Addiction to sugar
ijd99
Posts: 5 Member
Hi, I'm India. I'm sure i have already posted on here but i just can't remember. Anyways, i have known for a long time but am finally admitting my addiction to sugar today. It seems to be growing and growing with each passing day. There are times when I say I'll quit, and by the next day I have forgotten or I break my promise. I need help. The 25 grams a day rule will just not cut it. I'm sure I eat somewhere in the 100's and upwards grams a day. Whenever I stop on sugar, it is replaced by other high calorie foods. I think this all might be spurred on by boredom and I just don't know how to stop. Please help~ I need encouragement!
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Stop eating it then
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Well from what I have learned, the only thing to really cut an addiction to sugar is to cut it out completely as stated already. I have found that the low carb high fat or ketogenic diet helps with this, because you get to replace the carbs (sugar) with fat and it really keeps you full. For me, I had cravings the first week, but once I got through that, the cravings vanished almost completely. Also, since i'm full all of the time, I am not constantly thinking about food.
One more thing, if you feed the addiction, it gets worse. If you starve it, the cravings go away. There might be an underlying candida issue too. Sugar feeds candida. By eating keto, I have been able to really get over this and move on. Also, when you limit yourself, don't say, I will only eat this sweet thing or that sweet thing today. Don't eat anything sweet. Get the carbs you need from vegetables (not sugar or grains) and try to shoot for under 50 grams a day. It is really important to up the good fats though so you are not hungry all the time.
I am trying to document my personal journey with this as well. Hope this helps!
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I can get like this too with chocolate. But I have heard that when you crave sugar its that your diet is lacking in magnesium - And you can buy magnesium supplements for this. So maybe read up on the internet about craving sugar, there's a lot of articles out there.
I would look at your diet. Try and up your good fats and protein. These should keep you fuller for longer.
Also with the sugar, you really need to try and keep this out of sight. I know its easier said than done, I need to do this too myself. Its so easy to eat a bar of chocolate, than want more. But than it turns into a vicious circle.
Stock up on fruit and veggies these will keep you full.
Maybe fruit salads with greek yoghurt for a sweet taste! Strawberries, berries, smoothies etc are great.
Also muller light yoghurts & danio yoghurts are yum!
Hope this has helped a bit0 -
Yep this was me. Even immediately after eating dinner I'd have to finish off with something sweet even if full. Cake, pie, etc. I simply stopped buying those items when I grocery shop. Now if I want an unhealthy food I have to get up, drive to the store and get it. Most of the time it's not worth the effort.0
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cecewinansfan wrote: »Yep this was me. Even immediately after eating dinner I'd have to finish off with something sweet even if full. Cake, pie, etc. I simply stopped buying those items when I grocery shop. Now if I want an unhealthy food I have to get up, drive to the store and get it. Most of the time it's not worth the effort.
I think this is great advice. A lot of that desire to eat can be habit and your body reacting to not getting something you have been in the habit of eating or that your mind associates with a particular time or activity. Teaching yourself that you don't need food at that time to be happy or to enjoy an activity by making it less easy to fall back in the habit is a good strategy.
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Hey - where did the "chip addiction" thread go? Much more entertaining.0
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juliahall123 wrote: »Addictive as cocaine. Science proven. Robert lustig.
Word to the wise. Lustig is a known quack. You kinda lost credibility with this post.
You also probably shouldn't get your "facts" from YouTube documentaries meant to give fear to the unknowledgeable.
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juliahall123 wrote: »Addictive as cocaine. Science proven. Robert lustig.
Wrong. Not proven by science. Lolstig is a quack.0 -
Great advice misskittyninja!!!
I have my own issues with sugar (read: chocolate). I feel like a lot of the advice here is helpful. I keep a "Woman you should know better" section of my food log. In there goes all the stuff I know I should avoid and most of it is the stuff I can't just have one of. It's a great reality check when I look at this section and see more calories in it than my entire dinner. My current goal is to keep it to 100 calories- a treat here or there but never should I be consuming more calories of junk than a real meal.
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I can relate to not being able to stop eating sugar once I start. So now I don't start!! Learned my lesson when on my cheat day I got a cupcake and followed it up with three more. Then got rid of the others out of fear I would eat them too!!
For me it's a Dopamine issue. I like things that make me feel good. The only cure for these type of problems in my life is complete abstinence! Good Luck!0 -
misskittyninja wrote: »You clearly need to push through it like with any other addiction. Some people need to go cold turkey and others can have a little. I think your main addiction here is eating. You say "might be spurred on by boredom" and "Whenever I stop on sugar, it is replaced by other high calorie foods" Which shows that your issue is the eating part of it.
You're going to need to learn self control which can be extremely hard. Some people have success with counseling others have success with strict dieting or sticking to their macros.
For me it was pre-planning everything i ate, sticking to it and never going over my macros. This took time. If i ate something high in calories i started to learn that i would fail myself in that i would be hungry. You'll slowly start to learn that you can eat more, when you're eating fruit and veges. When you cook your own food you can always make it lower in calories as well as healthier too which you will start to learn over time.
It will start to come down to.. I can eat that whole block of chocolate.. OR i can eat Bacon and eggs for breakfast, smoked salmon salad for lunch, roast chicken and veges for dinner... for the same calories. Seriously. Which ones going to keep you full all day?
