Sugar cravings

sarabudxox

No matter what I do, Im always craving sugar. It's impossible for me to turn down any sweets and they're always the first thing I reach for. I try to eat fruits and satisfy my sweet tooth but it really doesn't help. Any tips ?

meulf6f

Look Into changing your diet to a low carb plan. Several choices out there.

Nebrie

http://www.extragum.com/flavors#/cinnamon-roll

I chew that gum. The taste is legit. That sugar craving is a beast. This gum calms the beast just enough.

malibu927

Either work them into your calories or learn how to say no

sarabudxox

@meulf6f i Have no idea how I could try a low carb diet when everything I eat is basically carbs. And im only 16 with no money and my parents don't care for eating healthy and don't have the money to buy specific foods for me. @Nebrie IVE tried chewing gum but it doesn't stop the fact that I want something sweet like chocolate or cookies. @malibu927 I really want to learn how to say no but when my grandma makes cookies or brownies or cake and my whole family is eating it, I can't say no I just don't know how to. And im surrounded by sweets because my family is also hooked onto them so im always stuck with these cravings,

Liftng4Lis

Make room into your allotment for a treat each day.

sarabudxox

But I feel like eating any sweets makes me a bad person and I really want a flat and toned stomach and it seems as if there's no choice but to not eat any desserts or any added sugar if you want a nice stomach. @Liftng4Lis

coriexa

sarabudxox wrote: »

But I feel like eating any sweets makes me a bad person and I really want a flat and toned stomach and it seems as if there's no choice but to not eat any desserts or any added sugar if you want a nice stomach. @Liftng4Lis

Eating does not make you a bad person. It never will. You need to eat to live and function well. So, for your own mental health, try not to associate eating food with failure or being a bad person. That way of thinking is common in people with (nascent) eating disorders. Even if it's just a fear of sweets now, that fear can spread in to other categories of foods. Be careful...

Kalikel

sarabudxox wrote: »

But I feel like eating any sweets makes me a bad person and I really want a flat and toned stomach and it seems as if there's no choice but to not eat any desserts or any added sugar if you want a nice stomach. @Liftng4Lis

A bad person? No, eating a treat doesn't make you a bad person.

Poor @Lifting4Lis would be doomed to hellfire if that were the case. I don't think she's on her way to Hades just yet.

You should consider seeing a therapist who specializes in eating disorders. If your idea of self-worth is wrapped up in the type of food that you swallow, it might be a good idea to talk that through with a professional. You don't have to have an eating disorder in order to benefit from their expertise.

sarabudxox

@coriexa Yeah I'll have to change my mindset , I just hate being that one person trying to get fit and eating five donuts or other sweets. At first I think oh well I worked out its fine and then I look at all those fit girls And they haven't touched a sweet in their whole lives basically. @Kalikel ugh I don't know I guess it's just me comparing myself to others again and one of my friends will be like wow you had another donut ? Or wow you're still eating sweets ? And she thinks it's easy to just stop eating but it isn't for me .

Whitezombiegirl

Fruit doesn't hit the spot for me either when I'm craving sweets. What gets rid of the craving for me is a strong taste in my mouth- something powerful or very sour. In the past I've sucked a walnut (very sour), had a bit of lemon juice, mouth wash, sugar-free extra strong mint, fisherman's friend losenges and at the moment... it's aniseed balls. I suck one or two aniseed balls and my sugar craving evaporates.

I'm guessing you are human- right? So you are evolved to value sweetness as a source of carbohydrate- thats natural. Even the slimmest people still get sugar cravings, it's okay.

I do think it's a mind set. I've been in your position before and at the moment I'm 'take it or leave it' about sweets. Maybe because it's summer or maybe I'm not PMssing at the moment- not sure but at one time I really felt that I was mising out on something if I passed up on cake- but now I feel like it's JUST food- no big deal. (I do eat cakes from time- when I really fancy one- not just because its there). I don't know what changed in my mind- so I can't help in that way, sorry.

canary_girl

I know this is unpopular, but I was *addicted* to sugar. The more I ate the more I wanted. For me I had to go cold turkey. No processed sugars, only high fiber fruit, and nothing with more than 3 grams of sugar per serving. It SUCKED. For 3 days. (Day 2 was the worst). After that it was fine, and I stuck with it for over a year. (And I have school aged kids who I regularly purchased ice cream, cookies, and other sugar laden treats for).

A year later I eat sugar now, but only occasionally, and things taste super sickly sweet to me.

All growing up I heard "work out and eat whatever you want". So that's what I did. And I was fat. Only after changing my diet (and not working out, at least in the beginning) did I start to lose weight.

lemurcat12

sarabudxox wrote: »

And im only 16

Check out Sparkteens (http://www.sparkteens.com/). It's a site like this, but for people your age.

I also think some therapy would be helpful, or maybe getting a referral from your family doctor to a registered dietician, who could talk with you about what a healthy diet is and some strategies for having one (whatever your goals are).

You definitely can learn to say no to sweets (it's just a matter of understanding why you are eating them, and learning moderation, and having good reasons to say no-such as really believing you will get positive results if you do), but I wish I'd had a better understanding of my eating patterns and the psychological aspects and also nutrition and so on when I was younger, even though I didn't gain weight until somewhat later.