Sugar addict

What type of help do you need?

Start using sugar substitutes. There are foods made with sugar substitutes (although test them first because some can give you stomach issues). I'm an avid Diet Pepsi fan. 0 calories is always a win and still get sweetness.

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

I am with you on this. I'm really starting to wonder if I've got a chemical imbalance or something because I can not stay away. I know I know, some people are going to say "you can stay away if you really want". With sugar its more than just wanting to not have it.
I guess I don't have any suggestions for you but wanted you to know you're not alone. I think eventually I will probably have to cut it out 100% because I'm far too undisciplined to be able to have just a bit at a time.

When you say you're addicted to sugar, which kinds of foods do you have trouble moderating, specifically? Literally anything sugar including plain table sugar, or more like treat foods (cookies, candy, etc.)?

For me, it helped reduce my cravings for calorie-dense sweets (cookies, other baked goods, candy), when I started making it a point to eat fruit routinely, starting at 3 servings daily. It took a bit of willpower, I guess, for a short number of weeks, but did result in reduced desires for the calorie-dense, nutrient-poor options. After a while, I was able to reduce fruit servings, just eat it to taste preference, and keep that effect. Super-sweet simple-flavored things (like grocery store baked goods) now mostly taste way too sweet, and too simple (not varied enough flavor), though I still like a rich dessert or some good chocolate now and then.

This doesn't work for everyone, but I'm not the only one here whom I've seen say found it helpful. (Original suggestion came from a registered dietitian, BTW.)

Might be worth a try?

Late to the party, I'm with you this is my exact problem, sugar addiction, non diabetic 138 pounds trying to get to 120 got all the way down to 129, can not stop eating sugar ,love fruit eat it all the time along with as much sugar as I can get it my mouth lol, don't feel guilty just resign.

I quit sugar at the beginning of Feb for my health and I so feel you! I find it really hard to stay away - and honestly my first week with no sugar usually gives me withdrawal symptoms (no joke), like headaches and lethargy. But, at least for me, once I get through that first week all my energy comes back and I realize what I’m doing to my body when I feed my addiction. I’d love to be able to have a little from time to time and have it not be a big deal (which is the healthiest approach), but I haven’t figured out how to do that yet!

Getting off refined sugars today. It usually takes about 3 days for the cravings to ease. When I get my sugar from moderate fruits and only certain carbs like sweet potatoes, I feel in balance. In 2018 I stayed with this for the whole year so I know it can work for me.

For me, I've learned from my wise grandma that having hard candies are the perfect solution. It's a longer lasting sugar fix than eating cookies or other sweets, and it gives me that oral fixation that I need plus the real sugar, but it doesn't have a ton of calories. So when everyone else is eating ice cream, but I already have something tasty in my mouth, I'm not going to spit it out to eat ice cream, I'm going to continue enjoying it. My mouth is already busy with the flavor it has, so it's satisfied. You could do that with mints, too.

I've had the best success with just completely cutting it out at the beginning of my day, because if I put sugar in my coffee or have pancakes and syrup for breakfast, then I crave sugar the whole day, but if I eat eggs or something, then I'm not craving sugar. Your first meal sets the tone for the rest of your day.

Hang in there, you're not alone in this!

PamGeirng wrote: »

My friend who is a nutritional coach says to put cinnamon in your coffee or eat oatmeal. She says that cinnamon and oatmeal level out your blood sugar and help take away the cravings. I think oatmeal with cinnamon mixed in would be good. Maybe give it a try???

If you add cinnamon, spend the extra buck or so and get Vietnamese or Saigon cinnamon. The flavor is worlds away from “regular” grocery store cinnamon. Amazon/Whole Foods’ Frontier Co-op brand is unbelievable. I buy it by the pound now.

@AnnPT77 Iknow, I know. But it adds so much flavor. I’m afraid it weighs down on the side of “well I risk eating this but otoh I’m so much healthier than I was before”. 🤦🏻‍♀️

I get a good sprinkle on my chai two or three times a day, on French toast once or twice a week, and a dollop in my pumpkin pudding several evenings a week. A 37gr jar lasts me a couple of months, and that’s including sharing with husband, so I don’t think I’m in liver killing territory.

springlering62 wrote: »

@AnnPT77 Iknow, I know. But it adds so much flavor. I’m afraid it weighs down on the side of “well I risk eating this but otoh I’m so much healthier than I was before”. 🤦🏻‍♀️

I get a good sprinkle on my chai two or three times a day, on French toast once or twice a week, and a dollop in my pumpkin pudding several evenings a week. A 37gr jar lasts me a couple of months, and that’s including sharing with husband, so I don’t think I’m in liver killing territory.

@springlering62, I have zero argument with what others do, with full knowledge; and I think any types are likely fine for most people in normal US intake quantities.

I just worry about people hearing that "cinnamon is healthy" (or "reduces inflammation", "takes away cravings", "levels blood sugar", etc.), and eating it in quantity without realizing that they're effectively increasing blood thinner dosage above carefully-adjusted Coumadin prescription levels, or something like that.

IMU, there are 3-4 common culinary types in the US, Ceylon (Cinnamomum verum), Saigon (C. loureiroi), and "regular", i.e. just labeled "Cinnamon" (usually C. cassia or the cheaper C. burnmannii). (Yeah, I'm a plant geek 😆.) In coumarin content, loureiroi > burmannii > cassia > verum, I believe. But in normal US eating quantities, I think it's reasonable to use whichever one prefers, and that liver/kidney damage is unlikely. (I've read that coumarin level can be a concern during pregnancy for fetal development, in terms of neurological dysfunction, but I'm not sure what intake levels were studied.)

These days I also get cinnamon online, by the pound - also Frontier, BTW. (Great spice brand!) Last year, I ordered a pound in late March, and another in early November. A pound is about 12 of your 37g bottle, so I'm eating a good bit of cinnamon - maybe around twice your intake, I guess? I actually like the milder Ceylon type, but agree the flavor differs so different people will prefer different ones. I get liver function tests fairly regularly (due to cancer history), and there have been no worrisome signs.

(FWIW, I have the same sort of worry when it comes to brazil nuts and selenium: It's possible to be eating what one perceives as a normal amount, but be taking some health risk. On a diet/weight loss site, there are people who seem to think that if some is good, lots is better. With the brazil nuts, there was one OP that thought she'd eat a handful a day, even after hearing that one nut contains roughly the RDA, and an ounce (maybe 7-8 nuts) eaten regularly goes above the USDA tolerable upper limit for regular consumption. Yikes!)

Apologies for the digression, OP.