Sugar is like crack

angiechimpanzee

I am the exact same way.

On days I make an effort to increase my calories, I tend to go straight for sugar which is a huge mistake, because then what was meant to be a day or two of eating a bit more than usual turns into three or four days of near binging, and all the extra calories come directly from refined sugar. It's addictive, most definitely. & I truly believe it has WAY more to it than just "moderation". I think it has physiologically addictive effects. Eating fattening foods like pizza & burgers don't have near the effect on me that sugar does. I could really eat a whole tub of icecream or a whole package of cookies in a sitting. I try to avoid it as much as possible.

etoiles_argentees

Sugar is not like crack, or alcohol.
Oh look, I'm not even posting Peat's theory or stuff from consumerfreedom.com or ratskep. lol

Because alcohol and other addictive drugs disrupt GABA levels in the brain’s reward circuitry, the mechanism for evaluating expectation and reward is compromised. GABA, dopamine’s partner in the enterprise, isn’t contributing properly. The ability to learn from experience and to accurately gauge the likelihood of reward, so famously compromised in active addiction, may be the result of this GABA disruption.

Naoshige Uchida, associate professor of molecular and cellular biology at Harvard, and one of the authors of the Nature paper, said in a press release that until now, “no one knew how these GABA neurons were involved in the reward and punishment cycle. What we believe is happening is that they are inhibiting the dopamine neurons, so the two are working together to make the reward error computation.” Apparently, the firing of dopamine neurons in the VTA signals an unexpected reward—but the firing of GABA neurons signals an expected reward. Working together, GABA neurons aid dopamine neurons in calculating reward prediction error.

In other words, if you inhibit GABA neurons through heavy drug use, you screw up a very intricate dopamine feedback loop. When faced with a reward prediction error, such as drug tolerance—a good example of reward not meeting expectations—addicts will continue taking the drug. This seems nonsensical. If the drug no longer works to produce pleasure like it used to do, then why continue to take it? It may be because dopamine-active brain circuits are no longer accurately computing reward prediction errors. Not even close. The research suggests that an addict’s brain no longer registers negative responses to drugs as reward errors. Instead, all that remains is the reinforcing signals from the dopamine neurons: Get more drugs.

Cohen, J., Haesler, S., Vong, L., Lowell, B., & Uchida, N. (2012). Neuron-type-specific signals for reward and punishment in the ventral tegmental area Nature DOI: 10.1038/nature10754[/img]

WendyTerry420

Sugar is not like crack, or alcohol.
Oh look, I'm not even posting Peat's theory or stuff from consumerfreedom.com or ratskep. lol

Because alcohol and other addictive drugs disrupt GABA levels in the brain’s reward circuitry, the mechanism for evaluating expectation and reward is compromised. GABA, dopamine’s partner in the enterprise, isn’t contributing properly. The ability to learn from experience and to accurately gauge the likelihood of reward, so famously compromised in active addiction, may be the result of this GABA disruption.

Naoshige Uchida, associate professor of molecular and cellular biology at Harvard, and one of the authors of the Nature paper, said in a press release that until now, “no one knew how these GABA neurons were involved in the reward and punishment cycle. What we believe is happening is that they are inhibiting the dopamine neurons, so the two are working together to make the reward error computation.” Apparently, the firing of dopamine neurons in the VTA signals an unexpected reward—but the firing of GABA neurons signals an expected reward. Working together, GABA neurons aid dopamine neurons in calculating reward prediction error.

In other words, if you inhibit GABA neurons through heavy drug use, you screw up a very intricate dopamine feedback loop. When faced with a reward prediction error, such as drug tolerance—a good example of reward not meeting expectations—addicts will continue taking the drug. This seems nonsensical. If the drug no longer works to produce pleasure like it used to do, then why continue to take it? It may be because dopamine-active brain circuits are no longer accurately computing reward prediction errors. Not even close. The research suggests that an addict’s brain no longer registers negative responses to drugs as reward errors. Instead, all that remains is the reinforcing signals from the dopamine neurons: Get more drugs.

Cohen, J., Haesler, S., Vong, L., Lowell, B., & Uchida, N. (2012). Neuron-type-specific signals for reward and punishment in the ventral tegmental area Nature DOI: 10.1038/nature10754[/img]

:flowerforyou:

WendyTerry420

I am the exact same way.

