Diary of a Sugar Addiction

[Asrais]

My name is Asrais and I'm a sugaraholic.

I know a lot about nutrition, I cook and eat healthy meals, I know what a body needs in order to function properly - my brain knows sugar is bad for me, but try telling that to the rest of me!!

I am not massively overweight (about 15 - 20kg/ 30-40pounds) though I would feel better if I lost that, but mainly I worry about my health and the effects too much sugar can have on it.

Seriously, if it's sweet, I'll eat it! Chocolate is my biggest vice, cookies a close second! I am pretty much always hungry - even if I'm not hungry, I'll still want to eat sweet stuff - after dinner, I'll always want something sweet.

I have tried before to give up sugar - but I find that I don't even want to give it up! It's like there is a little sugar demon controlling my thoughts regarding food! Plus there are side affects from sugar withdrawal if you go cold turkey!

So, I'm making a declaration in front of all you SF lovelies - over the next few weeks, I am going to start cutting out/ substituting all the sugary foods in my diet. Starting with chocolate - I will be getting my fix from 75% cocoa solids bittersweet chocolate, instead of the milk chocolate I usually have.

Next week, I'll tackle cookies!

[iolite]

Chocolate craving is very often pointing to a magnesium deficiency. Try a good chelated multi mineral daily. Sugar craving could be candida or parasitic infection. Have you thought of going on a parasite cleanse? I see you're in AU. I live in the US, so any cleanses I've used like Clarkia, or Paragone, may not be available to you.

Cocoa powder in skim milk with a bit of low cal sweetner like stevia is really good.

[Asrais]

Hmm, didn't think of anything like that - I will look into it - thanks iolite!

[astralsuzy]

One time I had to have sugar in my coffee and tea. I could not stand it without sugar. That was a long time ago now. I gradually put less and less sugar in my coffee and tea until I was able to drink it without sugar. I am used to having coffee and tea without sugar now. If someone puts sugar in it, I have to tip it out as it taste terrible. I cannot eat rich chocolate cake now. I used to be able to. It taste too sweet and sickly. I think if you gradually cut out sugar over time your taste changes.
Try and gradually cut down on sugar. I would not cut sugar out completely. I think that would be too hard. It has to be done gradually.

[Asrais]

I don't take sugar in tea - I rarely drink coffee, but I will add a little sugar if I do (so I just won't drink it at all now!) I don't drink soda or sugary drinks - I'm more of a water girl.
I wouldn't be able to finish a piece of rich chocolate cake, either, but it wouldn't stop me trying! That's the thing with me, my mind knows the right thing to do, ie, when to stop eating, but I tend to ignore it! There are also times when I just don't feel full - I'll eat dinner and dessert and still feel hungry!

[mava]

Oh man, I'm the exact same way, except add ice cream to that list! I think this is a great thread. I'll definitely be stopping by to see how you're doing! Best of luck!

[Spiritlite]

Food for you. Sugar is a true addiction. Most people dont know that. I look forward to reading more of your posts on this

[Asrais]

I will be getting my fix from 75% cocoa solids bittersweet chocolate, instead of the milk chocolate I usually have.



Lol, scratch this - turns out I'm too fond of the dark chocolate too - so no chocolate at all allowed in the house now! I'll go with the cocoa powder and skimmed milk idea if I get a craving.

[astralsuzy]

When you have dinner and other meals Asrais, drink a glass of water. Water is very filling. That should fill you up. About the sugar habit, I would advise you not to buy tempting foods. Most people could not resist to eat biscuits, cake, ice cream and chocolate etc. if those foods were in the home. It would be too difficult to resist. I have been there. I have eaten way too much. I do not buy those things any more. If you want a treat, I would suggest to buy one small treat a week.

[Spiritlite]

Water with chia seeds help me not tO crave sugars

[Sungirl]

I have candida and am working on cutting (amongst other things) sugar out of my diet.

