Packaged sugar is my drug
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sloth2monkey38
Posts: 5 Member
I've tried going off sugar snacks from the store because the additives are so addictive. I did good today and bought bananas instead of other junk but my other half gets a lot of candy and cookies that I try to get away from and it's like waving a drug in front of my face I'm having trouble walking away from. I've got to get some won't power. I feel like I'm only getting by till my next sugar snack and it sickens me. I'm trying to take small steps and stop getting little here and there. I've had an easier time not drinking than sugary processed foods. 😵🤢 I need a support network for this? WHO else? How are people changing this? I've tried going off all together and I was like hulk and feeling like a crappy detox. What have I done to myself 😢
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Replies
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It’s hard. No lie.
I am trying to look at each piece of food/drink/snack and ask myself “will this help my body, or hurt it?”
One day at a time.1 -
You mean, you just like delicious food? Cookies, a lot of candy, many desserts etc are made of a glorious combination of fat and sugar. It tastes amazing. Don't blame the sugar. Also don't tell yourself you're addicted to it - you're not, but telling yourself you are makes you think you need it (like a drug addict needs drugs) and give in to your cravings.
When you tried to stop eating it, you were probably eating a lot less carbs - this makes your body hold less water and can make people not feel so good.11 -
There are plenty things that are naturally sweet that you can substitute for things full of sugar. Try to go for healthy snack bars with chocolate chips or chocolate coated for example instead of full chocolate bars. Trying to totally remove all these things from your diet is so hard, so just try to eat less of them or substitute some of them.
Another tip is to ask your partner not to bring any candy home, and buy it when they are going to eat it while out. its a lot harder to eat it, if its not there to eat.
Dont feel too bad about it. Its not bad to have sugar, or anything in fact. It just the amount. Reduce the amount, and stick to the same snacks if you must. One step at a time.0 -
Experts say it takes about 2 weeks to get through it if you go 100% cold turkey. Personally, I’ve not ever made it that long.1
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Read Habit by Duhigg.
A single hard candy is 34 calories. You can nurse one of those babies for quite a while when you could be eating a whole bunch of other things, like chips.
Do you eat in front of the TV? Then redirect the habit by giving your hands something to do. Like knitting.
Are you boredom eating? Then sign up for a class or club that gets you out of the house.
Are treats your reward for a hard day’s work? Then replace the reward. It could be a 20 minutes walk, a diary, or a face mask. Anything that makes you feel better about yourself.
Could you ask your significant other to keep his treats in his own container and relocate it? Out of sight, out of mind.
It’s only sugar. Don’t give it more power than it has. Use mindfulness techniques to redirect the obsessive thoughts. The way the mind works is that resisted thoughts get stronger. Instead of resisting them, redirect them.
http://bethspatterson.com/using-mindfulness-meditation-to-tame-intrusive-thoughts/7 -
I was able to lose weight in large part by controlling my sweet tooth. Note that’s controlling, not defeating.
I did a lot of experimenting and researching various treats, ended up basically with two. One was some sort of modified ice cream. I’ve tried most frozen treats. I get more satisfaction for my calories in terms of portion size and how long it takes to eat.
The other is quality dark chocolate, but it’s rarely in the house. I have to want it badly enough to go out and get it. After I started eating quality chocolate, I lost interest most other candy.
The only sugar thing that I have totally eliminated is donuts and rarely eat cookies, cake or pie. I can scarf down hundreds of calories in a couple of minutes eating that stuff.
That’s what’s worked for me. I find working some refined sugar into my plan easier than saying absolutely no. Drawing lines that I can’t stick to undermines my overall confidence.3 -
Are you boredom eating?
This was my problem. My downfall is fried/crunchy/salty/spicy things rather than sweet, but the effect was the same. Once I started logging my foods I saw how much a handful of this and a spoonful of that and "just one of these" added up. It was an unpleasant surprise. I eliminated my boredom eating over the course of a few weeks. It was an adjustment but I've lost 25 pounds in the past 4 months. Occasionally I still catch myself about to thoughtlessly put something in my mouth but I've trained myself to stop and think "no, not worth it."1 -
Is it sugar, or is it the additives that are so addictive? What if it's neither? What if it's your calling things you like, and yourself, all kinds of bad names, and thinking something is wrong with you, that makes you feel powerless, which intensifies your cravings, which you give in to, proving you are powerless and the substances evil, which makes you crave them even more, just to soothe you, which makes you feel bad, so you need more to soothe you?
You've tried going off, but what are you going on instead? What is the alternative? Other than bananas?6 -
I find that keeping my carbs lower than 100g a day helps keeps my cravings in check. Even better if I also boost my protein intake. Look up 'insulin resistance' - there might be a medical reason for your cravings.0
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Yep, mine too. One day at a time....
