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After months of denial, I now must admit that I am without a doubt addicted to sugar. A few days ago I had a craving for chocolate. Not just any chocolate, but a chocolate (preferable chocolate cream cheese) brownie. I went to several stores looking for one and couldn't find it. I then became frantic and went way out of my way to go to a deli that I knew sold them. As soon as I got in my car, I wolfed it down. I could not even wait until I got home! This totally shocked me. I though about how much I yell at my father because he is addicted to chewing tobacco (he claims he can stop anytime he wants) but my addition to sugar must be just as strong. I have come a long way with my wellness progam. I eat many more veggies and drink a glass of veggie juice every day. I have also cut way back on refined carbs changing to whole grains and rarely eat processed foods (except of course for the sugary ones). I stick to a consistent exercise routine and started SR several weeks ago. I really want to make progress, but I know I have to break this sugar addiction. I have read many previous posts on sugar and most people say if you can do without sugar for several days, the cravings subside, but I have not found that to work for me. I would appreciate any additional suggestions any one has for me. I do take 25mgs of Elavil for a medical condition that I have and I know one of the side effects of this medication is cravings for sweets, but I do need to still take this for a while yet. Last year, I had a test for ANA come back positive and I want to do everything I can to stay healthy.
I am grateful for anyone else's suggestions/experiences.
Mary
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
I used to be a huge sugar addict myself, Mary. I cut cold turkey when I started developing candida (yeast) related symptoms because cutting sugar is the only way to get rid of yeast, and even that is a slow process. Anyway, you mentioned that cutting sugar out has not worked for you. Perhaps others will disagree with me, but it does not "work" for anyone truly addicted to sugar. When I first cut it out I had panic attacks and actually threw up once. It is almost like going through withdrawal from a drug or, more closely, from caffeine.
I am not sure how to say this but I think you either have to convince yourself to make it work for you and stop eating sugar and to go through all of the bad symptoms that goes along with it or to accept that you will be addicted and accept the worse symptoms that will eventually go along with that. If it helps, my physical symptoms (i.e. nausea, panicky feeling, weird taste in my mouth) were a week long tops and then it just became about will power. My real intense cravings like the one you described (and, believe me, I had many of those) subsided quickly and they became subtler and subtler. The cravings kind of slowly switch from biological cravings, to psychological ones - though they are also intertwined. Mine went from feeling like I was going to die without sugar (gone in several days) to just really wanting something sweet (gone in about a month) to sometimes being annoyed when I saw a commercial for cookies or saw someone eating something sweet because it would be nice to have it (several months) to being generally indifferent to sugar even when people eat it in front of me (9 months later)because that is something I just don't eat (just like I don't eat lots of other stuff).
You and anyone CAN kick sugar. But it is ultimately up to you to do the work. There is no sugar patch or quick fix out of it. I hope this helps you.
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
I was addicted to sugar as a small child. I didn't realise this until well into my 20s, but I had no idea how serious this was. After all, everyone around me was eating it....I only managed to kick the habit after I became ill.
Some years before I cut out the sugar, I quitt smoking. That was hard, but 'nothing' compared to sugar withdrawal. I can't remember how long getting off sugar took altogether, probably several months. Actually, I cut the 'sugary things' out first, and only later all the refined carbohydrates, which was very hard, too. I learned that sugar is in everything, and started eating only whole foods. That was actually a breakthrough. After a couple of weeks on only natural foods only, I felt so much better. After almost a year on a strict anti-Candida diet I adjusted the amount of carbohydrates in my diet, and since then I haven't had any cravings.
I completely agree with the 'Ex sugar addict' on all points. It is possible to beat the sugar addiction, and not only that, it is necessary. For addictions have their price.
I am really interested in this subject, and wonder why some people get SO addicted to sugar, whereas others don't seem to be affected. My impression is that eating too many processed foods in childhood might mess up our sense of what is good for us.
Anyway, good luck! You can do it.
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
Hi Mary,
I'm struggling with the same thing myself. I have been doing wellness for 2 and 1/2 years now and was doing great. I made a big mistake and started eating sugar again....just a little, but then it starts the sugar cravings. Anyway, to make a long story short, I'm strugging now to get back on task. NO SUGAR. It hasn't been easy, and I'm taking it a day at a time. I know just how you feel.
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
Ex Sugar Addict you are completely right. I need to think of sugar as just another thing I don't eat anymore like fried foods or microwave dinners. Sugar just seems so much more difficult to give up than those other things. And not all forms of sugar are equally hard for me to give up. For example, I can easily turn down soda (have not had soda for at least 1 year), ice cream and maybe even candy bars but pastries and cookies are just killing me. Sonja, you may have a point about sugar addictions beginning in childhood. I remember at home our cabinets were always filled homemade cookies and pies and I ate as much as I wanted. After I graduated from college, I took a very stressful job with long hours and was consistently eating from vending machines. My "standard" breakfast was a Minute Maid orange soda and sourdough pretzels. I referred to this as orange juice and toast. It didn't help matters any that I inherited my dads metabolism and really do not gain weight easily so I had no incentive to quit eating sugar until my health problems started. I know there is no EASY way around this. I have been buying cookies made with organic ingredients from Whole Foods and I try to console myself by thinking that these are "healthier" than regular junk food because they are organic and made with fruit juices. I know this is not true but when your desperate for something, you can come up with all kinds of excuses. Maybe the guy suing over the OREO cookies has a point. Except he should be suing because of sugar addiction rather that trans fat.
