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Giving up sugar for good
Replies
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Taubes is generally considered a quack.13
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It means that there are many, (probably hundreds)of posts about the horrors of sugar addiction and here is this proof. This Gary Taubes is frequently cited, but my understanding is that he is not an expert and more of a fear mongerer when it comes to sugar.
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I have to admit i never knew the part about "As for tobacco, sugar was, and still is, a critical ingredient in the American blended-tobacco cigarette, the first of which was Camel. It’s this “marriage of tobacco and sugar”, as a sugar-industry report described it in 1950, that makes for the “mild” experience of smoking cigarettes as compared with cigars and, perhaps more important, makes it possible for most of us to inhale cigarette smoke and draw it deep into our lungs." Interesting article, but yes, you will get slammed on this site talking about sugar being a drug or addictive. I also have a hard time eating sugar in moderation and find natural sugars in fruit to be enough in my diet. to keep my blood work levels "good" i limit all added sugar so i see/understand your point. Not many people are going to be positive towards this though.8
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I read it this morning and found it worthwhile - I'm a fan of Taubes in general though and always appreciate his research/take on things. He's done a tremendous amount of good for the field of nutrition, IMO.
I wouldn't say I've given up sugar (because I haven't) but someone might think that if they were to look at my food diary. My approach to sugar is as little as possible for an enjoyable diet/life which is a lot lower than others judging by MFP but it works for me. I think any prudent person would do the same (eat as little sugar as needed to be happy with your diet) but that's just me.11 -
crzycatlady1 wrote: »I really must be a special freak snowflake then because I can eat sugar in moderation no problem. OP-if you feel that you need to eliminate it and actually think that it will be sustainable for you, for the rest of your life then you got to do what you got to do. But, I've figured out how to continue eating all the foods I like while hitting my health and weight goals. This is what's sustainable for me, for the next 40+ years.
Or perhaps the ill-effects may be so insidious that you won't notice them until it's too late. I sincerely hope that is not the case, obviously.
-I've lost 50lb
-I've successfully maintained the loss for almost 4 years
-I've improved all my health markers-great blood pressure, bmi of around 21, waist circumference of 25 etc etc
-all of my blood work panels have improved-including getting a pre-diabetic glucose number down into the normal range
-I'm the only one in my family who's reversed the progression of pre-diabetes and the only one in my family who's sustained weight loss for any length of time
-I no longer have any medical conditions
-I take no medications
And I eat sugar every.single.day.
eta: I refuse to live my life in fear of the countless 'what ifs/maybes' in life. I now have a healthy relationship with food and I'm in excellent health by every marker my doctor uses. That's good enough for me
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chocolate_owl wrote: »
Sorry, it's Taubes. He thrives on fear-mongering with poor science. We've seen his *kitten* spewed all over this site for years now, and it gets old. We've beaten the "sugar is addictive!!!1!" dead horse for way too long now. Could I recommend you do a search or browse some threads in the debate section?
This. I've read enough of Taubes to know what it says without reading that whole article.7 -
janicelo1971 wrote: »Interesting article, but yes, you will get slammed on this site talking about sugar being a drug or addictive. I also have a hard time eating sugar in moderation and find natural sugars in fruit to be enough in my diet. to keep my blood work levels "good" i limit all added sugar so i see/understand your point. Not many people are going to be positive towards this though.
This.
There is very little tolerance here for anyone that suggests anything bad about sugar. When I eat meals that are too sugar intensive, I get hungry earlier and don't tend to feel good. That's pretty much all the data I need. If it is somehow "all in my head" or some sort of placebo effect, I really don't care. I know the kind of diet that works best for me; and it is sustainable.
I would never go so far as to ban it outright. I like to cook Asian dishes from time-to-time; and they often call for sugar.
I don't think any of the fear mongers have come close to proving their case. But for some people, attachment to food can work something like an addictive process. The Yale department of psychiatry is in the process of developing a food addiction assessment tool; so there are at least some in the professional world who find this concept helpful.
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I've given up sugar (or mostly given it up) not for weight loss purposes but for gout purposes. I've read some scientific articles that say fructose is way bad for gout. I believe it!3
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All these people making jokes have obviously never walked into a club bathroom to find their friend passed out with a spoon sticky with sugar and a lighter. It's something you never forget
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Sorry - I lost interest when he calls sugar a drug. It's not a drug and it's not addictive. People may LIKE the taste of sugar and thus want to consume more but it's no more addictive than cheese is (which is something I have problems moderating but I'm not addicted to it).
I really wish people would stop listening to this kind of low intellect fear-mongering.
/rant
Define "drug". A psychoactive substance with some addictive characteristics? Yes sugar is a drug, as well as being a nutrient.
Yep!
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It's a good article. It definitely would be helpful if people read it before commenting because he doesn't say "sugar is a drug". It is more along the lines of sugar could possibly be considered a drug because of the way it affects some people. He doesn't say everyone. He does say sugar should be looked at more closely for the effect it has on (some) people.
He writes that it may create problems for some people, health wise, but you won't know it until 20 years down the road when it is a bit late. The health problem is there. He encourages scientists and the government to look into how little sugar is too much.
Granted, I am a fan of his writing - I don't think he won his journalistic awards for writing woo - but I don't think this article is that out there. He questions sugar's nutritional and health value. A fair question in my mind. If people eat it, meaning a lot of it, they should know what sugar can do for or to them beyond giving a few moments of pleasure while ingesting it.14 -
Sugar, just like anything else, can become addicting to people prone to addiction and compulsive behaviors. It has little (if anything) in my opinion to do with the sugar itself.
