Anyone else feel they are addicted to sugar?

lemurcat12

I saw a mom selling her baby at the park for a Baby Ruth candy bar. It was sad.

My grandpa used to run a sugar gang, back in the day. They were pretty hard core guys baking cakes all day. They made a killing.

I've heard of people dying after getting cut open and having their intestines rewired in hopes of ending overeating. I've heard of people who didn't die but still couldn't stop overeating, even if it made them puke, even though they spent all that time going through surgery and pain and recovery and risked their lives trying to change.

I've heard of marriages ending, parents dying young and leaving their children orphans, people who had decent lives succumbing and ending up living, housebound or even bed-bound, on piddling disability checks and charity.

I've heard of people winning the fight, too, and losing the weight and keeping it off and not going back to old habits. But I've heard them talk about and seen them write about how it's a constant mindfulness, a constant battle, a drastic change in lifestyle and habits. That they can't 'have just one' or 'take a week off', that it's for life and that's it, and to succeed costs them incredible amounts of energy and effort.

In fact, so far, keeping my weight in the normal range is costing me a huge amount of effort and energy. More than I would have ever believed possible. People who disregard these things belittle others who are struggling and truly deserve a taste of their own contempt and ignorance back themselves.

My problem with this is you conflate compulsive eating and binging disorders--which obviously are a thing, but typically are not limited to specific kinds of food, like sugar--to standard tendency to gain weight. The idea that people want to eat cookies or gain weight because of a physical addiction to sugar, or that all fat people are essentially struggling with some version of uncontrollable eating or binging disorder is what seems obviously false to me. Psychological precision aside, there are links between these things and addiction, IMO, but the presence of these things is not needed to explain run of the mill weight gain or even most modern obesity.

RHachicho

Hey guess what i used to think I was addicted to sugar.

Then I listened to what a friend of mind went through with actual drug addiction and learned what a real addiction looks like.

I didn't say that quitting sugar is EASY. That is not the case. But it is a habit not an addiction and quitting it is however great or small merely a matter of willpower. It isn't something anyone needs "help" with. And it takes a surprisingly short stint of willpwer to "cure" it.

I was drinking 3 2l bottles of coke + as many sweets or pastries as I cared for daily. I probably hit 8-10k calories some days. A great bulk of that sugar. I thought i was addicted. Because I couldn't Imagine my life without sugar.

In the end I decided to go "cold turkey" As if that term was even applicable. I allowed myself a very small amount of whole fruit sugar a day and cut carbs to a minimum. I kept this up for 3 weeks. By the end of it I didn't even miss sugar. Indeed all the sugary stuff I used to love tasted sickly sweet. And i became a total fruit fan lol. Yes I know it's sugar. But it's not nearly as much as I was consuming. And I don't binge.

All I had to do was break the habit my body had of going straight for sugar once I felt the slightest bit hungry. You make choices about what foods to go for and obviously if you eat a lot of sugar which can be very rewarding then psychologically you make a habit out of seeking that reward. Especially when things get you down.

But you need to realize that this no matter how hard you think it is is a habit not an addiction. An addiction is far far more terrible a thing than you are currently going through. And you are using that word to tell yourself that you can't just shake this off. But I've got news for you I did, You can, You are being a drama queen about this whole thing. Breaking habits is hard. But it is also solely in the domain of willpower. All it requires is a short period of re learning for your brain. In which yes you will probably be a bit miserable because you will be bombarded by sugar cravings. And your primary means of salving any depression you might feel will be gone. But trust me the cravings will go and you WILL find new healthier ways to deal with having a bad day than stuffing your face full of sugar.

And please wake up and realize that sometimes people just have to tell you when you are singing yourself stupid with your own excuses. They had to do it for me and I am grateful and now I am doing it for you. Choose not to listen if you will but it's you who will continue to suffer under bad habits.

chsa22

I was reading some of the posts and I'm sorry some made you feel bad. I'm not sure why people feel the need to insult others, especially on a site that is used as a means of support. I have a problem with how much ice cream or nutella I eat. It's the only thing that really keeps me from feeling my best health-wise. Sometimes I think it's like self-sabotage. And other times I think, life is short, I want to eat my Ben & Jerry's! Especially when most of my day I'm eating very healthy and working out. For the most part, I just don't buy these culprits. But I wish I didn't have to avoid those foods, and instead learn how to enjoy them in moderation.
I hope I learn how to sooner than later, and I hope you find the best way for yourself as well.

