sugar and mood

laurenduffy1988

hi all

Please dont judge as I am counting calories now as I have had enough with myself and getting back on track - so about 2 months ago I lost a stone with slimming world - I have now put back on 9 lb of this for 2 months I have been binging on sugar I know its bad but I have had an issue with it since I was young when I am feeling stressed, anxious, low. In a day I could get through 2ltr coke, a full pack of chocolate biscuits, more chocolate, sweets. Anyway I was wondering if you think there is a link as since this has happened again I have been so moody and snappy everyday, also I get dermatitis and it has really flared up around my eyes, joints and even nipples!

Do you think it could be down to sugar as when I was doing SW I was really well, I have done good today if anyone wants a look at my diary for the day - I hope there isnt something mroe serious wrong with me!

kooshky

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/eating-mindfully/201204/sugar-addiction

There are numerous articles out there like this one, so you may have a sugar addiction. I have a similiar problem with pizza...I have one piece and I can't quit for weeks!

laurenduffy1988

Thank you I will have a read - I have always ate to much sugar but never this bad do you think it may be why I am moody and my dermatitis is flaring up?

kooshky

I'm not an expert by any means, but I have diabetics in the family and have watched their sugar spike and crash, affecting their moods greatly. Not at all suggesting you have diabetes, but if the sugar affects them in that way, I suspect it affects even healthy people.

kooshky

As far as the dermatitis, I don't know much about that.

kommodevaran

I don't think the sugar in and of itself is doing this, but if you are eating nothing but sugary foods, you may not be getting all the nutrition you need, and this can affect your skin, and malnutrition plus itching(?) plus feeling of loss of control can make you feel moody, and feeling moody has a tendency to make you seek comfort on... sugary foods. You are trying to fix a problem by doing more of what creates the problem. Stop doing that.

Slimming World does not work for you if you start to binge when you go off the program. Instead, design your own program. Create new habits that work better than your old ones. Work on your attitudes. (This can feel harsh to hear, but it's not "judging"; attitude change is the most central part of any lifestyle change.) Create an environment where binging isn't your default. Don't buy foods you tend to binge on. Eat food you like but don't binge on. Buy all the real food you need to cook/make meals you like. Eat something from every food group every day: Fruit, non-starchy vegetables, grains/starchy vegetables, dairy, eggs/meat/fish/pulses, nuts/seeds, fats/oils. Don't try to change everything at once, do something that you feel comfortable trying out, and let if become the usual. Then try something else, and so on. Get enough sleep and rest, have fun every day, discover exercise that you like. Don't try to be perfect. Every day provides new opportunities. But every day also bring its own challenges. Don't try to do everything every day. You will never be "finished": Life is a work in progress.

laurenduffy1988

Thank you for your replies - its crazy how much diet can effect everything from moods appearance, confidence - I am going to try and get heather not just for appearance reasons but I feel terrible after the last few weeksand I am moving to London next week so need all the energy i can get!

kooshky

You can do it!!

Need2Exerc1se

laurenduffy1988 wrote: »

Thank you I will have a read - I have always ate to much sugar but never this bad do you think it may be why I am moody and my dermatitis is flaring up?

It's certainly possible. The way to tell would be to stop binge eating sweets and see if it changes. It sounds like you need to work on stress management as it seems you are using sugary foods for comfort. Look into stress management techniques like yoga, walking, deep/rhythmic breathing, meditation, etc. Once you control the stress you won't need to sooth with food.

Whitezombiegirl

I was wondering about this myself today. I spent the last 3 days nibbling on high sugar dried fruit and today i feel so depressed - just so so sad. Maybe a link? Not sure.

WBB55

There are ways to deal with stress without food. They take practice, so it takes time to learn these alternate coping mechanisms. I definitely myself feel like cutting out added sugar has helped me with my depression and anxiety. But it doesn't happen overnight, and it definitely took A LOT work to find alternate coping tactics.

nvmomketo

Oh yes. I frequent the Low Carber Daily group, and on that board a binge of carbs/sugar is often finished with a carb/sugar hangover. People feel pretty poorly for a day or so.

