I hear you TD - I'm a long-term sugar addict, it truly is an ADDICTION, not just a craving. I always used to have 4-6 teaspoons of sugar in my coffee/tea, I've managed to cut that down to 2 and get used to the 'awful' taste of the drinks, I bake muffins, slices, cupcakes, brownies, puddings, yada yada yada, nearly every day just to get a hit, and I often find myself sitting down with a big spoon and a bag of brown sugar when I run out of baked goodies or blocks of chocolate... *blushes* And I NEED a bottle of Coke in the fridge at all times - I try to only drink one glass with dinner and maybe one glass at lunchtime, but it's like an alcoholic and booze, if I run out and there are no ice cubes to stick in a glass of warm Coke, I *freak* out and have to drive to the store to buy a cold bottle or I lose my mind.
I do find that for me, the cravings are much worse and more frequent when I'm going through a difficult patch mentally (I have depression too but refuse to go on medication because I'm so terrified of putting on weight again) - I stop eating, sleep all the time and the only thing I ever put in my mouth is a cigarette or something with a stupid amount of calories. As MD said, the sugar makes me momentarily happy, then it's a sugar crash and back on the rollercoaster for another hit...
I'm sorry, I don't have any advice regarding kicking the habit or how you can go about dealing with it... but you're definitely not alone. *hugs*
Last edited by Glamourcide; July 9th, 2010 at 02:57 PM.
: I can haz spellcheck?
I did the Liver Cleansing Diet and it changed my life when it comes to sugar/fats. Addictions are addictions - you can stop and you won't die from lack of sugar. It took 3 days for me to get it out of my system.
Yeah it drove me batty but I managed, you will too!
Hi I'm Kellie and I am a sugar feind....can't go a day without it. I'm drooling and thinking about what to eat next whilst reading this thread. I think with that I've said enough....
me too BUT I've cut sugar & diet coke out of my life this week, have lost a kilo already and I am sleeping better, my joints don't ache and I actually feel better already. Its hard, I would finish dinner and start eating sugar straight away - lollies, chocolate, pudding etc but now I'm grabbing a couple of handfuls of nuts and I feel full again. I also sip peppermint tea which is quite sweet but without added sugar.
I'm trying to get my hands on a book called Sweet Poison which is all about sugar addiction and ways to quit sugar. The guy who wrote it had been trying every diet under the sun for years and couldn't loose any weight but started researching, reading medical journals, putting together his research and he came up with this big thing about fructose ( a type of sugar) and how we have no 'off switch' - our bodies never signal that we're full when consuming fructose which means we eat a lot & then blood sugar levels spike, go low and we are hungry / craving sugar again. He lost 40kg and has kept it off without 'dieting'.
Until I get my hands on the book, I have set myself the task of reading the labels and only eating foods with 10% sugar or less. (Although I did slip up today and have an english muffin (2.4% so good) with honey (87% - bad!!)) But I only had the one, whereas before I would wolf down 4 honey crumpets without stopping for a breath. Washed down with a great big diet coke of course!!
It is such a nasty habit isn't it! All the negative health connotations and the guilt...
I was never a sugar addiction person, my weakness was fried food and chips! I could easily pass on a tray of mint slices and happily stop at one bite of chocolate. Since being pregnant, those days are gone! I think it was the low energy in pregnancy for me that led me down the rabbit hole so to speak, and once the stuff is in your system, you need more, and more.
I did manage to get off the 'stuff' accidently last year when I was trying to get pg for the 2nd time. I saw a TCM practitioner for fertility assitance and as she worked to balance my body with acupuncture and herbs, I found that I was naturally not looking for the daily sugar hit. It was amazing, I felt energetic, well slept and didn't fall for the 3pm sugar call! Fortunately I also fell pg, and then unfortunately I got tired again while building my baby and have fallen prey to sugars evil ways once again - especially now chasing a newborn and a toddler's needs. So my solution to beating back the demon is better diet, sleep, rest etc - ie putting myself first. Not easy!
I was going to recommend seeing an acupuncturist too. They can help with cravings and addictions and can also tape small beads to pressure points in your ears so you trigger the points when you feel the urge. DH (who is qualified but no longer practices) says the acupuncture can be very effective for many addictions.
What about a naturopath? I remember I was prescribed some fish oil tablets (nice strong ones) and some other supplements (that i can't remember the name of sorry) that really seemed to help with the sugar cravings, especially at night.
I think sugar cravings can be related to candida in the body too? (Correct me if I'm wrong anyone...)
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