Totally agree with the "don't have it in the house" thing. I'm not a sugar junkie so a lot of it I can live without but chocolate is a toughie. I now eat 85% dark, or darker if I can get it. I find that because it is so much stronger on the cocoa side I don't need so much of it to get the choc fix I need. A sugary milk choc bar I would need to eat much more to get the same amount of cocoa

With coffee, I found drinking good quality coffee means I can drink it with skimmed milk and no sugar.

You do find your taste buds come back to life after a while, even white coffee with no sugar tastes sweet to me now. You will also find too much sugar will make you feel sick.

Go you for trying and good luck... they hide the stuff in so many things. Like yeast extract... try giving up sugar and yeast at the same time... that is HARD!!!

[Asrais]

Today is grocery shopping day, so it will be the first real trial. My difficulty is finding snacks that I can have with my tea in the evening - usually I have a biscuit or some chocolate - so finding something to fill that gap will be tough.

I have started my day with a bowl of oatmeal - technically, should stop me craving anything till lunch time - we'll see...

[Uma]

Sugar addiction is epidemic! In the middle ages sugar was locked up as a dangerous drug.

[astralsuzy]

Good luck Asrais, it is not that hard. I am getting so used to eating healthy food now that I do not crave junk food anymore. When I come home from work, my treat is a few cherries, a couple of strawberries, an orange and a hot chocolate milk.
A few weeks ago I had lunch late as I wanted to wait for my husband to come home. I was hungry. I made myself a cup of coffee and a handful of almonds. That got my through until my husband came home and then we had lunch. If I did not eat almonds and if I ate biscuits instead I would have probably kept eating and eating. Eating almonds is not that exciting so I was able to stop eating more.
You could eat a handful saltanas. They are sweet. You will work it out.
I give myself a treat once a week. I might have a scone or a muffin but it has to be healthy. I would not eat a chocolate muffin. An apple or blueberry muffin are better choices.

[Uma]

Dried fruit and even fresh fruit is also loaded with sugar. Sugar is hidden everywhere. Read labels - especially things like cereal where they try to hide the fact they're pouring so much sugar in. Ingredients are listed in the order of quantity from most to least. Anything ending in "ose" is sugar (comes from the word "glucose"). And corn syrup as well as maple and honey is also sugar.

Sugar works with bread in the gut to ferment and produce yeast, gas and fat. So it's good to cut down on the bread too or better yet bake your own so you know what's in it.

And then there is alcohol - which is sugar that's already been fermented. More poison for the system.

Well, it's up to you how far you want to go - how healthy you want to feel.

What I've noticed is whenever I wean off sugar then my sense of taste heightens. Even a carrot starts to taste too sweet.

[astralsuzy]

Eating fresh fruit has natural sugar. There is a big difference with eating fruit and eating biscuits.

[Asrais]

Well, grocery shopping yesterday was a pain - I hate it anyway, but it was particularly awful this time, having to read labels on everything and passing all the "good stuff!" But I'm now prepared for the week - mind you that doesn't mean I'll stick with it - I'm only 5 mins drive from the supermarket.

Tonight is gonna be tough too. I'm going to dinner with some friends I haven't seen in ages. The little demon in my head will be telling me "you never go out, just treat your self, just this once" and the argument will ensue! We'll see what happens :)

I'm not a big fan of dried fruit - except dried mango, but that has to be the sweetest one! I'm not really a fruit eater at all - I like mandarins and I grow strawberries, but that's really all I eat.

I only ever eat brown bread anyway, and not very often, and I don't really drink alcohol.

What do we think of sugar substitutes like stevia? I used to have a stevia plant, but turns out the slugs like it as much as I did! Might get another one...

[Asrais]

Apparently, it takes 30 days to break or form a habit - so, with that, I can set myself a target, if I can make it to 30 days I will treat myself to a hair cut!

