3 HEALTHY Uses for Sugar

I’m under a microscope when it comes to sugar use! Is the blood sugar specialist 100% sugar free? NO!!! The solemn truth is that I use refined sugar every single day. Here’s how:

Hairspray

Because commercial hairsprays contain polymers, solvents, and propellants that may be harmful,* I choose to make my own. All that is needed to “glue” hair in place is something sticky – yes, sugar – and something to help the spray evaporate quickly. Here’s my recipe:

  • 1 c. boiling water
  • 1-4 Tb. sugar (depending on the type of hold needed)
  • 1/4 c. rubbing alcohol

Add the sugar to the water and stir until no visible crystals remain. Cool the solution, then add the rubbing alcohol and pour into a spray bottle.

Exfoliating Scrub

Removing dirt from pores, loosening dead skin, and scrubbing away excess skin oils helps prevent blemishes. When the exfoliating agent is sugar, the benefits are compounded. Sugar is a natural humectant that draws moisture from the environment into the skin. It also contains alpha hydroxy acid, which encourages cell regeneration and thereby promotes younger-looking skin. During winter months, when dry skin is often aggravated, my sugar scrub is a daily indulgence. It’s so easy to make!

  • 6 Tablespoons honey
  • 1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 cups brown sugar

Warm the honey slightly and mix with the olive oil. Pour over the brown sugar and stir until incorporated. Store in a sealed plastic container in the shower.

Relaxing Creative Outlet

When my husband was on the road 5 days out of 7 and I was home with 5 children pre-teen to baby, I learned that if I don’t take care of myself, no one else can. Forming pipe cleaners into hearts, shamrocks, stars, snowflakes, or geodesic shapes can be playful and rejuvenating. The possibilities are as broad as your imagination. Watching sugar crystals grow on these shapes is equally fun. To make your own sugar crystal art, you will need:

  • pipe cleaners
  • string
  • dowels, pencils, or bamboo kebab sticks
  • a deep container, such as a wide-mouth mason jar or a bowl
  • sugar
  • water

Heat enough water to fill your container. It should be hot enough to dissolve the sugar. For every cup of water, you will need 2-3 cups sugar. Slowly stir the sugar into the water, being careful to make sure that it all dissolves. (You want to saturate your solution , but not have free sugar crystals floating in the container because these will cause crystal growth someplace besides your pipe cleaner.) Now form your desired shape out of pipe cleaners. Using a piece of string, hang your creation from your dowel, pencil, or stick.  Lay the dowel across the top of your container so that your creation dips into the sugar solution. Your string should be long enough that your creation is submerged. Now just wait. In a few days, crystals will appear on the pipe cleaner. The longer you wait, the more the crystals grow. After a week or 10 days, remove the pipe cleaner from the container and hang in it a sunny window.

*Hairspray ingredients may include, but are not limited to, PVP (a known carcinogen), formaldehyde (causes nerve damage and impairs the respiratory system), hydrocarbons (can cause low blood pressure and difficulty breathing), propylene glycol (controversial product with debatable toxicity), and “artificial fragrance” (cannot be assessed for health risk because its actual constitution is not divulged).

in Lifestyle