Sunday, March 17, 2024

How To Stop Sugar Addiction

Symptoms Of Cutting Added Sugar From Your Diet

How To Stop Sugar Addiction (Its Killing You!)

Cutting added sugar from your diet may lead to physical and mental symptoms.

How the body reacts to giving up sugar is different for everyone. The symptoms and their severity will depend on how much added sugar you were taking in through sweetened foods and beverages.

Some people find that their symptoms last from a few days to a couple of weeks.

As your body adapts to a low added sugar diet over time and your added sugar intake becomes less frequent , the less intense your symptoms and cravings for sugar are likely to be.

You may find that your symptoms are worse at certain times of the day, such as between meals. Stress may trigger for sugar, so you may find that your symptoms feel worse during times of stress.

Consider A Sugar Detox

A sugar detox can mean anything from cutting it out completely to phasing it out slowly. Another type of sugar detox might mean avoiding added sugars, but still allowing for natural sugars from fruits.

The bottom line is that you should make a plan for what kind of sugar detox is best for your lifestyle and health needs. Learn more about how to do a sugar detox.

Watch For Hidden Sugar

Cough syrups, chewing gum, mints, tomato sauce, baked beans, and lunch meats often contain sugar. Even some prescription medications contain sugar. For a week, be particularly vigilant and scan every possible food label. Given that 1 tablespoon ketchup can contain about 1/2 teaspoon sugar, buying sugar-free condiments can help cut your sugar consumption. Here are some other sneaky sources of sugar.

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Tips To Smash Sugar Cravings

Note that you dont have to and may not need to completely avoid sweet foods. Sweet is one of the 5 basic tastes, and some people find that completely avoiding sweet foods intensifies the cravings.Others, however, find sweet foods triggering.

Treat yourself to sugar free treats made with monk fruit or stevia, like this cashew cake batter pudding. Or even a piece of fruit with nut butter. Some people avoid binge behavior by just satisfying cravings for sweets with some dark chocolate or something sweet. This is not true for everyone, however: Some people may experience serious binge reactions if they eat sweet foods.

Here are some tips to keep blood sugar stable and cravings in check:

If you overdid it: The day after a sugar binge, start off with 8 ounces hot water and the juice of 1/2 a lemon to detoxify, and drink green vegetable juices if you have access to alkalize the body sugar is very acidic. Then stick to protein & veggies & plenty of good fats, like avocado, throughout the day to reset yourself.

Try Making Food Swaps

SUGAR ADDICTION TREATMENT &  DETOX FORMULA! STOP SUGAR ...

Often it isnt the sugar in chocolate and other sweet treats that are the real culprit, but hidden dishonest sugars in cereals, granolas, pasta sauces and other things that we might consider savoury, or even healthy.

Charlotte Stirling-Reed said: Use food labels to help you decide which foods have lower sugar contents and opt for those varieties.

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Is Sugar Addiction Real

Imagine an alien came down to Earth to do a survey for the intergalactic community. What would he report back?

All humans, whether young or old, consume copious amounts of a substance that is slowly killing them. They put it in their food, they put it in their drink, they advertise it on the small square box in their living rooms. They know its bad for them, yet they cant seem to stopwe must never let this reach our planet!

The truth is, sugar addiction is very real. It has a similar chemical affect on our brains as recreational drugs, such as heroin, do. Every time you consume sugar, the pleasure centers in your brain reward you with a little dopamine hit.

But you dont need science to prove that to you. How often when youre feeling hungry, angry, lonely, or tired, do you reach out for some Ben & Jerrys Ice Cream? Sugar makes you feel good, which is why cravings can be even more difficult to kick.

Increase Your Dietary Fiber Intake

Eating high fiber foods may help you stave off hunger and cravings. They take longer to digest, causing you to feel fuller for longer.

High fiber foods also contribute to healthy blood sugar regulation. Keeping your blood sugar levels stable may help prevent cravings.

Aim for high fiber vegetables, beans, and legumes.

Pairing high protein and high fiber foods is best for healthy blood sugar control. Examples include mixing high fiber veggies like broccoli into your eggs or spooning some pumpkin seeds over your oatmeal.

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Q Sugar Substitutes Which Do You Prefer

Sarah: This is tricky. Even natural sugar substitutes like honey, coconut sugars and agave are still sugar. Im interested in the plant-based substitute, stevia.

For more information on Sarah, her eight-week programme to give up sugar, and her sugar-free recipes, visit sarahwilson.com. You can also buy her best-selling book, I Quit Sugar for Life .

A Fluctuation In Blood Sugar

Sugar Addiction: How To Stop Eating Sugar

If youre craving sweets all of a sudden, most likely you are experiencing blood sugar fluctuations, Goodman explains. When your blood sugar drops, your body may be trying to get you to give it more fuel to keep your blood sugar levels stable.” To keep your blood sugar balanced, she recommends eating a healthy amount of protein and adding more high-fiber foods, like beans and legumes, to your diet, along with complex carbs. This will give you the fuel you need without the blood sugar spikes, she promises.