Meerataila

I saw a mom selling her baby at the park for a Baby Ruth candy bar. It was sad.

My grandpa used to run a sugar gang, back in the day. They were pretty hard core guys baking cakes all day. They made a killing.

I've heard of people dying after getting cut open and having their intestines rewired in hopes of ending overeating. I've heard of people who didn't die but still couldn't stop overeating, even if it made them puke, even though they spent all that time going through surgery and pain and recovery and risked their lives trying to change.

I've heard of marriages ending, parents dying young and leaving their children orphans, people who had decent lives succumbing and ending up living, housebound or even bed-bound, on piddling disability checks and charity.

I've heard of people winning the fight, too, and losing the weight and keeping it off and not going back to old habits. But I've heard them talk about and seen them write about how it's a constant mindfulness, a constant battle, a drastic change in lifestyle and habits. That they can't 'have just one' or 'take a week off', that it's for life and that's it, and to succeed costs them incredible amounts of energy and effort.

In fact, so far, keeping my weight in the normal range is costing me a huge amount of effort and energy. More than I would have ever believed possible. People who disregard these things belittle others who are struggling and truly deserve a taste of their own contempt and ignorance back themselves.

My problem with this is you conflate compulsive eating and binging disorders--which obviously are a thing, but typically are not limited to specific kinds of food, like sugar--to standard tendency to gain weight. The idea that people want to eat cookies or gain weight because of a physical addiction to sugar, or that all fat people are essentially struggling with some version of uncontrollable eating or binging disorder is what seems obviously false to me. Psychological precision aside, there are links between these things and addiction, IMO, but the presence of these things is not needed to explain run of the mill weight gain or even most modern obesity.

I'd be perfectly willing personally to use the word compulsion rather than addiction, but you know how us humans are with our care-free word ways. We don't always draw fine distinctions. And compulsion and addiction have enough in common that researchers are finding similarities between people who compulsively overeat and people who are addicted to drugs, too, so it's not even that major of a distinction.

In any case, OP, I have a tip I should have put in my first post rather than trying to draw that same distinction myself:

Cook from scratch as often as you can. That way you control what goes in your food. I'm still learning, I was afraid of the kitchen for decades (my first culinary attempts were laughable creations that no one would want to eat!) but I'm finally determined to do it. Highly processed foods are disgusting anyway, often containing insects and insect excretions. Think on that next time you get a cookie craving.

Tigg_er

Well OP apparently you used the wrong word to describe your problem. To me it was a word and I understand where you are coming from. There was some good advise offered and you have lost the weight before so you can for sure do it again.

What I don't understand is that if you would have posted you were additiced to peanutbutter or pizza or dam near anything else you probably would not have caught all the flak. I see it all the time on other post and if it isn't about suger addiction the heat just doesn't seem to be as great.

I wish you good luck. :drinker:

mytime6630

Thank you - yes, just was not expecting the type of reaction and responses I received. See if I ever post again! LOL

QuietBloom

I saw a mom selling her baby at the park for a Baby Ruth candy bar. It was sad.

My grandpa used to run a sugar gang, back in the day. They were pretty hard core guys baking cakes all day. They made a killing.

I've heard of people dying after getting cut open and having their intestines rewired in hopes of ending overeating. I've heard of people who didn't die but still couldn't stop overeating, even if it made them puke, even though they spent all that time going through surgery and pain and recovery and risked their lives trying to change.

I've heard of marriages ending, parents dying young and leaving their children orphans, people who had decent lives succumbing and ending up living, housebound or even bed-bound, on piddling disability checks and charity.

I've heard of people winning the fight, too, and losing the weight and keeping it off and not going back to old habits. But I've heard them talk about and seen them write about how it's a constant mindfulness, a constant battle, a drastic change in lifestyle and habits. That they can't 'have just one' or 'take a week off', that it's for life and that's it, and to succeed costs them incredible amounts of energy and effort.

In fact, so far, keeping my weight in the normal range is costing me a huge amount of effort and energy. More than I would have ever believed possible. People who disregard these things belittle others who are struggling and truly deserve a taste of their own contempt and ignorance back themselves.

Was all of that because they had a sugar 'addiction'? Or because they were overweight from eating too much. There are plenty of obese people who do not have a sweet tooth. How do you explain them?

