Sugar Addiction
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This is one of those things that's been taken way out of context. Sure, eating sugar releases dopamine, as does taking heroin. So does EVERYTHING ELSE you eat (exercise does also.) Dopamine is your brain's way of saying "this is good." It conditions humans to keep doing something, as a survival technique. It's not that "sugar has the same response as heroin," it's "illicit drugs have the same response as food." Drugs co-opt normal metabolic pathways, food doesn't copy drug responses.Unfortunately, sweets (especially chocolate) can stimulate the same response in the brain as heroin in some people. I am one of those people I had to completely remove any form of refined sugar from my diet. I make treats at home using honey and maple syrup instead of sugar. I have learned that I cannot have it in my home. An amazing thing happened once I was rid of sugar. I didn't need it anymore! I am free! I can now enjoy an occasional treat when I am out without triggering the need for more! It took about 4 months of being completely sugar free before I even attempted to try to have any when out. I feel way better and the treats actually taste WAY better when they really are a treat and not an everyday thing.0 -
Don't just rely on willpower and substitutions. When you're suffering from cravings it's because your body has become used to having that sugar, and has made you IMAGINE that you NEEEEEEEEEEED it.
Fight imagination with imagination.
Picture one of those big greasy cookies that you mentioned, in your mind's eye. Picture the beautiful golden colour and the grainy texture from the oats. See the little bumps from the chocolate chips. See the dried cranberries breaking through the baked dough, like little love hearts trying to jump out of the cookie in to you mouth. Looks CRAYZEE delish, right?!
But wait...... one of the bumps from the chocolate chips is starting to move. It's not a chocolate chip... it's a dark brown insect egg; a little wasp/maggot/spider/whatever grosses you out is starting to wriggle free. The cranberries are actually disgusting chunks of finger where the baker got his hand caught in the dough mixer.
When you imagine this, make it really vivid in your mind... smell the cookie turning bad as the bugs come out, feel the movement as the eggs hatch with the cookie sitting flat on your palm. If you repeat this meditation a few times, I guarantee you'll never eat one of those cookies again! I personally cannot touch sticky toffee pudding any more. Even though I sometimes think I miss it a bit, the horrible image I created for myself ends up coming back once I actually have some pudding in front of me, like a bad memory.0 -
I have a hazardous sweet tooth as well... I usually satisfy it with fruit and dark chocolate, although I let myself have a treat on special occasions.
The key is to add other exciting flavors. For example, add cinnamon to your oatmeal instead of brown sugar. I recently cut out artificial sweetener in my coffee, but I usually give it some excitement with vanilla almond milk (unsweetened) and flavor-accented espresso capsules.
I've found that when the sweet treats become more rare, I'm actually excited for them and appreciate it more. Also, I can allocate those sugar calories to calories from nutritional food.
You might also want to try baking healthier versions of your favorite sweets and bringing them into the office to share. This way you won't be tempted to eat too many, you'll have a sweet treat at the office, and you won't be doing your body as much harm.0 -
when you eat foods high in sugar and fat it releases seritonin and dopamine in your system, so you get that feel good feeling (the same as with drugs) that's why food is so addicting. The problem is that it takes two weeks to stop these cravings, while it only takes 2 days for drugs. The answer is to take all the food out of your house, start planning ahead what you're going to eat for the week. Start adding other activities into your life that give off the same kind of feeling, such as hobbies or other foods you enjoy.
You have to eat healthy, but not overly obsess with your diet, I found when I was more lenient I didn't have cravings anymore. Reward yourself every once in a while and you won't binge out so often.0 -
when you eat foods high in sugar and fat it releases seritonin and dopamine in your system, so you get that feel good feeling (the same as with drugs) that's why food is so addicting. The problem is that it takes two weeks to stop these cravings, while it only takes 2 days for drugs. The answer is to take all the food out of your house, start planning ahead what you're going to eat for the week. Start adding other activities into your life that give off the same kind of feeling, such as hobbies or other foods you enjoy.
It takes more than 2 days for most drugs, too.0 -
I've got to agree with the cold turkey solution. It's amazing how your taste buds change over time as well - fruit tastes incredibly sweet - even a lot of veggies taste sweet after you stop the super intense sugary tastes from processed food with added sugar.
Now I can add things in here and there. I eat 70%+ dark chocolate on occasion, sometimes I have a spoonful of honey, or a homemade dessert that I really enjoy, and I can eat a small quantity and stop. And if I do go overboard, I do know that it's possible to get past those cravings, which makes it easy to get back to where I want to be. It's very freeing to not feel consumed by the need to keep eating more and more sugar.0 -
Start using sugar substitutes like Splenda (4 calories / packet). Start eating naturally sweet stuff like fruit and sweet potatoes. If you do these things you can taper down your white sugar and processed carbohydrate intake.
I am also a sugar addict but I almost never eat the junk because the substitutes are pleasing enough.0 -
I stopped eating all sweets about a year ago. Baked goods, desserts, ice cream, candy. Basically anything delicious. It's really, really hard but has come with a freedom from that monster, just like alcohol or drugs.
I had one relapse in February and it was the worst month of my life. I was completely out of control and it was a good reminder of why I can't eat just one. I stopped again and can't go back.
