How can I end my coffee addiction???

Amoreislove
Amoreislove Posts: 10 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi, I need help, I'm a coffaholic. It's extremely cold this time of the year, which makes the craving for coffee even worse. I don't know what it is about coffee that I want, I think it's the sugar? I try my best to not eat any sweets or chocolate, so I just need to cut the sugar from my coffee. After every single meal I crave the taste of coffee, how can I curb my craving? Should I replace sugar with sweetener or is that even worse?? Any advice would be greatly appreciated <3

Replies

  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,473 Member
    Years and years ago, I gave up sugar in tea and coffee, just by cutting down a little bit at a time. I didn't really notice it, but I got used to having less and less. So if you were having, say two teaspoonfuls. Try one and 3/4 teaspoons, or one and 1/2 for a little while.

    The funny thing for me, is that since I've given it up I can't stand even the slightest bit of sugar in tea or most coffee! I can drink a little sugar in a strong expresso, and I would say that if that's the kind of coffee you drink it might be a little harder to give up.
  • ladymiseryali
    ladymiseryali Posts: 2,555 Member
    I would try putting splenda or truvia in your coffee. As someone who gave up coffee due to not being able to afford it, it's HELL! I only now stopped getting the caffeine headaches.
  • mforsis
    mforsis Posts: 41
    I once watched a news item from Seattle - where a lot of coffee is drunk, as we all can imagine. The newscaster said this is one drug you cannot 'kick cold turkey' or you will suffer from withdrawal aka caffeine headaches.

    It was suggested you blend instant coffee with instant decaf in proportions of 50/50 then 75/25 etc over about a 6 week or more time frame. Your headaches (or the lack thereof) will determine if the process is working for you.

    It worked for me. I now drink a coffee substitute and decaf tea or herbals. I do drink decaf lattes when I am out - I ask for a 3 shot decaf latte which bystanders say kinda defeats the purpose but it is find for me - the taste and no side effects.

    Sugar? Chocolate? not nearly the problem for me now that coffee is sorted.
  • Darrowland
    Darrowland Posts: 15 Member
    Try honey, a little goes a long way, and then trade out for decaf. For me, no artificial sweeteners and no caffeine. This has helped my coffee consumption....feel better as well. I don't think I would like a caffeinated coffee now, but too afraid to try it.
  • MercenaryNoetic26
    MercenaryNoetic26 Posts: 2,747 Member
    Don't quit :sad:
  • redheaddee
    redheaddee Posts: 2,005 Member
    If you are concerned about the sugar, switch to something like Stevia. I also have started using the sugar free creamer. Doing this cut quite a bit of sugar from my day.

    Other than that...I got nothing. I love coffee.
  • skinnyjeanzbound
    skinnyjeanzbound Posts: 3,932 Member
    I'm confused. Do you want to give up coffee or the sugar in your coffee?

    If you're okay with continuing to drink coffee, I would do what others suggest and try to cut back or substitute with another sweetener.

    As far as your question about whether artificial sweeteners are worse than sugar--that is a very controversial question. It depends a lot on what you mean by "worse." Sugar is a natural sweetener so some would argue it's better for you. However, if it's the calorie content that concerns you, then sugar would seem to be "worse" in that it has more calories. BUT there's also a whole camp that believes sweeteners make you crave more simple sugars, so if that's the case for you, the artificial sweeteners could drive you to eat even more calories throughout the day...

    Do you see why this is a complex issue?

    My personal advice would be to try to just fit your coffee with real sugar into your daily calorie allotment. If it's what you enjoy drinking and you don't have any other reason to give it up (other than calories), why not just make it work?
  • RainHoward
    RainHoward Posts: 1,599 Member
    Buy better coffee. Try the different flavored beens, you may find them better with much less added sweetener. Cut back slowly on the sweet. You may find you lose the taste for it. Or you may find coffee just isn't as good without all the sugar.
  • wild_wild_life
    wild_wild_life Posts: 1,334 Member
    A bit confused -- if you are addicted to coffee, I would guess it's the caffeine you're addicted to, not the sugar. You may also be habituated to drinking it at certain times, rather than addicted.

