Are Desserts Really Necessary?

One of the big joys after a good main meal is the dessert. Children love them and older folk feel they end the meal. The problem is they are usually full of calories and contributing to obesity and even diabetes in all ages. There are some great alternatives such as a piece of fruit or a smoothie. In my young days we were also encouraged to have jam on bread as a good filler if we were still hungry. Fresh bread and spread is delicious.

My children were always given a dessert because that is the way it was in my family. But now it is almost unheard of and we are all better for it.

Some desserts are worse than others because they contain cream or are piled high with ice-cream or custard. The ones that encourage these toppings are usually pies or stewed fruits, such as apples. Who doesn't love a pavlova or chocolate eclairs, and the calorie count in them has to be high due to the sugar and cream.

So what is it about our palate that allows us to take in such foods in the first place. Until the 15th to 16th century sugar was virtually unknown because it came from the New World with explorers like Christopher Columbus. Then it was such a luxury that only the very rich could afford it. Kings, like Henry VIII grew extremely fat on it and he loved his indulgence so much he had ulcers all over his legs, shocking teeth, and was probably diabetic.

Chocolate manufacture took off in the 17th to 18th century when chefs added sugar to the raw material and made it into drinks and later into commercial products. Now it part of their every day diet for many. Children are given chocolate sweets from babies up and they become addicted to it. Adults too are so addicted they feast on it, as I used to do.

When my sugar levels soared and I was pre-diabetic the doctor advised me to stop eating sweets. When he was asked how to get over the craving his advice was that once your stop eating sugar the craving ceases. It is perfectly true. Now I have very little sugar or salt in my diet and know that the craving has completely gone.

None of my children are addicted to it either because they saw the light. With a good healthy diet one does not need to spoil it with substances that are unhealthy and cause other problems, such as obesity, diabetes, and tooth loss. Desserts would have to be the first thing to cut from a meal as they are unnecessary.