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My husband and I got semi-addicted to desserts. We just quit cold turkey, ,and within a week, we both felt better. And now, we eat fruit. There are recipes for low calorie desserts. That might be a good first step for you.0
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I have been blessed with two gifts. A stronger than normal desire to be thin, and a love of sugar. As a result, my weight is rarely stable. I'm either buying sugary things or dieting.
This has to stop. I'm too embarrassed to say how many times I've been at goal weight, or how much weight I have lost / gained over the years. I have chosen to exclude processed sugar from my life. I'm slowly phasing out processed sugar, it's slow and difficult but I'll achieve it.0 -
I struggle with refined sugar every day. At work we have SO many treats...cakes, cookies, candy
I have tended to eat so much I come home feeling super sick, plus it seems to flare up an existing medical condition. What has helped me this time/ in the past is: a) finding a buddy to quit sugar with (I always allow fruits tho btw!) and checking in lots b) identifying the times of day when you’re most likely to crack and having alternatives to hand c) taking the time to figure out the healthier, lower GI, whole foods that get you over the sugary hump. Mine are: almond milk smoothie with bananas and cacao; some banana with almond butter; a cup of bone broth (I know...weird); rx bars (half an rx bar does the trick - I like the chocolate sea salt one); açaí bowls (so pretty!). I know many of these have sugar but it is from whole fruit plus the addition of some protein/fiber means there’s not such a sugar rush. Good luck! This isn’t easy at all. Sugar is more addictive than cocaine. 7 -
When people claim an addiction to sugar I always visualize some poor red-eyed and disheveled soul sitting in a dimly lit dirty kitchen, a large bag of C&H cane sugar open in the middle of a small scarred table, shoving spoonful after spoonful of sparkling white crystals into their mouth. But no.. it's always cookies and cakes and tasty treats. Wouldn't a real sugar addiction eventually lead to that scenario? I've never heard of drug addicts preferring their product heavily cut.
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lettersforjo wrote: »Sugar is more addictive than cocaine.
no, it isn't.4 -
jseams1234 wrote: »When people claim an addiction to sugar I always visualize some poor red-eyed and disheveled soul sitting in a dimly lit dirty kitchen, a large bag of C&H cane sugar open in the middle of a small scarred table, shoving spoonful after spoonful of sparkling white crystals into their mouth. But no.. it's always cookies and cakes and tasty treats. Wouldn't a real sugar addiction eventually lead to that scenario? I've never heard of drug addicts preferring their product heavily cut.
Gee. That is so original.
Come on, we all know what she is talking about.
The word "addiction" can apply to behaviors, too. Ever hear of sex addiction, gambling addiction?
If the OP has a problem moderating her intake of sugar, then it's a problem.
How 'bout you worry about yourself?
FWIW, I actually HAVE sat on a couch in a dark room with bags of sugar, so your example fails. I have sat in front of a TV and eaten an entire three pound bag of cherries. I have stolen money to buy candy (and not the kind with fat in it, just plain sugary candy.)
If you don't have anything supportive to say, how 'bout you move on to another thread?
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People use the word addiction in non medical situations. I think that's alright, few of us here are professing to have medical qualifications.
There was a recent series of items on a news and information television programme about addiction. One of the ending comments from that was "if you think that you may be addicted to something, try going a month without it". Can you go a month without buying anything with processed sugar in it?0 -
LumberJacck wrote: »People use the word addiction in non medical situations. I think that's alright, few of us here are professing to have medical qualifications.
There was a recent series of items on a news and information television programme about addiction. One of the ending comments from that was "if you think that you may be addicted to something, try going a month without it". Can you go a month without buying anything with processed sugar in it?
By that definition we are all addicted to food and water.
I prefer to ask myself if my behaviour is getting in the way of living the way I want. Is it putting me in bed, interfering with relationships, or driving me to the poorhouse?
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LumberJacck wrote: »People use the word addiction in non medical situations. I think that's alright, few of us here are professing to have medical qualifications.
There was a recent series of items on a news and information television programme about addiction. One of the ending comments from that was "if you think that you may be addicted to something, try going a month without it". Can you go a month without buying anything with processed sugar in it?
Since there is no difference in sugar whether it is in a processed food, a fruit, or eaten off a spoon the bigger question would be "Can you go a month without eating any sugar".
Mind you, I am NOT talking about the food that contains the sugar, I am talking about the sugar itself. 15 grams of sugar is the same whether it is from 100 grams of green grapes or 4 teaspoons of table sugar. Only difference is the grapes have glucose and fructose where table sugar is sucrose (which is made up of glucose and fructose)5 -
There is a difference in the way sugar is, which is why I used the word "processed". Do people eat 5 apples at a time? Probably not. But that's not even the energy of a packet of biscuits, which is probably 7-8 normal sized apples. Yet I have eaten a whole packet of biscuits, thankfully not very often. Similarly people drink down 3-4 oranges in a few minutes, which would take 20 minutes to eat.
If you don't believe me, look up experiments that have been done on mice with processed sugar. They're just like us, they love sweat things.7
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