Good luck to everyone else who is in the same situation as me.
Mary
In Reply to: Responses to your comments posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 11:14:14:
Mary, I went through this sugar addiction too - and had no desire to give it up cold turkey. I allowed myself as much time as possible to get over it. When I switched to a whole foods diet, I started making my own sweets at home. I used ingredients like whole flours, whole dried cane juice, molasses and fruits (I make a mean whole banana bread). My first step was to cut out white sugar completely, but allow myself whole dried cane juice, fruit juice, honey, molasses etc. Then I gradually cut down the amounts of these. The cravings stopped early into my program, but the plain enjoyment of them never did :) So now I eat the equivalent of about a teaspoon of whole cane juice a day (usually in the form of dark organic chocolate). Once in a while I'll make whole banana bread or oatmeal cookies, or - gasp - I have a pastry treat! As long as I keep it every so often I'm just fine...
An interesting thing I tried for a while was taking equal parts of organic apple cider vinegar and blackstrap molasses, 1 tbls of the mixture 3 times a day in water. Doing that actually gave me an aversion to sweets...
good luck - you will feel a world of difference physically after kicking the habit
In Reply to: Re: Responses to your comments posted by thessa on May 16, 2003 at 05:17:34:
Oh yeah, and here's a pretty neat link.
http://www.adventuresinhealth.net/Sugar.html
I forgot to mention Stevia!! It's been a lifesaver for me in herbal teas...
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
Hi, Mary.
From an ex sugar addict:
I have found with myself and with my patients that the easiest way and the quickest way to get results is by followqing Beth Loiselle, RD's book perfectly for a week or so--and then if benefits are seen to persist for at least 6 months. Some people have the discipline to drag it out but most do not (including myself). For this protocol I disagree with Beth about whether one can have fruit or not.
The brain will die without oxygen for 4 minutes. Since the brain cannot use oxygen without sugar, sugar addiction is the hardest addiction to break of them all. The brain can get along perfectly well without ANY of the other addictions. Alcohol is the most refined carbohydrate of all (even more than sugar) which is one of the reasons it is such a hard addiction to break.
Some people's genetic make-up makes them more susceptible to this than others.
Hope this helps.
Walt
In Reply to: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mary on May 15, 2003 at 08:38:50:
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I do have Beth's book and it is wonderful and I can follow the diet fairly well, but I have not been perfect because of the sugar issue and I know that I have to be. From reading these posts, I guess I have come to the conclusion that sugar addiction is a complex issue. For me anyway, it includes childhood habits, genetics, medications that increase cravings and emotional issues (I eat the most sugar when I am bored/depressed). I'll just have to experiment to see what is the best way for me to handle this. Right now, I think I am going to start by trying to keep my sugar intake under 32 grams per day ( I think that is about 8 teaspoons) and I will try reducing this by 4 grams per week) until I am down to zero. If that doesn't work, I will try cold turkey again. I was actually able to do cold turkey for 2 weeks, but the cravings were still there and eventually I caved in. I guess it all comes down to how badly I want to do this.
Thanks again for your suggestion and for sharing your story with me. It helps to know others have been through the same thing and have had success.
Mari
In Reply to: Re: Confessions of a sugar addict (Archive in sugar.) posted by Walt Stoll on May 16, 2003 at 06:05:09:
You too, Walt...?! I feel better now :)
Would you mind clarifying this: the brain can't utilise oxygen without 'sugar'. Is the sugar you here imply (blood sugar; glucose) chemically the same as the white refined stuff called sugar? Or is the glucose made in the liver different?
In Reply to: Re: Confessions of a sugar addict posted by Mari on May 16, 2003 at 07:43:29:
Thanks, Mari.
In my expereince, both personal and professional, I think you are choosing the very hardest way to do this. You will keep your cravings and have the most possible withdrawal, along with the longest delay of benefits, this way. That combination nearly always spells defeat for the individual.
OCCASIONALLY there will be a person stubborn enough to do it this way and they are feeling a lot better in about a year.
Good luck.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: Confessions of a sugar addict (Archive in sugar.) posted by Sonja on May 16, 2003 at 10:24:40:
Hi, Sonja.
So far as I know, the brain is the only organ that has to have glucose to survive by combining with oxygen. Everything else has alternative pathways for emergencies.
Glucose is glucose. The problem with a sugar addiction has to do with the missing micronutrients and not with the actual glucose. However, once one is 'addicted', simply taking in the glucose can trigger the response.
Hope this helps.
Walt
In Reply to: Re: Confessions of a sugar addict (Archive in sugar.) posted by Walt Stoll on May 16, 2003 at 06:05:09:
For this protocol I disagree with Beth about whether one can have fruit or not.
Please clarify this, Dr Stoll? Is your opinion that its better to not have fruit?
In Reply to: Re: Confessions of a sugar addict (Archive in sugar.) posted by Fruit Loop on May 17, 2003 at 08:32:51:
Hi, Fruit.
IF one is trying to break a refined food addiction fruits are definitely OUT. If one is just trying to be healthier, a judicious inclusion of fruit is OK.
Hope this helps.
Walt
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