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  • Sugarbeat
    Sugarbeat Posts: 824 Member
    edited August 2016
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    vingogly wrote: »
    When one withdraws from a substance that's addictive, one goes through withdrawal symptoms. These symptoms are typically the reverse of the effects of the substance; so, for example, when you withdraw from an opiate which dries the mucus membranes and relieves pain, the addict experiences pain and running of the mucus membranes.

    So what are the withdrawal symptoms from sugar? I don't believe we covered that in my psychology of addictions class in grad school. :D

    For me it included a wooziness that was the result of too little electrolytes and my blood sugar stabilizing (yes, I can feel this and I find it unpleasant but tolerable). I was cranky for a few days and I did crave sweets but it went away. I drank water with Crystal Light to offset the worst of the sweet cravings and plain V8 to balance out the electrolytes.
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    MiriamBlissful wrote: »
    There's a study I read that proves sugar more addicting than cocaine, the science is there to prove sugar as something that needs moderation. The research and study of the many outweighs that of the few. Sugar isn't nessisarily bad, it just needs to be watched.

    Sugar is not more addictive than cocaine or heroin. If it was, there would be sugar rehab clinics popping up everywhere. I'm not being defensive or in denial over my high consumption either, I'm all for cutting down sugar, i am not a "sugar is not a problem unless you have a medical condition" proponent, and even then i still think comparing sugar to narcotics is a far reach.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    Did @MiriamBlissful ever come back with a link to the study? If not, can we move this off the debate board?
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Did you think most people here were arguing for unlimited, immoderation consumption of sugar?

    I'm not sure I've ever seen anybody make that argument, here or anywhere else. But in day-to-day life, what you just described is a pretty common approach to eating.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,571 Member
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    MiriamBlissful wrote: »
    There's a study I read that proves sugar more addicting than cocaine, the science is there to prove sugar as something that needs moderation. The research and study of the many outweighs that of the few. Sugar isn't nessisarily bad, it just needs to be watched.
    With rats right? This is OLD NEWS and has been debated over and over with the sugar "addiction" having very weak scientific claims.
    It tastes good some some people keep eating it. Same reason why people like hot sauce or salt on everything they eat. Are there any salt or hot sauce "addicts"?

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
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    Sriracha is addicting!!
  • ccrdragon
    ccrdragon Posts: 3,366 Member
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    hot sauce would come more under the addiction umbrella because it actually causes an endorphin surge in the brain when you eat it (read that somewhere but can't find the link right now).
  • tomteboda
    tomteboda Posts: 2,171 Member
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    In other news, sex triggers pleasure in the brain JUST LIKE ADDICTION.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    vingogly wrote: »
    So what are the withdrawal symptoms from sugar?

    Have you ever seen a child not long after they've had their last candy? It's not pretty.
  • NorthCascades
    NorthCascades Posts: 10,970 Member
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    ninerbuff wrote: »
    It tastes good some some people keep eating it.

    Drugs feel good, so people use more of them. That sounds familiar you know.
  • positivepowers
    positivepowers Posts: 902 Member
    edited August 2016
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    Christine_72 wrote: »
    MiriamBlissful wrote: »
    There's a study I read that proves sugar more addicting than cocaine, the science is there to prove sugar as something that needs moderation. The research and study of the many outweighs that of the few. Sugar isn't nessisarily bad, it just needs to be watched.

    Sugar is not more addictive than cocaine or heroin. If it was, there would be sugar rehab clinics popping up everywhere. I'm not being defensive or in denial over my high consumption either, I'm all for cutting down sugar, i am not a "sugar is not a problem unless you have a medical condition" proponent, and even then i still think comparing sugar to narcotics is a far reach.

    No one argues that smoking is highly addictive, yet there are no "smoking rehab clinics popping up everywhere." There are self-help programs, hypnosis programs and 12 step programs aimed at self-help, but those types of programs exist for overeaters as well (sugar addiction is lumped in as an eating disorder.) Think Overeaters' Anonymous, Food Addicts Anonymous and other similar programs.

    Further, as addictive as nicotine is (after all, nicotine is required by the body; under normal circumstances it makes its own nicotine) people do not go through the withdrawl symptoms characterized by meth and cocaine. The person withdrawing from nicotine is irritable, has headaches, nausea, fatigue, insomnia, anxiety and depression. Hmmmm . . . sounds like the symptoms described by those cutting out processed sugar.

    In other words, just because the withdrawl symptoms aren't life threatening, such as nicotine addiction, doesn't mean the addiction doesn't exist.

    This sentence by OP, however, does not make sense: There's a study I read that proves sugar more addicting than cocaine, the science is there to prove sugar as something that needs moderation. Either an addiction exists, in which case abstinence is required, or it does not exist in which case moderation is appropriate.

    Peer reviewed article from Google Scholar: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3304017/
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    NorthCascades wrote: »
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Did you think most people here were arguing for unlimited, immoderation consumption of sugar?

    I'm not sure I've ever seen anybody make that argument, here or anywhere else. But in day-to-day life, what you just described is a pretty common approach to eating.

    There's a distinction between doing something because you don't care whether it's healthy or not and actually thinking and arguing that it's healthy or that others should do it.

    Looking back to 8/12 when I wrote that (seems like 100 years ago now, in that there have been precisely 4583 new threads on sugar and how it's evil started in the meantime), OP seemed to think that she was telling us something new and controversial in saying that sugar should be moderated, not consumed in excess. That, obviously, is not the case. The debate here is normally between those who say it's fine in moderation and those who say it should be removed from the diet (usually added sugar, sometimes as part of an extreme low carb diet because carbs are going to kill us).

    Anyway, more recent threads have raised the question: which addiction is worse, sugar or cheese?
  • positivepowers
    positivepowers Posts: 902 Member
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    ninerbuff wrote: »
    MiriamBlissful wrote: »
    There's a study I read that proves sugar more addicting than cocaine, the science is there to prove sugar as something that needs moderation. The research and study of the many outweighs that of the few. Sugar isn't nessisarily bad, it just needs to be watched.
    With rats right? This is OLD NEWS and has been debated over and over with the sugar "addiction" having very weak scientific claims.
    It tastes good some some people keep eating it. Same reason why people like hot sauce or salt on everything they eat. Are there any salt or hot sauce "addicts"?

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    Not specifically salt, but I found a peer-reviewed article about MSG: http://www.spiritofhealthkc.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/Health Library/Modern Medicine/Man Made Chemicals and Pollution/MSG/MSG1 - The Toxicity - Safety of MSG.pdf

    The food industry knows that food enhancing flavors such as MSG cause the public to consume, therefore buy, more product. And no, I'm not a conspiracy nut, this just sounds like a good short-term business plan to me. Long term doesn't make much sense, though, since you're harming the customers.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    queenliz99 wrote: »
    Sriracha is addicting!!

    Probably. But some addictions I embrace!
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
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    markrgeary1 wrote: »
    We read stories all the time about sugar addicts, you know all the candy store robberies by addicts needing a fix.

    My nephew is in state prison for stealing to support his meth addiction. Sure he'd like to hear how this sugar addiction works.

    Would he be in prison if meth were legal and he could buy it cheaply at dozens of stores in every city? Your argument has more to do with availability and legality than addiction.

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