If you are sugar sensitive (meaning insulin resistant) sugar can have a negative impact. I found the ups and downs, and stomach upset of sugar to be annoying. I also have reactive hypoglycemia so I would experience what felt like lows as my blood glucose dropped a hundred points within an hour. Yuck.

I find avoiding sugars, and most carbs, keeps my health and mood on a much more even keel. A big difference.

Best wishes!

lemurcat12

I personally do think an diet high in easily-processed carbs (sugar, white flour) and not balanced with protein or healthy fat sources or fiber is likely to both lead to lots of ups and downs in energy (even for many without preexisting blood sugar issues) and mess with mood. But I also think it's hard to separate the mood effect from the energy effect, feeling out of control around food (which often results from such a diet), or, especially, the effect of bingeing if one is doing that. I suspect that feeling very down after a binge is common, no matter what one binges on.

kshama2001

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

laurenduffy1988 wrote: »

Thank you I will have a read - I have always ate to much sugar but never this bad do you think it may be why I am moody and my dermatitis is flaring up?

It's certainly possible. The way to tell would be to stop binge eating sweets and see if it changes. It sounds like you need to work on stress management as it seems you are using sugary foods for comfort. Look into stress management techniques like yoga, walking, deep/rhythmic breathing, meditation, etc. Once you control the stress you won't need to sooth with food.

Yes, I used to be an emotional eater and now I manage stress with exercise. Also, with a regular exercise program, I am much less stressed.

esjones12

Sugar and processed foods make me snappy, moody, and break out in pimples. It's definitely "addicting" and hard to break out of the habit of binge eating junk food. But learning stress management and about health and wellness can make it a bit easier. First few days are rough but it does get easier! Just have to learn to say "no".

jahillegas_51

Some general thoughts from my binge eating days....

There is no such thing as good food, bad food. Placing labels on food, leads us to ban them from our intake. We say, “No, No, No, No, No…” We push for the perfect diet, once we eat this food that does not fall into this neat diet box; we throw our hands up, saying we failed so now is the time to eat everything we can. This leads to punishment. Which leads to more restrictions. This is the vicious cycle we as binge eaters face. I used to believe it myself, that there was clean food and bad food. It simply is this manifested idea. If you ask a vegan, he/she will say animal based foods are not clean. Someone who is a vegetarian will disagree, and say it is just animal products that are not clean. Then a paleo guy runs in screaming about how meat is clean, but grains aren’t. So someone has to be right? They are all wrong. Instead, adopt my grandmother’s wise old adage of “everything in moderation.”

You can eat whatever you want just not all at once. I believe I heard Layne Norton say this, I believe this, like the 11th commandment, in fact it should be an amendment to the constitution. Nothing crazy, but it will allow you still get your “fix” but you won’t binge on it. Any action in the right direction gave me more motivation and encouragement to keep improving. The small wins kept snowballing into large victories later that slammed the door on binging. Disclaimer, it is wiser to eat this food item from a plate not from the container. Don’t test your will to fight binging if you do not have too. As the old saying goes, “work smarter, not harder.”

No more crazy spreadsheets and tracking of nutrients line item by line item like an accountant. I did not worry about counting calories and the works. I would instead eat (3) meals, breakfast, lunch and supper possibly a snack if I was hungry. I would eat slowly, and as I began to feel fuller I would stop eating. You may be like me and scared that you’ll get fat. Well what is our other choice? We can keep binge eating which is not working, because you wouldn’t be reading this. Or we can reach out and try something new. I need to be conscious of my eating, instead of speed eating (still struggle at times).

Hope this addresses the good vs. bad food and how being super strict can led to binges sometimes. Feel free to reach out for more:)