sugar addict
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lizbennet
Posts: 8 Member
anyone else struggling with serious sugar addiction? i mean, not the usual laziness stuff, and you grab whatever is there, but real actual binging issues because your body just absolutely craves that dopamine shift. oh my gosh. it's bad! the past week has been pretty awful, and i am trying to get rid of everything, but feeling so down because of it. tonight i did better with eating--mixed veggies and raw juice smoothie. i had a small piece of cheese pizza with my family as well, but other than that, i was able to stop and haven't succumbed to the sugar pull. however, this morning, i sure ate my share of thin mints. starting over tomorrow. sorry if i sound like a sap. i just feel so out of control and i HATE that feeling! i used to love to run, and now because i've gotten so out of shape (and bigger) it's not fun. 
but i'm doing it anyway! 
i have a 5k at the end of march, so we'll see.
okay, randomness over. anyone else relate, though?
but i'm doing it anyway! i have a 5k at the end of march, so we'll see.okay, randomness over. anyone else relate, though?
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Replies
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Oh yes, if I'm not careful I can eat a whole package of cookies.
So I try to stay away.0 -
The only sugar that comes into my home is dark chocolate which I have no problem with. But no cookies, cake, candy or ice cream. Just whole fruit of all kinds. If the sugary stuff came into my house I would eat it til it was gone.0
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Try stocking up with sugar free pudding, low carb plain yogurt, or making your own stuff with xylitol, Erythritol (fruit sugar), Truvia, or Stevia.
I've been warding off the chocolate cravings with a glass of low carb hot chocolate,,, 4 oz milk, 4 oz water, 2 T. cocoa powder, 1 packet of Truvia or two spoons of xylitol.
I've thought of making my own sugar free chocolates using Bakers unsweetened chocolate bars, a candy mold, and a Truvia/xylitol natural sweetener combination.
They taste great, but barely weigh in on the glycemic index.
Another good one with the sweeteners is sugar free cheesecake made with low fat cream cheese and plain greek yogurt with lemon rind...0 -
Me, me, me!! And it makes sense that its getting worse lately because its winter and gloomy (I am not a winter person) don't get outside and am limited to do much exercising aside from cleaning and walking (I'm in my third trimester of pregnancy) not to mention the fact I normally have a sugar addiction anyways but this is just insane. What has helped the most is not keeping it in the house and clean eating. REAL foods, fats, not a ton of processed stuff. Its hard but recently in my food diary its become very clear the more junk I eat the the more junk I crave period. I need to get back on the clean eating wagon and go back to sharing my treats with the kids.0
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The only sugar that comes into my home is dark chocolate which I have no problem with. But no cookies, cake, candy or ice cream. Just whole fruit of all kinds. If the sugary stuff came into my house I would eat it til it was gone.
Ah, I love dark chocolate too:) that's also (almost) my only sugar that I consume.
Small tip: Don't keep any sugary foods around at home. Remove yourself from the situation. Eliminate your cues to eat sugary foods!
Lizbennet, I don't want to promote anything that I'm not 100% convinced of but because my girlfriend also had a big problem with sweet snacks, we did the 21 sugar detox challenge together (http://timreviews.com/21daysugardetox) - It's difficult in the first 3-4 days, but it pays off and is a big eye opener.
The MAIN BENEFIT is that we have less cravings for fast food, chocolates, chips,.. . The cravings, if any, are now so slight that they are easy to resist.
Timmi0 -
I have a real problem.Some times I've binged several times a week. I have and will buy a whole cake frosted 13x9 and eat the entire thing in one day. Same with cookies or brownies even a bowl or 2 of coolwhip. When I buy the package I first check how cals times the servings so I'll know how many cals I'll be eating and sometimes it can be 3 or 4 to 7500 cals in one sitting. This can happen for a couple days in a row. My real illness comes in when I tell myself oh you are going to workout more for the next couple of days or You are only going to have a protein shake or 2 for the next few days to make up for it all.This never happens and I gain 5lbs. By checking the total cals on a package of something I can talk myself out of it, because I know I'll eat the whole thing. Then there is work. Everyday a celebration of some sort or the families bringing in goodies for us uuuugggghhhh!!!! I quit smoking why cant I quit this? Thanks for your post I needed to get this off my chest!!!0
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Lol, I have a huge problem with sugar binges. A HUGE one. For a day or two I'll think I can "just have a few". But then the cravings set in and a few isn't enough anymore. Sometimes I'll throw in some cheeto's puffs in there too, but usually my binges will consist of cookies, cake-like things, and chocolate in any form. I've resolved that I need to cut those things out of my diet completely, with exceptions being birthday parties & holidays.0
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Try getting sugar from natural fruits. They have vitamins and fiber as well.
