“Can I have honey with my green tea on the 17 Day Diet?” is a question I hear all the time.
Green tea is one of the main staples of the 17 Day Diet. The book advises us to drink at least a cup at each meal time – your green tea can be hot or cold.
Green tea has a lot of antioxidants and fat-burning properties that make it a dieter’s best friend.
However, many of us have a difficult time drinking green tea without any type of sweetener.
Can I have honey with my green tea?
If you review the 17 Day Diet Cycle food lists for Cycles 1, 2 and 3, you will not see sugar on any of the approved food lists let alone honey.
Honey is mainly comprised of glucose and fructose — the same properties as sugar.
Don’t get me wrong – I love honey and it has a lot of great qualities.
Honey contains a lot of antioxidants, helps lower bad cholesterol, and can even help lower triglycerides.
Plus, I personally feel honey is better than eating real sugar.
Sugar and Honey May Keep You From Losing Weight
There is a time and place for incorporating honey into your diet. When you’re sick, hot lemon water with a bit of honey will give you some immune-boosting properties.
However, when you eat too much sugar (honey, maple syrup, etc), this causes a spike in blood sugar levels and therefore increases insulin production.
This is not good for weight loss. There’s a reason why the 17 Day Diet recommends you limit your sugar intake, including fructose from higher-sugar fruits.
Cycle 1 is All About Detox
However, detox is one of the main focuses of Cycle 1 of the 17 Day Diet. This includes cutting out sugar, which includes honey.
So if you are like me and need your coffee or green tea sweetened, consider using Stevia, the officially approved sweetener of the 17 Day Diet.
The Stevia sweetener comes from the Stevia plant.
However, all Stevia-based products are not created equal. Be sure to check the manufacturer’s label because many brands contain sugar or artificial sweetener blends along with the stevia extract.
Plus, most Stevia-based products are heavily processed in order to extract the sweetener from the plant.
Stevia is also known to have a bitter aftertaste, so if you are sensitive to this, consider not using any sweetener over time.
Use Sweeteners Sparingly
At the end of the day, you’re going to have better success losing weight with the 17 Day Diet if you cut out all sweeteners.
While honey is a real food and has great qualities for improved health, having too much while you’re trying to lose weight may keep you from reaching your goals.
I always recommend eating real foods first, and raw honey is one of them. However, I’d use it sparingly while you’re trying to lose weight.
I’ve been loving the 17 Day Diet since 2011. I love sharing my favorite healthy recipes and meal plans to keep you motivated and on the right path to success!
When I’m not hanging out here, I enjoy quick trips to the Oregon Coast, designing my jewelry line and watching Outlander!
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There is a honey that you can buy online from Nature’s Hollow, that is made from xylitol.
If it’s made from Xylitol, is it real honey or imitation? I personally prefer Xylitol over other sweeteners as it doesn’t have a nasty after taste like stevia has. Thanks for the tip. I’ll check it out.
What did you find out about the honey made with xylitol?
Is Arizona Diet Green Tea acceptable?
I’d make sure the first ingredient is green tea and I’d be careful about the artificial sweetener. You’ll need to consume artificial sweetener in moderation and the doctor really only recommends Truvia/Stevia.
My 17 day diet book gives Truvia as the sweetener.
Yes, Truvia = Stevia. I personally don’t like the aftertaste though.
I don’t like green tea at all or at least ones I’ve tried in the past. do i have to drink it? I know helps burn fat is there something else?
Nicole, I’m not a fan either! I personally don’t know if it’s going to make a huge difference or not. If you’re not sure, you can always try green tea supplements to get the same fat burning effect.
I am on cycle1 deit.i got light sugar can 6 calorie per serving.is it good or i must use Stevia
Low-sugar might be fine. Just keep watching how your weight goes and if you’re not seeing any weight loss, stop drinking it and see what happens.
I had some green tea chai by Bigelow that I liked..and I use Skinny Girl organic Stevia. Hope this is acceptable!
Leda, you’re probably fine as long as the tea is real green tea (without artificial sweeteners or added sugar – probably doesn’t have it since you used Stevia!).
Can I chew sugarfree trident gum on this diet? I desperately crave something sweet and the cinnamon or fruit flavors has been my ‘cheat.’ Is this ok??
Mary, I personally don’t see a problem, but in the book the Doctor recommends not chewing gum as it causes you to swallow excess air which aggravates bloating. I say proceed with caution!
Hi- I am about to start 17 day diet and am thinking about using your sight/blog resources to help. My only problem is that I feel like you have too much info/options, downloads, pdf, blog, email and I don’t exactly know where to turn. Can you help me by just providing one source to follow. If it is to purchase one of your guides, that is fine but do I need to – seems like you provide it online, but through blog? I don’t have time to check blogs for recipes and other info. Thoughts?
Hi Marie, if you haven’t already, sign up for my free Quick Start Guide. This will give you a great foundation to start with. All the basics on how the diet works are in this guide: https://17ddblog.com/new-guide.
Now, if you’re looking for recipes, you can find them here: https://17ddblog.com/category/17-day-diet-recipes/
Lastly, if you want an all-in-one, done for you option, then consider one of my meal planning kits. There’s a sale going on right now, so check it out here: https://17ddblog.com/shop.
Best of success to you!
What are the best Greek yogart to buy. I buy dannon light and fit but not sure how it’s sweetend
Angie, at the end of the day, I think plain yogurts with NO added sugar or artificial sweeteners are best to buy. You can add your own fruit and flavorings so you control what you put into your body.
If you need a fruit flavored greek yogurt, probably the one I’ve been able to find with the least amount of sugar or artificial ingredients is Chobani’s Simply 100. If you’re not sure how your Dannon Light is sweetened, best to look at the ingredients next time and you’ll definitely see what’s in there.
Real honey is made from and by bees – honey bees. Anything else is artificial.