[astralsuzy]

I was not that keen to eat fruit but I got used to it and I really like it.
I would not make yourself miserable by not eating something nice when you are out with your friends. Do not be too strict with yourself. Otherwise you may get tired of just eating healthy food. It is good to have a treat about once or twice a week. If you do not give yourself a treat you might go off healthy eating and you may go back to your old way of eating a lot of junk food. It is better to eat a lot of good food and a little junk food than to eat heaps of junk food.

[ces]

Apparently, it takes 30 days to break or form a habit - so, with that, I can set myself a target, if I can make it to 30 days I will treat myself to a hair cut!

A wee treat is a great way of keeping yourself motiviated. I didn't know about the 30 day to break or form a habit. will fly by no doubt:D

[Asrais]

I did have dessert when I was out with my friends - but I didn't have any chocolate and I only ate half of it - so a happy medium!

At the moment, instead of having 3 big meals a day, I am having several small ones. I am learning to recognize true hunger over cravings.

On the downside, on Saturday, I weight myself and I had gone up by 1.5kg, so I was pretty upset by that.

I got myself an exercise ball and a zumba workout game - so each time I get a sugar craving, I'm gonna do a few min work out, in an attempt to create a new habit in place of the old one.

[Uma]

I think there has to be something else to replace the missing "sweetness" in life when one has to give up sugar.

[Mystery90]

Hey I know exactly what this is like, I love chocolate alot too, some days I can push myself to be good but then I can fall back and just eat too much. I'm defiantly going to keep reading your diary for tips to help me too. It doesn't help though that I could have a 'high metabolism' as I tell myself sometimes I can burn of the chocolate quickly but then I realise this won't help my habit of eating it.

[astralsuzy]

That is really good Asrais on what you are doing. I would try not to weigh yourself after you go out somewhere. The scales tend to go up a bit and you can feel a bit depressed. I have learnt not to weigh myself every week because I get a bit depressed as I think I have not lost any weight or I did not loose much weight and I tend to eat more. That is me and probably is not you. You have to do what works best for you.

[Asrais]

I hadn't weight myself for a long time - I did it before I went out. I wanted to get a starting weight. I won't be doing it again for awhile, it was too depressing!

Just a warning for anyone who is reading this and thinking of doing something similar - if you are going to go cold turkey, as I am, be aware that there are side effects, like with any withdrawal. Aside from the craving - which I am actually embracing, because by ignoring it, I feel like I am taking back the power that sugar has over me - there is also headaches and tiredness, due to the body being used to processing high amounts of pure energy. It will take a little while to reset. I have also found it difficult to sleep - sometimes due to cravings, but mostly I'm just awake, I guess that my brain is all screwy because of the changes.

I guess I'm kinda lucky that at the moment I am unemployed, so I don't have to deal with all this as well as a job:)

[astralsuzy]

My goodness, you get side effects from not having sugar or enough sugar. I have never heard of that. Perhaps you should see a doctor.

[Asrais]

It's pretty normal to have withdrawals - same as if you drink too much coffee and then suddenly stop. Suddenly, your body has to work for its energy and until it gets used to that, you have side effects.

http://howtothinkthin.com/freedom.htm - if you google it, there are many more sites about sugar withdrawal.

If you can't deal with the side effects, it is recommended that you gradually reduce the amount of sugar you have in your diet, but I'm not good at doing things gradually, that is why I choose to go cold turkey.

Today the headache is gone and I feel pretty good, so I guess a couple of days is all it takes, along with eating well and drinking lots and lots of water:)

[Kaldorei]

I struggled with sugar addiction as well. However, I have recently found a great subsitute and I cannot tell a difference. STEVIA!!! I love it. I comes in loads of different flavors so if you want to spice up water its great!

At first when I quit sugar I did expericence withdrawls and such which was hard. However, I have found that I think clearer and I am not as sluggish as before (mind you I didnt think i was sluggish before but I notice a huge difference). I actually feel motivated to excerise now. haha.