On days I make an effort to increase my calories, I tend to go straight for sugar which is a huge mistake, because then what was meant to be a day or two of eating a bit more than usual turns into three or four days of near binging, and all the extra calories come directly from refined sugar. It's addictive, most definitely. & I truly believe it has WAY more to it than just "moderation". I think it has physiologically addictive effects. Eating fattening foods like pizza & burgers don't have near the effect on me that sugar does. I could really eat a whole tub of icecream or a whole package of cookies in a sitting. I try to avoid it as much as possible.

Lack of self-control is *NOT* the same as addiction. :smokin:

lenoresaari

I just dont bring it in the house and if I do get something, I buy one serving and eat right then; I have proved
to myself that I can't have it around.

wolfchild59

Lack of self-control is *NOT* the same as addiction. :smokin:

Quoted for truth. Not just in this thread or anything specific at the moment. But I see people use the word addicted all over the place, when what they are usually referring to is lack of self-control. I've never seen anyone go through hospitalized withdrawal periods when they stopped eating sugar, fast food, chocolate, ice cream, or any of the other things I've seen or heard people say that they were "addicted" to.

And yes, I understand the usage of it as a joke - when the person does understand the idea of a true addiction and still purposely uses it as a hyperbolic way of describing how much they love something. That is not what I am referring to here. It's when people use it as an excuse, or crutch, to explain why they can't control themselves when they eat.

As an example - I used to joke that I was addicted to Taco Bell. I knew it's almost the lowest of the low in the realm of fast food options, but it was my favorite go-to and it's what I would tell people when they asked why I liked it so much. But you know what happened when I stopped going there? Nothing. I just stopped going. Do I still crave it sometimes? Yes. Would I still like to nom down a crunchwrap supreme and a nachos belgrande from time to time? Totally. Am I so overcome by the desire to do so that it ceases my ability to function properly and need something to help me through? Not even close. Am I able to practice self-control and not give in to the cravings and pass the Taco Bell, go home and make myself dinner? Yup. If I do happen to splurge and have a Doritos Loco Taco one day, like I did when they came out do I suddenly spiral downwards into a horrific cycle of eating Taco Bell all the time again? Nope, I ate my taco and went back to passing it up each night.

So for all of the people trying to explain that it's an analogy and how the original poster was using crack as an example of how sugar is to them, I highly doubt that that's really how it is. It's an extreme hyperbole and, when it comes down to it, just an excuse for not wanting to take control and stop eating the sugary snacks.

abracasqueak

I agree, I am a bit addicted to sweets. I try to substitute sweets with a piece of fruit and then after eating the fruit, I think to myself, "Wow, why did I want that chocolate bar in the first place?" At the time though, that chocolate bar was all I could think about. Either I replace whatever it is with sweets or I do my best to find the healthiest, lowest calorie sweet I can and allow myself to eat a large amount. My main go to when I do that is Merengue cookies.

kels67camaro

So you've tried crack?

This is the same question I always ask. If you think sugar is like crack, then you have never smoked crack or known a crackhead.

Its called using a analogy

It's a horrible analogy. Again, if you ever had a friend or family member hooked on crack, you would know that.

You have know way of knowing if i have, a freind has been or if a family member has been! Its is a simple analogy got get some advice, if your not happy with the wording of this post you didnt have to read it, just saying

angiechimpanzee

I am the exact same way.

On days I make an effort to increase my calories, I tend to go straight for sugar which is a huge mistake, because then what was meant to be a day or two of eating a bit more than usual turns into three or four days of near binging, and all the extra calories come directly from refined sugar. It's addictive, most definitely. & I truly believe it has WAY more to it than just "moderation". I think it has physiologically addictive effects. Eating fattening foods like pizza & burgers don't have near the effect on me that sugar does. I could really eat a whole tub of icecream or a whole package of cookies in a sitting. I try to avoid it as much as possible.

Lack of self-control is *NOT* the same as addiction. :smokin:

There are varying degrees of addictive behavior.

One person can drink alcohol and become an alcoholic. Another person can drink it regularly and have no dependency on it - psychologically or physiologically. It has little to do with mere self control and more to do with the individual.

kaligatehouse

The best way for me to cure those cravings is by having a peice of fruit for breakfast every morning with oats and yogurt.
This way I get my sugar cravings out early in the day and then don't crave it after that. However the less you have it the less you are going to want it. I don't crave for sweets anymore, if I do have the odd craving I will cure it with yougurt or a second peice of fruit.

geebusuk

So you've tried crack?

