Sugar withdrawals

I used to be like that. I got it under control by having some fruit every time I craved sugar. At first I was eating tons of fruit, but now its probably like 5-6 servings a day.

I include a serving of honey as one of my fruit servings too. Not too sure if that counts but its only because I like honey in my raw milk.

Not to hijack your thread but in a sugar related question, is the auto generated recommended amount of sugar on MFP accurate? I go over mine almost everyday :embarassed:

I used to be like that. I got it under control by having some fruit every time I craved sugar. At first I was eating tons of fruit, but now its probably like 5-6 servings a day.

Fruit has helped me get over a sugar addiction, too. I have switched to having some fresh fruit with every meal and I literally haven't craved a sweet treat in 15 days. Fruit will still put you over your sugar limits for the day, but once you break the habit of reaching for treats, you can back off the fruit to however much you want to leave in your diet for the long term.

For any withdrawals, take a pain reliever for the headaches...they will go away after the first 3 or 4 days. Usually day 3 is your turning point if you go cold turkey. Day 1 is anxiety about giving it up and Day 2 is full out body tantrums to try to get you to give it what it wants. They say the brain of a sugar addict looks much like a heroin addict's on a scan. So it is serious. But cold turkey works best in my opinion. The withdrawal is shorter.

Eat fruit when you crave sugar. Also make sure you drink lots more water when you are "detoxing" from the sugar. It will help with the symptoms. Add protein and fiber so that you are less hungry and this will decrease your chance of developing the cravings.

Use agave nectar or honey if you just must have a sweet taste and use it sparingly, until you can go without.

You've already had lots of great advise. I'm sugar sensitive, and have gone "cold turkey" many times. My experience is that it's rough for three to four days, and after that you feel like you've been set free. Your mind is sharper, you have more time to do things you enjoy, you're not constantly having to fight food cravings - it's worth the detox struggle. When you're in the midst of it, though, your mind will find every way it can to get you to give up. Believe it or not, beans and lentils help a lot. They increase seratonin and make you feel happy and satisfied. Fruit also helps, but avoid white bread, white rice, and pasta.

Cold turkey is the only way to go for a true sugar addict. Would you tell an alcoholic to cut down gradually? If you decide to do it, hold on to the hope that there WILL be an end to your suffering in a few days, and life will be much happier without sugar. You will have to experience it yourself to know what I mean. Don't deprive yourself of knowing freedom from sugar!

I used to be like that. I got it under control by having some fruit every time I craved sugar. At first I was eating tons of fruit, but now its probably like 5-6 servings a day.

I include a serving of honey as one of my fruit servings too. Not too sure if that counts but its only because I like honey in my raw milk.

I like the fruit solution... which of course does contain sugars... (Fructose as opposed to Sucrose)... Exercise may have a positive impact here as well... Also, please note that most if not all processed foods such as candies, cakes, etc have additives which serve as APPETITE ENHANCERS... In other words, they are designed to temporarily help the hunger but leave you craving more sooner rather than later... Nice for their bottom line I'd say... but not so grand for your bottom....

Good way to start is to see how much high fructose corn syrup is in every food and condiment you're eating. Toss that crap out.

Cold turkey. Lots of water. Sugar free jello with sugar free cool whip. Fruit.
I've been there. I was BAD. I could put down a whole box of 24 piece Godiva truffles in a DAY.
I rarely have it now, and when it do I'm able to eat it in moderation. And I've been able to do this for a couple of years. Occasionally, and I mean very occasionally, every several months or so, I will go on a sugar binge, like the worst kind! It will probably be a lifelong struggle for me. I think it's because I HAVE to restrict my diet so much to keep my cravings under control and I can't have gluten either. But boy, when I eat it I have cravings for days afterwards. Ugh.

Do you really really know the benefits of cutting out sugar? Cancer cells feed on sugar. Sugar creates free radicals in your body causing cellular damage, it ages you and causes wrinkles!. Sugar causes insulin spikes stopping your fat burning process. Sugar lowers your immunities, you are even more likely to catch a cold after one can of pop! The benefits if cutting it out, outweigh the taste. Doing tons of rersearch motivated me to give it up.

You CAN become one of those people who can only have a small amount of sugar sometimes.

My wife struggled with sugar addiction and artificial sweeteners and her only way to kick it was to go cold turkey. She had four ROUGH days and then totally beat it. By six days her headaches were gone.

We found that if you want to cut sugar, you have to cut it all the way. Use artificial sweetners if you need to but in my opinion, you will gain much by learning to enjoy natural flavors over artificial ones. Of course, you don't need to try to cut the sugars found naturally in foods such as fruit. It's the added sugar that gets you.

YEP, get rid of the artificial sweeteners, too, if you can. They just keep your tastebuds trained to sweets. If I need a little something, I use a little honey or stevia, depending on what it is.

There's a soda brand I like - Zevia, sweetened with stevia, that you can find at Wegmans, Whole foods, and a bunch of other places - check out their web site for flavors and locations: www .zevia.com. Works for those times you just HAVe to have something.

I do agree with getting rid of artificial sweeteners, to a point. I don't think they are the greatest thing, but they sure have helped me beat a sugar craving a time or two. But not every day. And I don't necessarily agree with the thought that you should eliminate them because they will keep you trained to want sugar. Because so will anything that tastes sweet including fruit. But if you are drinking several diet pops a day, yes you will crave sugar, therer has been loads if research done in that one. But that's just my opinion and experience with artificial sweeteners. Again, I'm not a huge fan, because I mostly eat clean, but they help in a pinch or during a certain week lol.

How about sugar substitute such as: stevia or aspartam
sometimes i use brown sugar

I am a recovering sugar addict as well but fortunately have not experienced withdrawal symptoms. That sounds just terrible! I've lost 19 lbs on here and it's helped me to focus on what I "can" have instead of what I "can't." I use quotes there because I refuse to say any foods or drinks are off limits for me because I know myself...I'll rebel. A few of my friends on here have given me some good advice in regards to sugar. I try to stay away from it all day and like most of you have said (who have given excellent advice, by the way), fruit is your friend LOL. Also drink that water! Any of you can request me as a friend if you want. I look at sugar addiction just like drug or alcohol addiction...it's a day by day process and when you are doing well and not relying on it/overeating it, you are "in recovery." I also know that if I start the day out with too much sugar (even a granola bar), it stimulates my appetite and sets me up for failure. I also try to avoid too much artificial sweetener but do have some maybe three to four days a week (I try to limit it to once a day or less). As a reward at the end of the day, I allow myself a sweet treat, but usually not anything too concentrated with sugar and something that contains some protein or whole grain so I'm filling my belly and getting some nutrition from it. Examples: Kozy Shack rice pudding (love that stuff), graham crackers, 100 calorie kettle corn, whole grain sugary cereal, weight watchers or skinny cow ice cream treats). Every now and then I do allow myself candy or chocolate in moderation. Best of luck!