Here is a link regarding some a study that I found regarding sugar addiction and how it is compared to a drug addiction: http://articles.nydailynews.com/2008-12-12/entertainment/17912875_1_sugar-dopamine-sweet-addiction


Anyway, I understand your stuggle and wish you the best.

:hug:

[Spiritlite]

I love your journal on giving up sweets. You are helping people with it. Bless you

[Asrais]

It's been a week. I feel pretty good, so far. I still crave sugar - but it's under control - like a little mosquito in my ear, annoying, but bearable.

I am eating small meals, very often - keeping to low GI foods (foods that release their energy slowly, thus having less affect on the blood sugar). Some things I have found helpful are eating slowly, and eating just one type of food item, eg, protien or carbs, in a sitting.

Also, usually before bed, I have some tea and biscuits - and i found that with out them, I was hungry going to bed, so I have found that having a little protein works really well, like a handful of nuts.

Thanks to everyone who reads this - writing it has really helped me along so far. I hate to fail, so knowing there are people keeping an eye on me is great motivation!!

[astralsuzy]

Sounds great. You are doing well.

[Tanith]

I grow an herb/bush called Stevia, or "sweet leaf" and sometimes use it as a sugar substitute. Not only does it help curb sweet tooth cravings (not so much in the summer, as it gets sweeter as the weather gets cooler) it is an antibacterial, and can be used for colds, sore throats, etc. I read that it is also supposed to be a fair weight loss aid because the body absorbs no calories from it.

[Asrais]

I feel great today -it's stopped raining for the first time in a week, so I'm gonna go for a walk.

I've noticed that since I gave up sugar, I haven't had any indigestion - usually, I get it every time I eat, so that is a definite health improvement.

Tomorrow is shopping day again, which will be tough. It will be tempting to do the "Oh, I've been good all week, so a little treat won't do any harm" but I don't think I'm ready yet. I feel like one little slip up will set me back to the beginning again.

[Uma]

What does "GI" stand for?:confused:

[Silver]

I believe it's Glucose Index.

[Asrais]

Glycemic index - its related to how quickly a food releases energy into your body. If a food has a high GI rating it creates a spike in your blood sugar levels, there for an energy spike and immediate crash, leaving you hungry and craving more sugar. High GI foods include refined white flour products, food that is high in sugar and fruit juices.
If a food has a low GI rating it releases its energy slowly. Your blood sugar stays stable and you feel full for longer and don't get cravings. Some low GI foods take more calories to digest than they contain, so that is an added bonus. Low GI foods include things like wholewheat bread, apples (and most whole fruit) and wholewheat pasta.

[Asrais]

It seems, every day I feel better and better! If this is as a result of no sugar, then it is the best thing I have ever done!

I feel more energetic than I have since, well, I don't remember ever feeling this energetic! I feel like I could jog around the block - in fact, I might!

Who knew! I always thought sugar was meant to be a pleasure, something that gives you energy. I was aware of the whole spike and crash effect, but I never realized how depressed it was making me feel!

My tip for today - have a mug of hot water with a slice of lemon in the morning instead of coffee - it kick starts your metabolism, detoxes your body and acts as an alkaline in your body, helping with digestion issues.

[Asrais]

http://www.lurj.org/article.php/vol1n1/sugar.xml - interesting article

[Asrais]

I had a really good weekend - stuck to my no sugar, no chocolate, low GI foods, so I am proud of myself for that. On Saturday, I would have sold my own arm for a chocolate bar, but I didn't give in. Instead, my and hubbie went for a walk.

On Sunday we went walking on the beach, I even managed to jog for a few minutes. When we got home I spent the rest of the day working in the garden, so plenty of exercise there too.

I was brave enough to weigh myself on Sunday - I've lost 2.4 kilo! So, I'm really happy with that.

[Asrais]

Yesterday was really tough! I guess, I've come down from my full moon induced high!
I had cravings all day and sheer will power kept me from getting in the car and going for chocolate. It is good that I didn't have any temptation in the house, because I would have given in for sure.