I haven't, but I've known a good few that have and none got addicted to it.
Tobacco might be a better example - know many, many, many people that have got addicted to smoking the legal stuff.

For me, it doesn't have to be sugar; anything a bit too nice.
If I buy cereal, I buy shredded wheat because I don't like it that much; any other and I find it really hard to restrict myself - and even then, if I'm a bit tired I still find myself pigging out on the shredded wheat I don't even like that much!

gddrdld

Actually it's funny because a lot of people who get getting off drugs or booze end up eat a lot of sugar or craving a lot of sugar food wise, so maybe it's like a crack replacement.

Actually for alcoholics, many of them are replacing the sugar they were receiving from their addiction. My dad was an alcoholic (budweiser man he was) and when he quit drinking - hot dam he ate a lot of zingers, ho-hos & twinkies.

As for how to deal with a sugar "addiction" - if you crave candy - have a piece of fruit instead. Or have a small piece of chocolate and back it up with a banana.

There's more than one way to skin a cat, you just have to figure out what works for you.

Alcohol turns to sugar in your blood, so that makes sense. Cocaine doe NOT turn to sugar in your blood. Rather it, it elevates your central nervous system. It's actually the opposite of alcohol.

Actually, WendyT., you're way off on that one...Alcohol neither "turns to sugar in the blood" nor gets broken down and metabolized in the same way as carbs, proteins, and fats. It is it's own separate entity (nutrient) which provides 7 cals per gram and is metabolized strictly by the liver as apposed to C/P/F which employ a complex combination of pancreatic and gastric enzymes to break down to their elemental forms. You might want to Google that one. Try "metabolic pathway of alcohol".

geebusuk

From google:
http://www.sandiegotherapistcounselor.com/physical-vs-psychological-addictions-the-signs-of-an-addiction-problem.html
Ok, it's someone trying to sell their services, but I'd tend to agree the word 'addiction' is still relevant to a psychological issue.

I HAVE been addicted to tramadol - taking it after a broken leg and didn't even realise I was addicted. But when I tried to go from taking one at night (I'd started on eight a day) to none, I had the symptoms of an addict going cold turkey - couldn't sleep, itching under the skin and the like.
Still found that easier to stop than I do eating lots of food.

Matt_Wild

I don't have this problem, can take or leave all foods. However my misses (on here as Yo_Lazarov) gets the same triggers as the OP and so to avoid binging, she simply avoids the sweet foods entirely bar a cheat meal once a week, that we eat together so I can be there to help. It works She's very lean, has a six pack and competing next year.

Its about finding you trigger points and avoiding them.

myth4ever

If you know a neighborhood has a bad rep would you visit after dark or look to move there? Put sugar in that hood and stay ya azz in the suburbs!

WendyTerry420

So you've tried crack?

This is the same question I always ask. If you think sugar is like crack, then you have never smoked crack or known a crackhead.

Its called using a analogy

It's a horrible analogy. Again, if you ever had a friend or family member hooked on crack, you would know that.

You have know way of knowing if i have, a freind has been or if a family member has been! Its is a simple analogy got get some advice, if your not happy with the wording of this post you didnt have to read it, just saying

Addiction is not the same as lack of self-control. It's completely different. I *did* have to read it because that is one of my biggest MFP peeves when people confuse self-control with addiction. An analogy is comparing similar features of two things. Cocaine and sugar have nothing in common, except perhaps in appearance.

ETA: To me, it's the same as not letting people get away with claiming that bread is a simple carb rather than a complex carb. Or correcting someone who claims that carbs or dietary fat will automatically turn to fat regardless of the person's calories level. Or correcting someone who might try to claim that a woman will bulk up if they use two pound weights.

WendyTerry420

If you know a neighborhood has a bad rep would you visit after dark or look to move there? Put sugar in that hood and stay ya azz in the suburbs!

:laugh:

WendyTerry420

Actually it's funny because a lot of people who get getting off drugs or booze end up eat a lot of sugar or craving a lot of sugar food wise, so maybe it's like a crack replacement.

Actually for alcoholics, many of them are replacing the sugar they were receiving from their addiction. My dad was an alcoholic (budweiser man he was) and when he quit drinking - hot dam he ate a lot of zingers, ho-hos & twinkies.