Do not go for the sugar substitutes. That chemical crap is deadly and only feeds you hunger for real sugar.
Just clean out the cupboards.
Get temptation out of the house entirely without chemical substitutes.
Maybe a big bowl of fruit on the table will begin to draw your attention there.
Good Luck.
You really have to go cold turkey for a month before you get over your cravings.0 -
@lizbennet I can completely relate. I am battling this too and I HATE it. I love sugar and have been addicted to it (I believe) since I was a toddler. I have let go of the fake sugar. However now it is time to get rid of sugar and it is like I am morning the loss already. Day one and it is so hard!0
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I think not having the sugar in the house is the first thing that helps...but to stop the craving....I really eat a well rounded meal. the craving did go away. I have had a run of some cookies last week, I won't lie. But it has been easier. And now they are out of the house again. (shew). Anyway. Eating some whole grains, protein, some healthy fat and veggies for lunch and dinner has made a big difference for me. I eat whole grain cereal for breakfast most of the time. The craving will go away...but if you let it slip back in to your life, it will come back. Also, I see you are going to do a 5K. I did the couch to 5 K. I have never been a runner. I have friends who have jogged for years and still can't do a full 5K. I can jog a full 5K! 0
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I'm reading a book right now about what sugar does to us to try and understand how it affects my body. I feel like I've had bad sugar cravings since I got pregnant and had my first child. The book is called "Fat Chance" and while I can't vouch for the material in it (I literally just started it this morning) I've read and heard good things about it.
As for the day to day cravings, I've tried to cut diet soda out of my diet completely because I find that that can lead to bigger cravings for me. Also, I just try to completely avoid processed sugar (candy, ice cream, cookies, etc.) because as soon as I have a little bit it is honestly like starting an avalanche in my brain and the craving is sometimes all-consuming. My one saving grace has been dark chocolate. I have 1 piece of 90%cocoa each night and I've found that helps to satisfy the sweets craving but I can be OK with just one piece because the chocolate is pretty bitter and more than 1 just wouldn't taste good.0 -
Found this on Facebook. I totally agree with it.
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Watch the You Tube clip of Dr. Robert Lustig of the UCSF School of Medicine. After seeing him on "60 Minutes" talking about the damage sugar does to the body, I quit refined sugar cold turkey. That was 7 months ago, and I will not go back no matter what!
For your convenience:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM 0 -
I definitely can relate. I use to be, and probably still am, addicted to sugar. I had a real problem with chocolate. I cut out all sugars from candy and chocolate in my diet a few years ago and made it 62 days. Once you get past the initial 2 weeks of cravings it gets easier. This time around I cut out not only the sugars from junk food but all artificial sugar and regular sugar, besides what is found naturally in fruit and veggies. I have found the cravings to go away a lot quicker. I also removed all products containing sugar from my home. My biggest temptation right now is just what is at work but I have found by day 4 it gets a little easier. One thing I learned last time is when you reintroduce sugar back into your life a little goes a long way because you are not use to it. If you do not feel like you can completely reduce sugar, start off slow, make it only a weekend occurrence, or as a reward once you drop a certain amount of weight or accomplish your 5K. I am doing my no sugar diet right now to prep for the NYC Half Marathon as I find I feel lighter and run better without sugar in my system, especially for evening runs.0
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Yes! I can totally relate! This why i am struggling with my weight! Also, cause i eat late in the evening.
I recently heard that if you always crave sugar, dont totally deprive yourself of it, instead the best time to eat it, is in the morning with breakfast. Only like 2 little squares of chocolate. you usually move for the rest of the day, thus digesting it and not letting it turn into fat. Also, If you eat red meat or fish, it will help you stay full longer.
Istarted to eat honey if i crave sweets.0 -
Try stocking up with sugar free pudding, low carb plain yogurt, or making your own stuff with xylitol, Erythritol (fruit sugar), Truvia, or Stevia.
I've been warding off the chocolate cravings with a glass of low carb hot chocolate,,, 4 oz milk, 4 oz water, 2 T. cocoa powder, 1 packet of Truvia or two spoons of xylitol.