When your blood sugar drops, your body may be trying to get you to give it more fuel to keep your blood sugar levels stable.

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Get Rid Of Refined Sugars In The House

Put your home through a sugar detox! This means going through your pantry, your fridge, your freezer and tossing anything thats made with refined sugar.

Will this stop sugar cravings completely? No, not right way at least. But studies do show that the further away a tempting snack is, the less inclined you are to eat it. Out of sight, out of mind is real!

Are Artificial Sweeteners Safe

If you place an order at your local coffee shop, it’s no longer a question of if you want cream or sugar added. Artificial sweeteners are just as popular of an option nowadays to help curb sugar habits.

These synthetic sugar substitutes received a bad reputation years ago for their link to cancer, but subsequent studies haven’t found a clear connection to causing cancer in humans, according to the National Cancer Institute.

With those concerns out of the way for now, the FDA has approved five artificial sweeteners for use: aspartame , acesulfame-K , neotame, saccharin and sucralose .

But just because the FDA approves their use doesn’t mean you should swap sugar for artificial sweeteners and keep the same diet. Artificial sweeteners can temporarily help by weaning you off added sugars, but long-term use could play a role in how you view foods.

Think of artificial sweeteners as a concentrated version without the calories a little goes a long way. According to Harvard Health, the sweetness from artificial additives can make you more likely to develop a sweet tooth and crave sweets even more. Plus, the psychological component can alter the way you think. For example, if you tell yourself you’re saving calories by drinking a diet soda instead of a regular soda, you may be more inclined to eat cake for dessert. In this case, you cancel out any benefits of drinking a diet soda with something full of added sugars.

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Fill Up On Healthy Fats

Eat more nuts, seeds, avocados, olives, and salmon whenever you can. “Not only are these foods heart healthy and help with blood sugar control, healthy fats will displace excess sugar from the diet and keep the body satisfied for longer so you are less likely to have energy dips between meals prompting a quick sugar fix,” says Ashvini Mashru, MA, RD, LDN, and author of Small Steps to Slim. “A simple, healthy dietone that’s high in fiber and low in sugar, preservatives, and unhealthy fatsis all that’s needed to keep your body’s interior as smooth and sleek as the day it rolled off the assembly line,” adds Zinczenko.

I Used To Be A Complete Sugar Binge Eater And It Even Seemed Like I Had No Hope To Get Rid Of This Habit

How to Stop Eating Sugar and Get Rid of Addiction

But NOBODY can claim they have no hope. Because if I managed to get rid of my sugar addiction, so can everybody else, including you! You CAN stop eating sugar and you will.

And trust me. After you start your sugar cleanse, you will definitely notice a huge difference in the way you feel in terms of health and happiness, like I did! So let me explain this sugar detox in more detail and answer the big question:

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Is A Sugar Addiction As Powerful As Cocaine Addiction

I think wed all agree that cocaine is a very addictive substance. So how does sugar addication compare?

Consuming sugar sparks your nucleus accumbens , the area of the brain often referred to as the reward centre. When your nucleus accumbens is stimulated, it releases dopamine, and you begin to feel very good very quickly.

The more sugar your food contains, the more dopamine is released, and the bigger high you experience. But…

Just like cocaine and other addictive drugs, over time your brain requires more sugar in order to generate the same high. Your dopamine receptors become less sensitive to the presence of sugar, and your addiction to sugar grows stronger.

Some people even experience physiological changes within the brain when they eat sugary or highly refined foods . Their brains change and the sugar addiction gets stronger.

It is important to realize that sugar addiction is NOT just an emotional reliance on sweets and refined foods. If you cant resist sugar, dont be too hard on yourself. It has nothing to do with your willpower, or your desire to change your body has adapted to depend on sugar and, just like a cocaine addict experiences tremendous withdrawal symptoms if she were to cut out cocaine, removing sugar from your diet can feel impossible.

This can sound very depressing, but dont worry because there IS hope.There is a sugar addiction cure!

Why You Need To Stop Sugar Cravings

Cravings for sweets make you eat too much sugar which is not beneficial for your health. When we eat lots of calories that are high in fructose our liver stores it as fat.

Excessive fructose is linked to many illnesses such as diabetes, acne, high blood pressure, obesity, inflammation, infertility, and even cancer.

Thats why its better to cope with your sugar cravings and start eating more nourishing, healthy foods instead.

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How To Stop Sugar Cravings Once And For All

Plus, the best foods to try when you’re in the mood for something sweet.

The average American woman consumes 48 pounds of added sugar every year. Thats four pounds a month! And dental cavities arent the only potential health problem we have to worry about. Eating too much sugar significantly raises your risk of life-shortening obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. In fact, a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that people who exceeded the recommended daily limit of added sugar increased their risk of death due to heart disease by at least 30%.

Want to really take a break from sugar? Join our new membership club, GH+, to unlock access to Good Housekeeping‘s 21-day sugar detox plan, which will ease you out of your sugar cravings and help you form a healthy relationship with the sweet stuff.