As for how to deal with a sugar "addiction" - if you crave candy - have a piece of fruit instead. Or have a small piece of chocolate and back it up with a banana.

There's more than one way to skin a cat, you just have to figure out what works for you.

Alcohol turns to sugar in your blood, so that makes sense. Cocaine doe NOT turn to sugar in your blood. Rather it, it elevates your central nervous system. It's actually the opposite of alcohol.

Actually, WendyT., you're way off on that one...Alcohol neither "turns to sugar in the blood" nor gets broken down and metabolized in the same way as carbs, proteins, and fats. It is it's own separate entity (nutrient) which provides 7 cals per gram and is metabolized strictly by the liver as apposed to C/P/F which employ a complex combination of pancreatic and gastric enzymes to break down to their elemental forms. You might want to Google that one. Try "metabolic pathway of alcohol".

Thank you for the correction. I was thinking in terms of how it raises your blood sugars.

http://www.medicinenet.com/alcohol_and_nutrition/page4.htm

Jackielyn17

Sugar = poison... we're all better off without.

I see all these people saying that sugar isn't an addiction and blah blah blah, true, it doesn't have the same side-effects as drugs or alcohol, but sugar is in fact, an addiction. Refined sugar is like poison, yet we continue to abuse our bodies with it because it makes us feel good... It's in everything we eat, and to be honest, I would know, I'm a carb junkie. You DO go through withdrawals, just not the type to be hospitalised for.

I was diagnosed in August with Candida, I am now obliged to live gluten free, dairy free and sugar free lifestyle. Candida basically feeds itself off of sugar, wheat and mold. Now imagine going through life having fruit daily, milk, wheat products and many other things, to having to have ZERO sugar (mind you my symptoms were pretty wicked before I was diagnosed) I have to shop not only for gluten free products, but ALSO monitor the sugars. I cannot have added sugar in anything, even sweet n low, the only sugar substitute I am permitted is Stevia. All other sugar substitutes are made from... sugar. I cannot eat fruit, nor can I have selected vegetables.

Anyhow, I recently fell right off my wagon after an unexpected event... and I have gone back on as of the beginning of the week. I can't really explain how it felt to want/need sugar before this. One doesn't realize just how just 2 weeks of bad eating (I'm not talking just sugar products, but carbs and whatever) can affect one's mind. I made my boss get rid of anything sweet in the office, because I felt I had no self-control (because i wanted more sugar, just as wanting more drugs, alcohol is all a question of self-control, don't say I don't know any addicts, because I do, essentially it is always MIND over matter).

WendyTerry420

Sugar = poison... we're all better off without.

I see all these people saying that sugar isn't an addiction and blah blah blah, true, it doesn't have the same side-effects as drugs or alcohol, but sugar is in fact, an addiction. Refined sugar is like poison, yet we continue to abuse our bodies with it because it makes us feel good... It's in everything we eat, and to be honest, I would know, I'm a carb junkie. You DO go through withdrawals, just not the type to be hospitalised for.

I was diagnosed in August with Candida, I am now obliged to live gluten free, dairy free and sugar free lifestyle. Candida basically feeds itself off of sugar, wheat and mold. Now imagine going through life having fruit daily, milk, wheat products and many other things, to having to have ZERO sugar (mind you my symptoms were pretty wicked before I was diagnosed) I have to shop not only for gluten free products, but ALSO monitor the sugars. I cannot have added sugar in anything, even sweet n low, the only sugar substitute I am permitted is Stevia. All other sugar substitutes are made from... sugar. I cannot eat fruit, nor can I have selected vegetables.

Anyhow, I recently fell right off my wagon after an unexpected event... and I have gone back on as of the beginning of the week. I can't really explain how it felt to want/need sugar before this. One doesn't realize just how just 2 weeks of bad eating (I'm not talking just sugar products, but carbs and whatever) can affect one's mind. I made my boss get rid of anything sweet in the office, because I felt I had no self-control (because i wanted more sugar, just as wanting more drugs, alcohol is all a question of self-control, don't say I don't know any addicts, because I do, essentially it is always MIND over matter).

Having a diagnosed medical condition can make excess sugar/carb consumption dangerous. Your situation has nothing to do with the general population of people that have *NO* medical reason to avoid sugars.