#107 – Sugar-Free with Thom King

Subscribe today!

By subscribing, you're guaranteed to get the latest episodes as soon as they are live.

Subscribe Today

By subscribing, you’re guaranteed to get the latest episodes as soon as they are live.

Episode Summary

Krisstina welcomes to the podcast Thom King, founder of Steviva brands and CEO of Icon Foods. In addition to his impressive business acumen, Thom is a philanthropist, self-confessed serial entrepreneur, and author of the book Guy Gone Keto. Thom has built his company around one simple principle: do the right thing. This mantra has been consistently present in all of Thom’s ventures throughout his career. His mission is to help make the world a healthier place through educating the masses on the dangers of sugar and providing high-quality healthy alternatives.

In this episode, we talk all about sugar: the dangers of sugar, where it’s hidden in labels, and how many of us don’t realize how much sugar we consume. Thom tackles serious health issues including metabolic disease, childhood and adolescent obesity, and early onset diabetes. He criticizes food manufacturers for not having the best interests of the consumer at heart and advocates for natural replacements that can help minimize sugar consumption. Thom also assures the audience that moderation is key, especially when enjoying products such as fruit, chocolate and alcohol.

Youtube Link: https://youtu.be/p-GsSHGa9R4

Listen Now

You can also click on the time stamps below to jump to those specific points in the conversation.

#107 – Sugar-Free with Thom King

What We Covered

[01:45] – Krisstina welcomes Thom to the show
[04:15] – The most common types of sugar found in manufactured goods
[06:24] – Thom identifies “sneaky sugars”
[07:40] – How sugar is metabolized the same way regardless of its name
[09:45] – Thom talks about the difference between synthetic and natural sugar
[16:20] – Consuming sugary drinks
[19:13] – How consuming fructose can affect the liver and body in general
[21:18] – How the sugar found in drinks is different from the sugar found in packaged goods
[23:16] – Thom discusses the impact of giving children fruit drinks that are high in sugar
[27:14] – Alternative natural options to sugary drinks
[31:01] – The Glycemic Index
[33:00] – Thom debunks the mindset that fruit smoothies are healthy
[36:42] – Sugar in alcohol
[39:23] – Sugar in chocolate
[42:38] – Different types of natural non-nutritive sweeteners
[49:12] – Thom speaks about stevia and monk fruit
[50:32] – Sugar alternatives in cooking and the alchemy of baking
[52:40] – Making ice cream with zero added sugar
[55:44] – Thom tells the story of serving Keto ice cream to his clients and what ensued
[56:58] – Krisstina gives her kids a blind ice cream taste test
[1:01:45] – Thom welcomes contributions/suggestions from the audience

Tweetables

[Tweet “I would say that anything that ends in “-ose” is a sugar.”]
[Tweet “Shop the perimeters of your store. Ya know? That’s where the produce is and things that don’t contain sugar.”]
[Tweet “In my opinion, fruit is a dessert.”]
[Tweet “I’ve seen baby bottles filled with juice. I’ve seen baby bottles filled with Pepsi.”]
[Tweet “So really, the more sugar you eat, the more you’re going to crave. So, it can become a pretty vicious cycle.”]
[Tweet “If you are consuming alcohol, it’s basically like you’re taking a concentrated version of sugar right into your liver.”]
[Tweet “I have what’s called the booze bag. And so, if I ever have more than two drinks, I have to put money into the booze bag. And then at the end of the month, I give the money that’s in that to the person that I want to give money to the least.”]
[Tweet “Chocolate is actually good for you. I mean, it’s an antioxidant.”]
[Tweet “If you’re putting your faith and your trust in food manufacturers, I would say that, by and large, that’s not a good path to go down because they don’t have your best interests at heart.”]
[Tweet “I like to run my company from a space of contribution. So, if we can make an impact and make people’s lives better, that’s the goal.”]