Carb Binging

erin4609
erin4609 Posts: 131 Member
Do you ever have nights/days when you just binge on carbs?

I feel like girls with PCOS struggle more with this. I definitely do. I'll just have a little bit of a carb, some pretzels, a handful of dried fruit, and before I know it CRAVINGS and I've polished off a bag of chips or 2 bowls of cereal or something.

Does anybody else struggle with this? Is this a PCOS thing? it's soo frustrating!

Replies

  • mamosh81
    mamosh81 Posts: 409 Member
    i dont have binges like that anymore since i am on metformin but i have some days where i cant resist some potatoes or a my weakness pita bread
  • boxem180
    boxem180 Posts: 63 Member
    I'm the same with mamosh! I've been on the Met since August and since then, I'm not starving all the time and I don't crave carbs constantly. I do once or twice a week demand a bagel or some white potatoes but it's inconsistent and doesn't occupy my waking thoughts like it used to.
  • erin4609
    erin4609 Posts: 131 Member
    Hmm. I got my blood sugar tested and the test said it was normal. But from what you're describing it sounds like what I have. I may ask my doctor about metformin.
  • SiobhanG
    SiobhanG Posts: 5
    The only way I can try and stop carb binging is by eating when I'm hungry and not letting it get so bad that I eat loads of sugar! Even if it puts me over my calories I would rather stop and eat a handful of nuts or some houmous and veg or both and be 200 or 400 cals over on relatively healthy food than getting too hungry and eating 900cals on sugar because then it's really difficult to get back into the routine of eating well afterwards!
  • Although I have not been diagnosed with PCOS (yet) and the Dr. said she doesnt think its something I have to worry about because I dont have cysts (I've been having lots of tests done because i've only had 1 period in the last year). BUT I highly disagree and I can tell you right now that for me ....one carb leads to another and another and another. The second I step backward to a gummy, cookie, potato, bagel I have a REALLY hard time gathering my self control and it takes everything I have in me to not binge. The only thing that seems to help me as I am not on any medication is making sure that the vast majority of my meals are considerably higher in protein than carbs no matter what the carb came from.

    Glad to know i'm not the only one. Sometimes I feel crazy if I go out to a party or something and have a handful of chips because i'll have a hard time thinking about anything else the remainder of the night but sticking my face in the bowl lol!!
  • I was just looking into this a little more and I found this possible explaination :

    http://www.eatingdisordersreview.com/nl/nl_edt_6_1_6.html
  • THIS is also very informative! In fact I want to cry right now reading it. It's like feelings/thoughts straight from my life.

    Take a looksie

    http://www.pcosnetwork.com/articles/dieting-weightloss/pcos-and-eating-disorders/
  • Pooh1981
    Pooh1981 Posts: 32 Member
    This has so been my life here of late I just crave junk cakes, pies, chips, ice cream anything I can get my hands on! But at the same time a few hours later I am hungry again. I want to talk to my Dr. about it cause she is really supportive about me having PCOS but I feel so bad asking because I am just like is it because I just quit smoking a few months ago or what but thank God someone was reading my mind lol and came up with this post. I have dried fruit, fresh fruit and nut and eat all that too but nothing soothes me but the cakes etc. and that is only for a few hours at a time. SOMEONE HELP PLEASE! Explain to us what is going on and how we can fix it!
  • LauraDotts
    LauraDotts Posts: 732 Member
    PCOS is a metabolic syndrome that is prediabetic or insulin resistant and will eventually lead to diabetes if not treated and controlled. When someone with PCOS eats too much sugar or too many carbs their blood sugar spikes. That spike results in a huge insulin response which then drops blood sugar too low. The low blood sugar then demands/craves more sugar/carbs to bring it back up. Then it spikes... It's a vicious cycle.

    I completely disagree that this is an "eating disorder". It is a "metabolic disorder". When the insulin dump happens and blood sugar goes too low your body thinks it is in danger of death. That demand for more carbs or sugar is nearly impossible to resist. It's like the body demanding water when it is severely dehydrated.

    Metformin helps with the insulin resistance by helping to control the initial blood sugar spike. However, the best way to prevent that cycle and to stop the cravings is to keep your daily carb intake low.
  • bookyeti
    bookyeti Posts: 544 Member
    I completely disagree that this is an "eating disorder". It is a "metabolic disorder". When the insulin dump happens and blood sugar goes too low your body thinks it is in danger of death. That demand for more carbs or sugar is nearly impossible to resist. It's like the body demanding water when it is severely dehydrated.

    Metformin helps with the insulin resistance by helping to control the initial blood sugar spike. However, the best way to prevent that cycle and to stop the cravings is to keep your daily carb intake low.
    This!

    No sense treating a symptom (carb craving) --> it's best get to the SOURCE of the problem (insulin/blood sugar issues).

    I have PCOS and severe insulin resistance. I take Metformin, but I also keep my carbs very low (25-30g net carbs per day). My macros are set at 5% carbs, 20% protein and 75% fat. My carb cravings are now non-existant because my insulin and blood sugar are under control... thus, nipping the source of the problem in the bud! I eat delicous food and feel satiated, so my appetite is finally under control too.

    The only thing I feel deprived of is sluggishness, belly bloat, brain fog and weight gain. I'm okay with that. ;-)