Don't know if today will be any better...

[astralsuzy]

You are doing well. There are days when it is harder not to resist not to eat chocolate. I can relate to you. I have been there. I would go to the supermarket and buy a block of chocolate and a packet of marshmellows and a few other sweet things as well. I would finish it off within a few days. Thank goodness I do not do that anymore. If I get in one of those sugar moods I might have a handful of raisons or almonds. That will keep me on track and then I will wait for lunch.
I rarely crave for sugar now. I am very used to eating healthy food and when I have something sweet when I have finished eating it, I think why did I eat that. I would rather eat something healthy or have nothing at all.
Good luck, just keep persevering and you will get there. It just takes time.

[Asrais]

It is the middle of week 3 - week 2 was really tough, I was miserable and short tempered, but I didn't give in. So far I've lost 3.5kg - I would have liked to see my weight come down quicker, but I guess that's life. This week has been better and I'm starting to feel I'm over the worst of it.

My mum is coming to visit us just after Christmas, so I've set myself a new target. I have approximately 25kg to loose to be at my perfect weight and mum will be here in 18 weeks - so the target is to loose 1kg per week with the hopes of loosing a bit more on the side. Healthy weight loss is between 1 - 1.5 kg per week, so it is a reasonable target.

To reach my target, I am maintaining my low GI diet, but also counting calories, keeping to about 1200 calories per day. My life at the moment is fairly sedentary so that should be sufficient. I am exercising every day and have even started jogging. Well, I walk a bit then jog a bit then walk some more - eventually my fitness will improve and I will go for proper runs.

I am a little nervous, approaching weeks 4 and 5 of my new eating plan. Apparently, most new healthy lifestyles fail during these weeks - so I'll have to stay focused...

[Asrais]

It is now week, erm, 5 I think - I've lost count!

Basically, my new healthy regime is now just routine - I don't think so much about it anymore, which is great.

So far I have lost 5kg (about 10lbs) and I am steadily losing about .5kg a week. I hope to up that a bit, so I have been doing more exercise - my lovely hubbie has been doing strength training with me, because I haven't got the motivation to do it by myself.
My stomach, where I carry most of my weight has reduced from 45inches to 38inches and I have lost a total of about 17 inches all together and dropped a dress size.

More importantly than all that, my depression is completely gone - I haven't had a down day since the first week I started. I would highly recommend anyone that suffers from mild depression to try cutting out sugar and refined carbs from their diet.

My body image has improved greatly too - even though I still have 20kg to lose, I look in the mirror and see the things that I like, rather than those that I don't and I'm looking forward to buying myself all new clothes when I reach my goal weight! I have even been planning a night out dancing with my girlfriends, which I would never do before because I've been so self conscious and depressed.

It really has changed my life...

[Uma]

Asrais - wow, this is really inspiring! Keep it up! :headbang:

[NightSpirit]

This is seriously out of my depth. I've only ever had to struggle to put on weight. I dont have a sugar addiction but, like us all, i have other addictions.
This post isnt going anywhere and doesnt help you at all. I just know that addictions are never an easy thing to deal with.

[Asrais]

Almost the end of week 9. I've lost 9kg and over 64cm altogether from my bust, waist, hips and tummy.

I'm still not where I want to be, probably another 15kg to go, but I am steadily loosing about 1kg a week - I have slow weeks, where I loose only a little, but it averages out at 1 a week. Its good steady weightloss, so hopefully it will stay off.

I think I am over the hurdle of the sugar addiction - if I see a sugar snack while I'm out, I still want it, but the though of reversing all my hard work is more than enough to convince me it's not worth it! I have been out to lunch a few times and have mananged to stick to my heathy eating - this is something I have been worried about, because with my mum coming to visit at Christmas, I will have to eat out more often - she loves coffee shops, eats lots of cake and never gains weight. I'll be ok though, I refuse to go back to the sluggish, depressed, fat old me and no piece of cake will convince me otherwise!!