How do you control sugar cravings?

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  • diane423
    diane423 Posts: 48
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    So glad im not alone.. I am such a sugar junkie. . I do eat sugar as a way to help deal with stress. But i find that if i drink a glass of water and maybe have some fruit the craving is not as bad. I do stack up on low calorie snacks like jello, ff pudding, and yogurt .
  • LATeagno
    LATeagno Posts: 620 Member
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    The best thing to do is to stop. Eating. Sugar. And refined carbs. Sugar/refined carbs = more refined carb cravings. Go cold turkey for a week and watch what happens-- no more cravings!

    Sugar/refined (high GI) carbs produce insulin spikes, which then lead to blood sugar lows, which provoke more cravings. The best thing you can do is keep your blood sugar even by foregoing high GI sweets and starches. Works like a charm. :)
  • ThierMummy3
    ThierMummy3 Posts: 15
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    Thank you for your replies, i will try everything you have suggested. i would love to be one of those people who could pass on dessert.
  • Michelle_M2002
    Michelle_M2002 Posts: 301 Member
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    Cut out all processed foods. Switch to organic cane sugar and use it SPARINGLY. Try to get your sugars from natural places like fruit.

    I am a crazy sugar/carb monster if I veer off of my nutrition plan. When I'm on it, I've got it under control. If I over indulge, it causes the blood sugar roller coaster and the insulin roller coaster. You're blood sugar drops, so you make insulin. You make too much insulin so then you need more sugar, and it's a vicious cycle. But if you get to a point where you have it stabilized, the sugar cravings go away.

    I do keep a bag of Dove Promises, in an out of sight place. If I really need some chocolate, I can eat just one or two pieces and be satisfied.

    It also helps to eat every 3 hours or so, and eat a certain ratio of protein to carbs. Also important is to eat a proper amount of healthy fats. They are metabolized slowly so it helps stabilize blood sugar...example.. if you put sugar or honey in your coffee, you should use cream, half and half, or whole milk in your coffee. Sugar always needs to be consumed with fat. The fat will slow down the absorption of the sugar, thus keeping your blood sugar stabilized while your body processes the sugar.

    God bless!
  • thistleandfi
    thistleandfi Posts: 102 Member
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    The best thing to do is to stop. Eating. Sugar. And refined carbs. Sugar/refined carbs = more refined carb cravings. Go cold turkey for a week and watch what happens-- no more cravings!

    Sugar/refined (high GI) carbs produce insulin spikes, which then lead to blood sugar lows, which provoke more cravings. The best thing you can do is keep your blood sugar even by foregoing high GI sweets and starches. Works like a charm. :)

    This is exactly what I had to do. I was (am?) a sugar addict but I finally got to my breaking point re: how i was feeling day in and out and being honest that the sugar/refined carbs were largely responsible for my crappy moods. sadly it can keep you in a vicious cycle of eat sugar->feel good for a bit->start to come down->must eat more to come up again->repeat. I knew from my history that even indulging once in a while could lead me right back to that cycle so ultimately it took cutting it ALL out. I did that for a couple weeks before I allowed myself to have a treat like a sugar free Jello pudding snack or a fiber one brownie and even then those are infrequent because I don't crave the sweet anymore. I find that a couple servings of fruit during the day suit me just fine.

    The other issue can be replacing sugars with substitutes. While this can work for some people, for myself (and others) the sweet TASTE of sucralose and the like makes me want more sweet which can be a slippery slope hence being careful with intake sugar free or low-sugar sweets. I don't want to fall back down that hole again now that I'm finally out.

    I found that making sure I am getting plenty of good fats, carbs, and water water WATER (i follow the advice of 1oz for every lb of half your current weight but no less than 64ozs a day) and eating every 2-3hrs kept the cravings at bay until they were gone and now it is my normal mode of eating/drinking.

    Ultimately I had to commit to the decision to let all the sugar go once and for all. I reached my lowest of lows and decided I didn't want to be there anymore. My biggest hurdles now are when my stress levels spike and in those times I have to hunker down and work through it. Find distractions, call a friend, post here, do what you need to do to stop the sugar from making it into your body.

    I wish I had more advice or something magic but I don't. All I can tell you is that it IS possible and you CAN DO IT!!
  • cdstadt
    cdstadt Posts: 311 Member
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    freeze bananas!!

    Puree them on their own for "ice cream" or stick a chopstick in and eat like a popsicle. Also good covered in chocolate and peanuts, but that might be a little overboard.
  • raychill007
    raychill007 Posts: 55 Member
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    freeze bananas!!

    This is what I came in to comment about!! They are just like icecream (use ripe bananas), and frozen grapes too are delicious. I'm into sweets, chocolate, icecream, everything bad, but frozen bananas were a huge lifesaver for me when I started dieting! I now also freeze vanilla muller light yogurts and mix it up with the banana. Frozen treats are the best!

    Also sugar free gum helps.

    And chocolate drinks like the Belgian Chocolate Options one.

    I don't like things like Thinsations and Go Ahead bars and all the rest because they are quite little and unsatisfying and I'm always left thinking that I wish I'd just had a real chocolate bar.

    Finally, if things get really bad, I'd recommend giving up all sweet things for about 3 days, all treats and all fruit. After 3 days allow yourself fruit again and you'll be so grateful and it'll be so sweet and delicious that you won't be thinking about candy at all!

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