Should You Detox from Sugar or Social Media First?

Written By Jordan Rubin
Read time: 7 minutes

Fasting, cleansing, detoxing—all of these practices are ancient traditions found in nearly every faith and culture, including the Bible. But in today’s world, where both our bodies and minds are constantly bombarded with junk, it raises the question:

What’s actually more toxic right now—sugar or social media?

Most people turn to a “sugar detox” when they want to clean up their diet and perhaps lose some weight. This is certainly not a wasted effort, considering that added sugars contribute to everything from hormone disruption and anxiety to chronic inflammation and metabolic disease. 

But there’s another substance that most people consume all day long, often without even realizing how much it’s hurting them, and that’s screen time.

If you’re tired, depressed, distracted, or inflamed… it might not be your sweet tooth that’s the biggest problem. It might be your social media feed.

Why Social Media Might Be As (or More) Addictive Than Sugar

Your body was not designed to scroll endlessly and soak up all the details of hundreds of people's lives.

It was made for stillness, prayer, movement such as walking outdoors or tending to a garden, looking at the stars, and perhaps most importantly, connecting with others face-to-face. 

Today, many adults spend over 7 hours a day in front of a screen, and more than 2.5 hours of that screen time is on social media. 37% of teens say they spend 5 or more hours a day on social media, and another 26% spend 2 to 4 hours a day, according to the American Psychological Association. 

"Excessive" social media use is considered any amount more than 2 hours per day. Perhaps unsurprisingly, most people fall into this category.

What’s the cost? 41% of heavy social media users rate their overall mental health as "poor or very poor."

Social media activates the brain’s reward pathway in the same way addictive drugs do. Research shows that receiving a like, comment, or new follower triggers dopamine, the same chemical involved in opioid addiction and other harmful habits, such as gambling, compulsive shopping, and eating junk food.

In other words, there's no doubt about it: excessive social media use can take a serious toll on our overall well-being, including destroying our focus, working memory, and attention span, and contributing to poor sleep and low academic performance. For example, studies show social media can lead to learning issues in children and adults alike.

Another major concern is the toll that social media has on anxiety and depression, mainly due to how it drives comparison. 

Studies show that frequent social media use increases rates of depression, disordered eating, and low self-esteem, especially in girls and young women. Among teens, those who used social media over three hours each day faced twice the risk of negative mental health outcomes, including depression and anxiety.

Finally, screen time is known to sabotage your circadian rhythm, aka your "internal clock." Blue light emitted from phones, laptops, TVs, and tablets suppresses melatonin, the hormone that's secreted at night to make us feel sleepy, which delays sleep onset and reduces the deep, healing sleep you need for hormone balance and energy.

Social media doesn’t just steal your time—it rewires your habits and mindset. Constant exposure to food ads, “what I eat in a day” influencers, and unrealistic body and health standards can lead to cravings, emotional eating, confusion about what’s healthy, and a diminished sense of self-worth. Screen time also disrupts your mood and decision-making, making you more likely to reach for sugary snacks, especially when you're being bombarded with ads designed to override your willpower.

Overall, while sugar hijacks your blood sugar, social media hijacks your brain. 


Biblical principle to draw inspiration from: “Guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” (Proverbs 4:23)

Sugar: Still a Powerful Enemy of Health to Approach With Caution

All of the warnings above don't mean that sugar gets a free pass. While sugar might not affect your brain in the exact same ways that Instagram does, it still rewires your taste buds, sabotages your hormones, and damages your body’s metabolic function.

The average person in biblical times consumed about 2–4 pounds of sugar per year, mostly from raw honey or fruit. 

Today? Americans eat 152 pounds of sugar per year on average, which is about 30 to 70X more than in biblical times. This equates to roughly 17 teaspoons of sugar per day, according to the USDA.

It’s not just the amount of sugar you consume that matters—it’s the form and frequency too.

Added sugars—especially those found in sweetened beverages (like soda, juice, and energy drinks) and ultra-processed snacks (like baked goods and cereals)—are strongly linked to a wide range of chronic health issues. These include hormonal imbalances, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and infertility.

Even more concerning, studies show that sugar may fuel cancer cell growth, worsen autoimmune disease, increase the risk of heart disease, and even contribute to cognitive decline and memory loss.

And there’s more: refined sugars can mess with cortisol production and sensitivity, a stress hormone that, when chronically elevated or imbalanced, can disrupt sleep, slow metabolism, and make you more prone to fatigue, mood swings, and inflammation the following day. This daily blood sugar rollercoaster takes a real toll on your energy, emotions, and long-term health.

And in case you're wondering, artificial sweeteners like sucralose and aspartame aren’t much better. Studies show they can alter the gut microbiome, disrupt insulin signaling, cause cravings for more sweet foods, and possibly even increase cancer risk.


Biblical principle to keep in mind: “Do not be drunk with wine”—or sugar—but be filled with the Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18, paraphrased)

How to Detox The Biblical and Biological Way

You don’t need to go off-grid or move to the desert to be healthy. But you do need to make conscious choices to unplug and unhook from both tech and treats that tempt us every day. Here’s how I recommend doing it:


1. Detox from Social Media and Screen Time

Begin your day phone-free. Spend the first 30–60 minutes reading Scripture, journaling, going outside to get some sunlight, or praying instead. Clean your home, write a to-do list, and do whatever helps to set the stage for a great day. Just no scrolling.

Turn off notifications on your devices. The fewer dopamine pings, the better. You can also use grayscale mode, which makes your feed less stimulating and can reduce the desire for mindless scrolling.

Set a daily screen limit. Use tools like Freedom or Screen Time to enforce your boundaries.

Establish a day or block of time that can be your Sabbath from screens. Take one day each week—ideally Sunday—to unplug entirely. This is deeply biblical and allows the brain to reset.

Find a way to fill the void. Replace screen time with something nourishing: nature walks, reading the Psalms, cooking, face-to-face connection, gardening, something creative, or worship, for example.


2. Cut the Cord from Sugar

Start with awareness. Track your food and sugar intake for a few days. You'll be surprised where added sugars hide (even in sauces, dressings, and protein bars).

Choose better sweeteners. Try raw, local honey, dates, or monk fruit in moderation. These are more natural and come with trace nutrients or fiber.

Balance your plate. Eat protein, fat, and fiber at every meal to stabilize your blood sugar, fill you up, and reduce cravings. For example, if you eat breakfast, consider having pastured eggs with greens and tomatoes rather than cereal or sweetened yogurt with granola.

Retrain your tastebuds. Slowly reduce added sugar and artificial sweeteners, so your palate can appreciate the natural sweetness of fruit, roasted vegetables, and real food again.


You don't necessarily have to aim for zero sugar unless you’re called to. A total fast can be good short term, but extremism around food is not the goal. Healing is.


Biblical principle: “Whether you eat or drink… do it all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

Final Thoughts: Choose What You Want to Be Full Of

Detoxing isn’t only beneficial because it gets rid of something harmful. It also makes space for something holy and positive.

Whether it’s sugar or screens, anything that takes up too much space in your life without feeding your body, soul, or spirit might be worth removing, or at least reducing.

In The Biblio Diet, we look at what Scripture and science say about healing, nourishment, and detoxification. And we return to the rhythms that kept our ancestors healthy, in body and mind.

I call on you to ask yourself: What am I consuming that’s consuming me?

Start where you are, such as turning off your phone, stepping outside into the sunlight, and reaching for food that grows from the earth, not the factory.

 
 
Jordan Rubin
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