QuietBloom

Sugar addiction/love/cravings/guilt trips, whatever you want to call them, are obviously a problem for a big portion of us. Whether or not the body does predispose to treat sugar as an addition neurologically is another debate, but what is certain is that the reward factor is true, we treat sugar as a reward that makes us feel good about ourselves. We like that feeling, it releases dopamine in our brain and we crave it.

Its been my achilles heel ever since I was a teenager. Everyone around me kicked the sugar thing but I stuck to it, and it just got worse till after a couple of years of binging I had amassed an extra 50 kilos. And then I lost it by getting over sugar in a controlled manner. Tapering off, but never to the point that its not there. Its still there and I give myself one or two treats a day after meals or with coffee. Basically IIFYM based on whatever Im doing at that particular moment in time.

It is a very fine line, and there are weeks where Is suddenly realize that Ive been having too much sugar, I feel it in my system, im twitchy and hungry. Constantly frustrated. Other weeks where I forget it even exists.

What I tried to do was kick out of certain habits for good. For instance, I never have sugar with tea/coffee. Wherever there are suitable sugar free alternatives I will consider. And I always track my sugar intake on MFP and try to have sugar in what I call a controlled environment. That is instead of having cake outside the house, I make my own stuff, my own desserts. It works great for me. Im like, I can have a vanilla chocolate fudge sundae at the diner or I could make my own light vanilla icecream, sugar free hersheys syrup, light whipped cream sunday with a dash of sprinkles. Same indulgence, less than 50% of the calories.

Its not always about sugar, its the sugar lifestyle. Control that and your problem will be fixed. It worked for me.

Dopamine is released when we eat any food, not just sugar.

multimode

joan6630:

I want to thank the ones that responded in a way that did not ridicule me, or make me feel worse, which most of the earlier posts did.

I don't know whether my semi off topic response was helpful, but my intent was largely to confirm that your not alone with your sugar related challenges. If I eat too many sweets/carbs, I have irrational cravings for more sweets/crabs. If I restrict (not eliminate) sweets/carbs then I don't get irrational cravings for food my body doesn't need.

Sweets/carbs have sabotaged my progress twice right around the 20lbs lost mark. Now I watch my carb and sugar intake very closely and I'm well over the hump. Gary has a lot of great points but I feel like he takes some things too far, I haven't abandoned a calorie restricted diet for a carb restricted diet... Now I just restrict both. I get the results I want, but your mileage may vary.

This is the only thread I've ever responded to on MFP, and it will probably be my last.

GuitarJerry:

I have no words for this extremely bizarre conclusion.

Some Facts:
If your diabetic or at risk of diabetes (you have a family history, and/or are already obese), your insulin production could be compromised. High blood sugar is known to cause compulsive eating... if your insulin production is already compromised sweets/high carbs is going causes high blood sugar... which leads to compulsive eating... which leads to high blood sugar. This cycle is way different then "I like to eat Twinkies", but its a situation an individual could be in without realizing it. Its a situation I found myself in, and once identified and managed made my weightloss and fitness goals achievable.

I'm not saying it's an addiction, but its a physiological mechanic that drives a self repeating physiological craving. A physiological craving which you claimed did not exist in defense of individuals with more serious addiction issues. As a former heavy smoker (10 years) who quit cold turkey, I can say first hand that the the food cravings caused by a jacked up insulin response are harder to deal with then nicotine withdraw was. To make things worse... You can't quit food, but your right nobody is hocking their mom's car for some candy bars or birthday cake... However its probably easier for a recovered addict to avoid being offered free heroin at one of the many birthday parties they socially obligated to attend.

All that said: Is this going to cause "normal" people to become sugar fiends, and lead to brain damage like other substance abuse? No, but then again "normal" people can have beer on a Friday night without ruining their lives and the lives of their family. If your not "normal" and trapped in a high blood sugar cycle, your biggest dangers are obesity related illnesses, and depression. Unfortunately the effect of these dangers, just feeds into the cause...

Gary is a fraud. His research is total crap. People in the biz know this, and yet he just carries on, ripping people off and lying to everyone.

You and unknown "People" in some unknown "biz" obviously a very trustworthy source, I bet your surprised that we're not all just taking your word for it. Rather then casting shallow criticism on anything in the thread, perhaps you should should share your story and tell us what works for you.

From your profile I'm guessing your probably a healthy dude, living an active lifestyle who isn't already struggling with obesity. This is why the first thing I pointed out is that one size doesn't fit all.