Once you get into that mind set of.. "Pick this____ instead of this____." You'll be on your way to a happy and healthier you. You just need to push through this and reprogram yourself. No saying "It's okay i'll get back on track tomorrow, because tomorrow never comes. I sadly did this for 8 months... gained 30lbs back... Learnt a hard lesson.
You can do this. Grab some supportive friends to help pick you up when you're down, if you need to get rid of the junk around the house, do that too! It's all about baby steps that you're comfortable with, to change your eating habits for life.
Hope that helps
Nice response, I found them helpful as wellStephaniePerazzola wrote: »I can relate to not being able to stop eating sugar once I start. So now I don't start!! Learned my lesson when on my cheat day I got a cupcake and followed it up with three more. Then got rid of the others out of fear I would eat them too!!
For me it's a Dopamine issue. I like things that make me feel good. The only cure for these type of problems in my life is complete abstinence! Good Luck!
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Try chewing gum. I always crave sweets after I eat and chewing gum helps. It fills that oral fixation of wanting something in your mouth. It also has a tiny bit of sweet in there but the biggest thing it does is it has a very strong taste that lingers for a while and even if I wanted something sweet, it wouldn't taste very good.0
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I agree with Stephanie. While some (most) don't consider sugar to be addictive, for me sugar and take out food is like a drug. Once I start eating it, there is no off switch until I've made myself sick. Its shocking how much I could eat in one sitting sometimes.
Because of this as of November 1st I gave it all up. Cold turkey. Not gonna lit the first few days were awful. I was cranky and had terrible mood swings but the longer I go without it the better I feel.
12 days in, i'm down 5 pounds and I feel great. I sleep better and i don't have an upset stomach all the time. You can do this, and you can add me as a friend for support if you like. Its tough and a lot of people won't understand that you can't have "just a little taste".0 -
That's fantastic, good for you! Great job with sticking to it, it's never easy getting started but the benefits you reap are amazing!!I agree with Stephanie. While some (most) don't consider sugar to be addictive, for me sugar and take out food is like a drug. Once I start eating it, there is no off switch until I've made myself sick. Its shocking how much I could eat in one sitting sometimes.
Because of this as of November 1st I gave it all up. Cold turkey. Not gonna lit the first few days were awful. I was cranky and had terrible mood swings but the longer I go without it the better I feel.
12 days in, i'm down 5 pounds and I feel great. I sleep better and i don't have an upset stomach all the time. You can do this, and you can add me as a friend for support if you like. Its tough and a lot of people won't understand that you can't have "just a little taste".
Seems to be the same with me, fast food and simple carbs.. ugh.. It's the drop in blood sugar and then needing a fix for that...
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juliahall123 wrote: »Addictive as cocaine. Science proven. Robert lustig.
You forgot the qualifier of in rodents using unrealistic conditions.0 -
I agree with Stephanie. While some (most) don't consider sugar to be addictive, for me sugar and take out food is like a drug. Once I start eating it, there is no off switch until I've made myself sick. Its shocking how much I could eat in one sitting sometimes.
Because of this as of November 1st I gave it all up. Cold turkey. Not gonna lit the first few days were awful. I was cranky and had terrible mood swings but the longer I go without it the better I feel.
12 days in, i'm down 5 pounds and I feel great. I sleep better and i don't have an upset stomach all the time. You can do this, and you can add me as a friend for support if you like. Its tough and a lot of people won't understand that you can't have "just a little taste".
So if you eat any carbs (sugars! eek!) you binge on it? Broccoli? Cauliflower? Apples?
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Eat fruit. Have a piece at every meal. Don't drink juice. Eat sweet vegetables like sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, parsnips, etc... Eventually you will retrain your taste buds. Stay away from refined carbs, flour products, sugar. Eat low GI or GL. If you can't eat something without sugar on it then don't eat it, eat something else.0
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Eat fruit. Have a piece at every meal. Don't drink juice. Eat sweet vegetables like sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, parsnips, etc... Eventually you will retrain your taste buds. Stay away from refined carbs, flour products, sugar. Eat low GI or GL. If you can't eat something without sugar on it then don't eat it, eat something else.
Fruits have sugar in case you were wondering
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M&M's have a lower GI than a lot of fruitsEat fruit. Have a piece at every meal. Don't drink juice. Eat sweet vegetables like sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, parsnips, etc... Eventually you will retrain your taste buds. Stay away from refined carbs, flour products, sugar. Eat low GI or GL. If you can't eat something without sugar on it then don't eat it, eat something else.
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juliahall123 wrote: »Addictive as cocaine. Science proven. Robert lustig.
Word to the wise. Lustig is a known quack. You kinda lost credibility with this post.
You also probably shouldn't get your "facts" from YouTube documentaries meant to give fear to the unknowledgeable.
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herrspoons wrote: »You have a behavioural issue. Sugar as a substance is not addictive. If you genuinely can't stop then you need to discuss this with your doctor.
Completely wrong and ignorant. Sugar is as addictive as cocaine........studies show your brain reacts the same when on sugar as it does when on cocaine. And anything in life can be addictive. It's all about the pleasure you receive from said substance or activity.-7
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