I've thought of making my own sugar free chocolates using Bakers unsweetened chocolate bars, a candy mold, and a Truvia/xylitol natural sweetener combination.
They taste great, but barely weigh in on the glycemic index.
Another good one with the sweeteners is sugar free cheesecake made with low fat cream cheese and plain greek yogurt with lemon rind...
You don't need to go with fake sugar to avoid the addictive quality of sucrose (table sugar). The addictive part of sucrose is actually the fructose in it (sucrose is 50% fructose). There is a great book called, "The Fat Switch" that describes the effect of eating large amounts of fructose (in the form of the 500 calories worth of sucrose that the average person eats every day). I make my own chocolate by using glucose and unsweetened baker's chocolate. One piece of that and you are supercharged! You just wouldn't want to eat a lot of it (probably can't anyway because it is very rich). Since I have been avoiding sucrose, I have completely lost my taste for it. If I go to a birthday party or something and have a piece of cake, I usually can't take more than a couple of bites as it is so gaggingly sweet. Glucose doesn't taste anywhere near as sweet as does sucrose. Fructose tastes even sweeter yet (that is why just a few grams in a piece of fruit makes it taste sweet). Fructose is metabolized in the liver in a process similar to the metabolizing of alcohol. Glucose, on the other hand, is taken directly into the blood stream from the intestines. All animals search for fructose when they want to get fat (like black bears gorging on massive quantities of wild blueberries at the end of summer and putting on a lot of body fat). Glucose and other food sugars do not have that effect. Obviously, eating lots of any kind of food would raise blood glucose and insulin levels (which would then create body fat). But food addiction is triggered by fructose as the "anti-satiety" substance. Here is an article that describes some interesting research findings that were presented at the "Food Addiction Summit" last year: http://www.foodaddictionsummit.org/docs/johnson-359fructoseindex.pdf0 -
I completely understand where you're coming from. I'm in my 40's and have craved sugar my whole life. And as you probably have seen and experienced, eating sugar begets eating more sugar. I especially craved chocolate (in fact, my motto used to be "if it doesn't have chocolate then it doesn't count as dessert"), but really any sugar would do. I seriously never felt like a meal was complete unless I was able to eat something sugary.
Anytime I've ever made a concerted effort to lose weight, the sugar (as usual) addiction caused me the most trouble. The one little piece of chocolate that I would allow myself turned into much more, and that was honestly always the thing that broke any diet.
I started taking Magnesium on a daily basis last month after reading of all the positive health benefits it offers. For me, the biggest benefits it has provided are calming my nerves, helping me sleep (and stay asleep), and keeping me regular.
One of the even bigger benefits I discovered on my own was the effect it can have on cravings--specifically, sugar (including chocolate) and alcohol. There's a lot or research out there to back it up.
Magnesium has naturally given me the power to almost eliminate my chocolate/sweet cravings, and to me that is better than any other method I have heard about or tried. I think I had something chocolate the other day, but I don't remember what or when. If you had asked me that 2 months ago, the answer would have been very definitive answer about some item I consumed within the last 24 hours.
All you have to do is google "benefits of magnesium" and you will find over 4 million articles that will explain it to you. If you're interested in what specific product I'm taking, it is called "Natural Calm" and it is 100% natural magnesium citrate. It's available on amazon as well as locally in vitamin or health food stores. I follow the directions exactly and have had great results. Magnesium is safe for just about everyone, has no marked side effects (other than laxative effect if you take too much), and can really do a lot to improve your overall well-being.
Just my two cents' :happy:0 -
I love desserts and sugar in moderation... I find it better to fit a little treat into my daily calories than to deprive myself completely... that can lead to closet binges..
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sadly...this thread has me craving chocolate :sad:
and now cookie dough....doh!0 -
I had a serious sugar problem. It was so sever that I now have to dark spots in my face.
I did it cold turkey and it was the hardest thing I've done. But I now only use a teaspoon of honey or Sugar in the raw. I was a uber (fill in the blank) for the first month. But I knew that if I didn't stop, I was risking myself for something greater than my addiction.
My trick is, when I'm craving something sweet, I eat one of those 100 calorie packs of raisins. They are sweet and yummy, and satisfying. I also don't deprive myself of a cookie here and there. Your body needs to be given a few bad things so it doesn't store it in your system keeping you heavy. When your body is deprive of anything, when you do have it, it stores it because it doesn't know when it's going to get it next.
Remember as long as as you don't over do it, nothing is bad. Moderation is key with everything.0
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