Shropshire1959

Nope.

losingforgood120

Well OP apparently you used the wrong word to describe your problem. To me it was a word and I understand where you are coming from. There was some good advise offered and you have lost the weight before so you can for sure do it again.

What I don't understand is that if you would have posted you were additiced to peanutbutter or pizza or dam near anything else you probably would not have caught all the flak. I see it all the time on other post and if it isn't about suger addiction the heat just doesn't seem to be as great.

I wish you good luck. :drinker:

When people say they are addicted to pizza I would assume they are speaking tongue-in-cheek, whereas the idea of sugar addiction is something some health writers and researchers are starting to consider as "real." I think the topic gets heated up because it makes people who eat sugar feel defensive. (Especially when they believe it's false). I know when I saw the documentary "Hungry for Change" and one of the people they interviewed stated if you feed your child sugar you might as well be giving them cocaine... as a parent, I got super defensive. People are sensitive about their decisions... if you are committed to being drug-free and then someone tells you sugar is a drug, it's going to bother you. So... human nature? It's just a controversial topic.

lemurcat12

Me:

My problem with this is you conflate compulsive eating and binging disorders--which obviously are a thing, but typically are not limited to specific kinds of food, like sugar--to standard tendency to gain weight. The idea that people want to eat cookies or gain weight because of a physical addiction to sugar, or that all fat people are essentially struggling with some version of uncontrollable eating or binging disorder is what seems obviously false to me. Psychological precision aside, there are links between these things and addiction, IMO, but the presence of these things is not needed to explain run of the mill weight gain or even most modern obesity.

You:

I'd be perfectly willing personally to use the word compulsion rather than addiction, but you know how us humans are with our care-free word ways. We don't always draw fine distinctions. And compulsion and addiction have enough in common that researchers are finding similarities between people who compulsively overeat and people who are addicted to drugs, too, so it's not even that major of a distinction.

Hmm, I think you are misunderstanding my post, since I agreed with that bit. From a precise psychological POV there probably is a meaningful distinction between a compulsion and addiction, but I'm not sure what it is and those things do seem similar to me. If someone wanted to compare alcoholism and binge eating or compulsive overeating, I would find it an interesting topic and probably agree that there are lots of similarities.

BUT, my understanding is that those things aren't focused on the physical properties of specific foods, although there may be trigger foods (which is one way in which I think it is somewhat different than drug-based addictions, including alcoholism). Now, clearly, you can have an addiction without that (gambling), but it is why I resist the idea that binge eating disorder is akin to an addiction to sugar (or bread, as suggested by one poster above).

More significantly for the current discussion perhaps, I don't think the average overweight or even obese person suffers from compulsive overeating or binge disorder. It's a lot easier to become overweight than all that in this age and society anyway. There are other explanations. But certainly some do have these issues. Personally, I'm a sober alcoholic and overweight, and to some extent I misused food as a replacement for alcohol for a while (basically until I realized I was doing it and then decided it was bad and should stop), but I've never binged and don't compulsively overeat and there's a really obvious distinction in my mind between how I react to all the supposedly addictive foods and how I react to alcohol. I'm fat more because I didn't mind so much being fat (weird from the perspective of my social group) and so there wasn't the incentive not to take advantage of the pleasures than because I persisted despite the horrible consequences as with an addiction (long after it was not actually even pleasurable). Hmm, maybe it's the idea that enjoying food=addiction that I find somewhat twisted here.

Now, I'm not saying that's definitive at all, in that plenty of people don't react to alcohol like I do and alcoholism has both physical and non-physical elements. (That's one of many reasons why I don't go around ranting about the evils of alcohol like some do about sugar, as if no one could safely drink it, also!) But so far none of the "evidence" that sugar is physically addicting, even to some, seems particularly compelling to me. But precisely what addiction is seems to me an interesting question and so do the links to eating behaviors.

I am always puzzled in these discussions what people mean by addiction and why it is something they are so anxious to claim. Maybe because my perception is that a lot of people struggling with more traditional addictions want to be able to claim they can control it long after they obviously can't. I think why I tend to object to the term as so often used on MFP is that it seems to be used too casually--to mean "I really, really like these foods and don't reach a point where I feel like I couldn't eat more." You don't need addiction for that--you need the fact they are tasty. And then you get to the fact that it's always the most tasty (at least to someone's palate) foods that are being discussed, not sugar from the bag (ugh) or even fruit.