Putting an end to sugar cravings and cutting back on added sugar is hard sweet foods tempt us at every turn and for many people, consuming those foods is a longtime habit associated with comfort or celebration. Sometimes sugar whispers at you from the grocery store aisle other times it screams at you from the freezer. The good news is, with some smart sugar strategies, you can significantly reduce your sugar cravings and take back your health.

Sugar Addiction And Binge Eating

How To Stop Sugar Addiction (4 TIPS)

Binge eating is a problem that is very common among people who are addicted to sugar. Binge eating means consuming a lot of food or snacks in a very short period of time. This is often followed by a feeling of shame, disgust, and dissatisfaction in ones self. Some individuals first develop an emotional imbalance, and due to depression, they binge eat until they become addicted to sugar. This can happen in reverse.

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Other Things That May Work

I am pretty sure the three steps above would work for most people to shut down a sugar craving.

But of course, the best option by far is to prevent these cravings in the first place.

To do that, toss all out of your house. If you keep them within close reach, youre asking for trouble. Instead, keep healthy foods within easy reach.

Also, if you eat healthy and exercise several times per week, chances are you wont get cravings nearly as often.

Here are 11 more useful tips to stop sugar cravings:

  • Drink a glass of water. Some people say that dehydration can cause cravings.
  • Eat a fruit. Having a piece of fruit may help satisfy sugar cravings for some people. Bananas, apples, oranges work great.
  • Avoid artificial sweeteners. If you feel that artificial sweeteners trigger cravings for you, you might want to avoid them (
  • 4 ).
  • Avoid certain triggers. Try to avoid specific activities or places that give you cravings, such as walking past McDonalds.
  • Take a multivitamin. This will help prevent any deficiencies.
  • Read your list. It can be very helpful to carry a list of the reasons you want to eat healthy, as it can be hard to remember such things when you get a craving.
  • Dont starve yourself. Try to prevent yourself from becoming too hungry between meals.
  • Summary

    Numerous other methods may help you overcome a craving for sugar. These include drinking a glass of water, getting good sleep and eating high-protein foods.

    Start The Day Healthy

    Beginning the day with a healthy breakfast will set the foundation of a day full of good nutritional choices. Eating sweet breakfast foods like sugary cereal which are often low in fibre will make your blood sugar rise then fall quickly, causing you to feel the need to snack again soon after. Instead, opt for a breakfast high in complex carbohydrates, fibre and protein, like poached eggs and avocado on toast, which will make you feel satisfied for much longer.

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    S To Kick Your Sugar Addiction

    By Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN

    Today, I want to share with you my secrets to reduce sugar cravings and food cravings so you can kick sugar addiction. This is a chronic problem in America today. In fact, I would say the No. 1 cause of people falling off diets and something that stops or even reverses weight loss efforts is when people have cravings.

    Lets be honest. A lot of people know what they should eat. We should eat more vegetables. We should eat more fruit. We should eat organic. But a lot of times when Ive asked patients over the years, Why could you not stick with a diet before? they would say, Because of the cravings. I started craving sugar so much.

    Monitor Your Alcohol Intake

    How To Stop Sugar Craving Naturally And Kick The Sugar ...

    Although it can be tempting to reward yourself for keeping away from the sweet stuff, alcohol is one of the worst sources of sugars.

    It is extremely high in sugar, especially liqueurs and cocktails . Use soda water as your mixer instead of fizzy drinks.

    Instead of setting unrealistic goals for yourself that you wont want to maintain, keep drinking alcohol but substitute every other glass for a glass of sparkling water. Not only is it cheaper, but your head will thank you in the morning.

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    Go For A Brisk Walk Outside

    Another thing that can work is to go outside for a brisk walk.

    If you are a runner, running will be even better.

    This serves a two-fold purpose. First, you are distancing yourself from the food that you are craving.

    Second, the exercise will release endorphins, or feel good chemicals in your brain, which can help turn the craving off.

    If you cant go outside, do a few exhausting sets of burpees, push-ups, body weight squats or any other body-weight exercise.

    Summary

    Going for a brisk walk or running may help reduce cravings.

    If You Are Hungry Eat A Healthy And Filling Meal

    Its important to realize that a craving is not the same as hunger.

    Its not your body calling for energy, its your brain calling for something that releases a lot of dopamine in the reward system.

    When you get a craving when youre hungry, the feeling is difficult to resist.

    In fact, a craving combined with hunger is a powerful drive that most people have a hard time overcoming.

    If you get a craving while hungry, one of the best tricks is to eat a healthy meal immediately. Stock your kitchen with healthy snack foods or pre-made meals.

    Protein-rich foods, such as meat, fish and eggs are especially good for curbing hunger .

    Eating real food may not feel very appetizing when you have a craving for sugary junk food. But if you truly need to lose weight, resilience is worth it in the long run.

    Summary

    When you experience a craving and hunger at the same time, force yourself to have a healthy meal rather than junk food.

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