I won't lie; I still crave it like crazy. What stops me is knowing that I can and should live without it. There is zero reason to ever eat a donut.0 -
I eat lots of fruit. A year ago when I began healthy living I cut out sweets and was actually ill for a week, headache etc. best thing I ever did, don't miss them.0
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I see the treats (work, mostly - ice cream is all I have at home as far as sweets) and I have to have one.
This is a huge problem for a lot of us sugar addicts -- the crap food at work. It's fairly easy to get rid of it at home, harder at work because other people want it there.
- You can research what's in this food and what it does to your body.
- You can try to gross yourself out about the way it's made, both in a factory setting and by human hands (imagine people licking their hands and touching the food or tell yourself there's a hair in it).
- Eat regular meals with healthy food so you aren't hungry.
- Bring some healthy snacks like apples or almonds to work. Apples work for me because they're sweet.
- Try to stay out of the rooms where the food is sitting around.
- Tell yourself to wait one hour (and hope the craving goes away).
- Ask people in the office to limit it to one area or to bring something healthy.
- Bring a big water bottle full of filtered water and lemon slices or other fruit, which makes it seem more like a treat, so you have something at your desk all the time.
It's like any drug. The less you eat of it, the less you will want it.0 -
Donuts are delicious.I stopped eating all sweets about a year ago. Baked goods, desserts, ice cream, candy. Basically anything delicious. It's really, really hard but has come with a freedom from that monster, just like alcohol or drugs.
I had one relapse in February and it was the worst month of my life. I was completely out of control and it was a good reminder of why I can't eat just one. I stopped again and can't go back.
I won't lie; I still crave it like crazy. What stops me is knowing that I can and should live without it. There is zero reason to ever eat a donut.
Donuts are a quick energy source.
Donuts are a great way to quickly refill glycogen after a long exercise.
There are plenty of reasons to eat a donut. There are plenty of reasons to eat every food. Whether you eat it or not is a personal choice.0 -
I stopped eating all sweets about a year ago. Baked goods, desserts, ice cream, candy. Basically anything delicious. It's really, really hard but has come with a freedom from that monster, just like alcohol or drugs.
I had one relapse in February and it was the worst month of my life. I was completely out of control and it was a good reminder of why I can't eat just one. I stopped again and can't go back.
I won't lie; I still crave it like crazy. What stops me is knowing that I can and should live without it. There is zero reason to ever eat a donut.
Great comments. Calling it a monster is right. I quit smoking many, many years ago and getting away from processed sugar is very similar.0 -
As my auntie would say I have a mouthful of sweet tooths so I know the feeling!
Generally I allow myself to have a low cal hot choc/mocha sachet at home with a few biscuits or portion of cake every arvo and it does the trick.
I could never cut these treats out and still enjoy my life0 -
I need help. I am what most people consider a very healthy person. I workout 6 times a week (Insanity) and I am training for a marathon. I don't drink anything but water and the occasional beer or glass of wine. My BMI is about 21-22 which is in healthy range. My problem: I am completely and totally addicted to sweets. I cannot turn them down. I am not talking about a small candy bar once a day. Since Monday, I've eaten six very large greasy cookies, two dense brownies, apple pie, and three servings of ice cream. I see the treats (work, mostly - ice cream is all I have at home as far as sweets) and I have to have one. I eat it, love the way it tastes, and have another. This is not an issue of me being hungry so I eat what's available. This is a sugar craving/addiction. Has anyone gone through this? Otherwise I am a very healthy person and I fear that these sweets are ruining my Insanity results. I complain to my husband about my stomach fat and I'm sure it's continually getting worse because of these sweet treats. Any advice to wean myself from this?
It's possible your cravings are being caused by a nutrient deficiency, particularly if you have cut some types of food out of your diet for health reasons or you eat a lot of processed foods.
There are several supplements on the market that claim to reduce sugar cravings. If you have a look at those to see what's in them and what they claim to do, you can then do some research to find foods that are high in those nutrients and include more of them in your diet rather than take a supplement.0 -
This thing about magnesium is fascinating. I too crave sweets. I am a chocolate addict. So, I looked up foods high in magnesium at http://nutritiondata.self.com/. What I found was a list of foods that I have long history of craving (those I was familiar with at least)
cocoa powder, chocolate, mint, coffee, various spices that I love (including sage, parsley, rosemary, thyme, oregano, dill, saffron, cloves, curry, and a bunch more) almonds, sesame seeds, cashews, pine nuts, etc.. Also soy (which don't care much for), seaweed, rice bran, wheat bran, oat bran, white beans, and peanuts. It's a 20 page list. Anyway, I'm going to try upping my magnesium intake, and see if my sweets cravings go down. Thanks! :-)0 -
There's no such thing as a sugar addiction.
It sounds like the high intensity aerobics, coupled with the long daily runs required for marathon training is causing you to choose fast, easily digestible calories in the form of sugar.0 -
Find sweets that dont spike your blood sugar, Quest bars, moderate fruit. It is what worked for me!
(Lost 30, quit came back for my last 10, very close to goal now:)0 -
I was addicted to sugar and then I came under the care of a dr. for pre-diabetes and food sensitivities. From the moment I walked out of her office the first time I have not had sugar or sweets of any kind, except fruits. It's important to keep your blood sugar level and I eat something good (nothing processed) every 3 hours including a snack at 9:30 before bed. I also suffered from detoxing that first week, headache, jittery, etc. Good luck, it's a ***** to leave behind.0
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It's likely not an addiction, but simply a habit. Try switching to fruit for some of your sweet snacks.0
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