Cook from scratch as often as you can. That way you control what goes in your food. I'm still learning, I was afraid of the kitchen for decades (my first culinary attempts were laughable creations that no one would want to eat!) but I'm finally determined to do it. Highly processed foods are disgusting anyway, often containing insects and insect excretions. Think on that next time you get a cookie craving.

Luckily I don't have a sugar issue, since I'm not sure how this would help me. I never was much for store-bought cookies. It's not like they are hard to make. For me, the fact I prefer homemade helps avoid temptation some (for the record, I'm also tempted by a nice roast lamb, and wouldn't say I was addicted to that), because it's a lot of work if I can only have a couple, so I tend not to bother (I'm sure I will for Christmas, of course, and that I'll make a pie on Thanksgiving, etc.). It's also why I plan in advance for my book club, since one of the other members is a fabulous baker and likes experimenting on us. Oh, well, moderation!

silentKayak

Yes. The feelings/sensations that come from having "just one" sugary snack are very similar to when I quit smoking 20 years ago. My last successful diet ended when I "fell off the wagon" with sugary stuff, just like an alcoholic giving up years of sobriety with binge drinking. In general, I prefer healthy food to non-healthy food, but a taste of sugar seems to send my brain haywire.

Some people can have "just one", but I may actually need to quit that highly sugared crap for real. I'm hoping that being in the habit of tracking every single day will help keep me accountable.

BIGBMF

You don't know enough for evidence based conclusion because you presume to know the evidence.

drug
drəg/
noun
1.
a medicine or other substance which has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body.

BIGBMF

Sugar is a drug. You build tolerance to it and have withdrawal from it. Wtf are you talking about not addicting.

Let me clarify why I responded to this and why it makes me mad. Your basically saying that because you don't have a crack problem crack is not addictive.

There is no evidence that your statement is true.

You've never heard of people using more and more sugar over time in tea or coffee?

BIGBMF

I'm not saying this applies to everyone or even a majority. I'm not saying that people don't need to be accountable. I'm saying that it's a very real problem any people have. As for me I used to drink 4 to 6 liters of soda every day, and it's still very hard not to.

eweadock

I've not read through all of the posts here, but I will say that I've seen easier success this year than I have in all of my previous years of attempted weight loss. I will attribute that to my doctor recommending I attempt to restrict my sugars to 20 g per day.

Because I have an addictive personality, I was able to stop smoking cigarettes by going cold turkey (25 years ago), but was unable to figure out how to manage my eating, because stopping cold turkey has dire consequences. Portion control, using the American Heart Association diet or Jenny Craig, or Weight Watchers all ultimately failed me. Apparently my body is the type that simply metabolizes sugars into fat, and my personality is the type that must simply turn off certain substances.

I'm not a sugar addict, but by eliminating unnecessary sugars from my diet, I've been able to lose about 2 lbs per week without feeling deprived. I have no desire to eat the ice cream that my family keeps in the fridge, nor do I have the desire to eat the cookies or candy that they persistently keep on the counter.

I do allow myself a glass of wine every day with dinner. This seems to work out well. So, I'm not an addict to sugar, but I behave as if sugar will be as bad for me as tobacco.

Helps?

caseyjarryn

A useful link for those who are interested, David Gillespie's guide to breaking sugar addiction: http://www.howmuchsugar.com/page-351428

Meerataila

Was all of that because they had a sugar 'addiction'? Or because they were overweight from eating too much. There are plenty of obese people who do not have a sweet tooth. How do you explain them?

Food addiction, sugar addiction, carb addiction, what you really want to quibble? It's like saying cigarette addiction vs chewing tobacco addiction, vs snuff addiction. If you're doing something harmful to yourself and you know it and you can't stop yourself (especially if you can't stop yourself after a triggering incident - just one cigarette/drink/cookie) it's fine by me if you want to call it addiction. I guess it's fine by me if you don't want to call it that, too.

Lemurcat makes a good point, though. Not everyone who is overweight eats like a binge drinker/compulsive overeater/carb/sugar/whatever addict. Some people just let it sneak up on them over a period of years or decades and don't ever really crave in the sense I mean when I say I crave certain foods. Sadly I've yet to crave carrots or broccoli. I defy you to find someone who got fat because they couldn't put the lettuce down.