    Neither caffeine nor sugar are bad for you in small doses.

    Depending on how hard core you are and how quickly you want it out of your life, you can cut back slowly or stop cold turkey. I cut out coffee completely about a year ago bc it was bothering my stomach and was useless for 3 days, so if you're going cold turkey on caffeine, don't expect to be fully functional!

    I have since added coffee back in small doses -- 1-2 cups a day. Caffeine, unlike sugar, actually has health benefits so unless it bothers you, no reason to give it up IMO.
  • bubblygoldfish
    bubblygoldfish Posts: 215 Member
    I thought you were asking about how to cut the craving after meals? In that case it is the same as any other craving. Immediatley after eating brush your teeth. Drink a bottle of water. Go for a walk. Get away from coffee. Are you drinking 3 cups a day? After meals? Try to cut it to 2.

    I switched from espresso drinks to regualar coffee. This helped me reduced how much caffeine i was ingesting. Then I later reduced the number of cups I drank.
  • Amoreislove
    Amoreislove Posts: 10 Member
    Thank you so much for your advice! This is really helpful I'm definitely going to try it out*
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    Caffeine is a drug. And an addictive one at that. To end it there really are only three options: (1) cold turkey (2) gradual reduction by some form of dilution (3) substitution (ie chickory "coffee").

    Each person has to make the choice that best suits them. Unfortunately, they're all likely to suck, as withdrawal is pretty unpleasant no matter how it's masked.

    Good luck!
  • MercenaryNoetic26
    MercenaryNoetic26 Posts: 2,747 Member
    Caffeine is a drug.

    :noway:
  • SusanL222
    SusanL222 Posts: 585 Member
    Personally, I never did find a good coffee substitute, but switched to drinking a cup of hot water first thing in the morning. Which helps kick start your elimination system. I am now quite hooked on Bengal Spice herbal tea, which is a slightly sweet and spicy cinnamon blend with zero calories.
  • organic0gf
    organic0gf Posts: 87 Member
    Years ago, I wanted to shed a few pounds, but I used sugar in my coffee and I drank a lot of it. I tried the only sugar substitute available at the time, which was saccharin, which tastes terrible (and was later discovered to be a carcinogen). Anyway, I decide to go without anything.. cold turkey. It took about a week and all of a sudden I could taste the subtle yumminess of the coffee without sugar. To this day, I absolutely cannot use sugar in my coffee!

    Okay, so I had to quit drinking coffee about six months ago because the caffeine was causing a problem. I now drink Stash Licorice Spice tea with a little agave or maple sugar.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    Caffeine is a drug.

    :noway:

    Not only is it a drug, it is a psychoactive drug with a well understood tolerance (ie, addiction) curve.

    If people want to use it, that's cool with me, but it should be done with eyes wide open.
  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
    Try stevia sweetener. It's all natural and I like it better than sugar in my coffee. It doesn't have the aftertaste of a lot of artificial sweeteners either.
  • Jesstruhan
    Jesstruhan Posts: 331 Member
    I think you should know that I am equally a coffaholic. I don't want to quit, though.

    I think what's at hand is the sugar you are addicted to. Your body can crave it like it's cocaine if you cut it down too dramatically.

    You could try Stevia or Agave, but they still are sweeteners, just not as bad for you.

    I'd recommend learning to drink coffee black or with just a little cream. I went that way.. I didn't want to give up coffee because I had give up so much of everything else at one point that one more thing would have thrown me off the diet wagon, but moving to black coffee kept my crutch and cut down the sugars. Drip coffee is only 5 calories and no sugar. On the face of it, it's relatively good for you in moderation (1 cup a day) due to the antioxidants that are in it.

    Good luck. I understand how you feel but if it's the sugar you want to clip...keep the coffee and dump the stuff you add to it.
  • Hlasweet
    Hlasweet Posts: 51 Member
    I have to admit that I went cold turkey with it! I drank 3 coffees in the morning and 2 every night. While I was a little grumpy and had a headache for a couple of days, I just did it otherwise I knew I wouldn't give it up.

    I now drink hot water and a lemon in it every morning and it really gets me going and I feel so much better without the coffee.

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