I have had issues with eating disorders, substance abuse, compulsive shopping, and over exercising. There are plenty of people who go their whole lives eating what they want, taking medications, shopping, and working out without problems moderating. Those things aren't where the problem was. The problem was with me.22 -
Interesting long read by Gary Taubes in The Guardian today about sugar's addictive effects and the futility of trying to "moderate" its consumption. He also makes the interesting observation that people tend to define moderation as "whatever works for them". Anyway, it's all enough to convince me...
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/jan/05/is-sugar-worlds-most-popular-drug
While there are some foods I cannot moderate and thus do not have in the house, I was certainly able to painlessly moderate my overall sugar consumption by eating more protein and less carbs.
The scientific consensus appears to be that there is no indicator that sugar is physically addicting, and that behavioral addiction needs more research. I do believe that there can be behavioral addictions around food, which can be addressed by Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
I've retrained myself to self-soothe with exercise rather than food.10 -
FatChickToNotSoFatChick wrote: »All these people making jokes have obviously never walked into a club bathroom to find their friend passed out with a spoon sticky with sugar and a lighter. It's something you never forget
Have you watched any episodes of My 600 Pound Life? (Not specific to sugar - making a point about people self-medicating with food.)5 -
We're all pretty familiar with Taubes and his articles...
Also, I had a Reece's Peanutbutter Cup yesterday...is that moderation?
I don't eat much in the way of added sugars...I don't think sugar is so much the issue as is over consumption...but the notion that it's a "drug" and moderating intake is futile is asinine. Sugar is nothing new...we've been consuming sugar since the dawn of time.
I am more than capable of having a cookie and going about the rest of my day...or having a Reece's, etc. It's not like I eat a cookie and then proceed to eat all of the cookies.KetoLady86 wrote: »Sorry - I lost interest when he calls sugar a drug. It's not a drug and it's not addictive. People may LIKE the taste of sugar and thus want to consume more but it's no more addictive than cheese is (which is something I have problems moderating but I'm not addicted to it).
I really wish people would stop listening to this kind of low intellect fear-mongering.
/rant
Define "drug". A psychoactive substance with some addictive characteristics? Yes sugar is a drug, as well as being a nutrient.
Yep!
nope...11 -
crzycatlady1 wrote: »I really must be a special freak snowflake then because I can eat sugar in moderation no problem. OP-if you feel that you need to eliminate it and actually think that it will be sustainable for you, for the rest of your life then you got to do what you got to do. But, I've figured out how to continue eating all the foods I like while hitting my health and weight goals. This is what's sustainable for me, for the next 40+ years.
Or perhaps the ill-effects may be so insidious that you won't notice them until it's too late. I sincerely hope that is not the case, obviously.
Humans have been consuming sugar since the dawn of time...7 -
Only problem with sugar is it is calorie dense. Eating too much means eating too many calories and gaining weight. Yes, individuals may have differing reactions to it (same for caffeine or gluten) but that does not justify the fear-mongering that goes on with sugar.
Taubes is a quack and needs to get less press, not more.11 -
On a molecular level, how is sugar in a banana or an apple different from sugar cane that has been processed and added to something? Hint...there is no difference.10
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It's a good article. It definitely would be helpful if people read it before commenting because he doesn't say "sugar is a drug". It is more along the lines of sugar could possibly be considered a drug because of the way it affects some people. He doesn't say everyone. He does say sugar should be looked at more closely for the effect it has on (some) people.
He writes that it may create problems for some people, health wise, but you won't know it until 20 years down the road when it is a bit late. The health problem is there. He encourages scientists and the government to look into how little sugar is too much.
Granted, I am a fan of his writing - I don't think he won his journalistic awards for writing woo - but I don't think this article is that out there. He questions sugar's nutritional and health value. A fair question in my mind. If people eat it, meaning a lot of it, they should know what sugar can do for or to them beyond giving a few moments of pleasure while ingesting it.
Sugar is some new substance that needs studying and we won't know for another 20 years? That doesn't even make sense...sugar is nothing new.14 -
For me, the statement "The critical question, as the journalist and historian Charles C Mann has elegantly put it, “is whether [sugar] is actually an addictive substance, or if people just act like it is.", isn't true. I have trouble moderating my sugar consumption in certain conditions and that's all I need to know.
I'm not willing to give up sugar completely (even if that were a simple task, which it isn't, unless I were also willing to go low carb, which I'm not). I like it too much, and I do believe that, in reasonable quantities, it's fine. The problem has been that I like it in unreasonable quantities. Luckily, I find that generally, the less I have of it, the less I want it. I don't read labels to find out if there's sugar in something, and I don't avoid fruit, but I do avoid sweet treats as much as possible. I didn't moderate very well over the holiday season, but I did a decent job the rest of 2016 and expect the same in 2017.
My advice to you OP is to not get hung up on the debate, and perhaps reconsider "giving up sugar for good", just from a sustainability point of view, but if you feel that reducing the amount of sugar in your diet is a good idea, you're probably right. Btw, more protein in my diet and exercise have helped curb the cravings for me. Good luck!
ETA: I should have added that keeping my calorie deficit low is important in preventing those monster cravings.5
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