six smaller meals throughout the day, are key to keeping up your blood sugar and not falling for that doughnut and soda. Most of her clients do best by eating every three to four hours.

"It's baby steps," she says of the process to healthier eating. "It's health and healing, not blowing yourself out of the water."

Sutherlin is a registered dietitian and health coach who married a Bayfield local and started her practice here about three years ago, first working in the offices of Bayfield Chiropratic with Dr. Kennie Monger. When he moved to a smaller office three months ago, she moved her practice to Lake Chiropractic. Being a partner with a chiropractor, accupuncturist and massage therapist helps provide a healing experience for many patients and clients, she explained. While nutrition is key to treating many ailments, a chiropractic adjustment releases tension and stress, while a massage helps detoxify the body.

Many of Sutherlin's clients have just been diagnosed with a disease or condition, such as high blood pressure or cholesterol, fibromyalgia or arthritis. She also has patients with chronic pain, which she says is often linked to stomach and bowel health.

An introductory optimal health session with Sutherlin lasts an hour and costs $45. While a lot of clients come in and say they want to lose weight, she says it typically takes a few sessions to get to the underlying causes of overeating. While some patients can be helped in four sessions, many need 12 to 16 weekly meetings to be on the path to health.

She's tried having online sessions and information available through a portal on her website, but it's not as successful as the one-on-one meetings and the accountability they require, she explained.

She named her website www.willpowerblueprint.com because it's hard to cut out sugar and promote healthier eating on willpower alone. A lot of her clients come to her office with a tremendous amount of knowledge of nutrition, they just aren't sure of how to put it into practice.

Sutherlin will present a talk, Heart Health 101, at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 6 at the Pine River Public Library in Bayfield.

Her practice can be reached at 442-2122.