Sugar Addiction

[Jasminflower59]

I am in the grip of a sugar addiction after giving myself permission to eat pick n mix in huge quantities to get me through my dissertation. Fooled myself into thinking i could stop easily but no. Im interested to hear about how anyone here beat the sugar addiction, the withdrawals and has it been worth it? Thanks

[Catmad10]

That’s easy, I got diabetes. That put paid to my sweet tooth 🤪

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

I am even more interested Catmad. Was that the motivation you needed to cut out sugar?

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

It was a major contributor that’s for sure. I developed a taste for sweet fizzy drinks like San Pelligrino. I also kept stuffing jellybeans in my mouth plus biscuits, in fact anything sweet. This was not normal for me as generally I much preferred savoury . It turned out that this taste for sweet stuff was indicative of diabetes and the only way I found out was when I collapsed and was diagnosed as being on the cusp between type 1 and type 2. Now, and until I can reverse the diabetes (by helping my pancreas heal and produce enough insulin) too much sugar will probably kill me.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

Did you have to make major changes to your diet?

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

Absolutely, and I am enjoying the changes. Basically I’m following a healthy diet and eating a lot more veg. I cook as a stir fry flavoured with Chinese Five spice and balsamic vinegar (which I used by mistake as I reached for what I thought was soy sauce) it’s yummy. I also eat granary bread which is ok, as is butter and unbelievably peanut butter. Basically I’m following a GI/GL diet. As I get more used to the lifestyle change I have discovered that I can re introduce a whole variety of food but moderation is the key. The plus side is that healthy eating has boosted my energy level, my skin is glowing and my eyes are bright again. If I was a dog I’d have a cold wet nose and be wagging my tail 😄.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

Sounds like you have cracked it. Where would i find these GI/GL guidelines?

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

I have bought a pocket book from Amazon called GI &GL Counter by Dr Winnie Chan. It cost £3.99. It lists foods by type including popular takeaway dishes, snacks, sauces, dairy, rice and pasta to name just a few. Against each listed food it gives the GI and GL rating. For example most veg are low except white potatoes which are high and carrots which are medium. Anything which are high only have as a treat, medium eat in moderation and low is ok to eat. Raw sugars are surprisingly medium but refined sugars and sweeties are high. You’ll be pleasantly surprised at what you can eat.

I did google GI and GL but I got bored reading about it, I’m not a scientist. The book I’ve recommended gives a basic and adequate explanation of what GI and GL is and that’s enough for me.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

Thank you for this. Im so desperate to cut down/out sugary stuff AND lose weight. After yoyo dieting since i was 16 (soon to be 60!) my mind and self control is so messed up with all the do’s and don’ts, shoulds and shouldnts, that i dont know myself any more. I just know im out of control and need a set of guidelines to get me on the right path rather than a prescriptive ‘diet’. I will try this. 👍 thanks for your time here 😊

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

I sympathise with you Jasmin, in order for me to have a chance of reversing my diabetes I also need to lose a fair bit of weight. I remember the GI diet was all the rage twenty years ago and is a very effective way to lose weight. If you get the book then it becomes a no brainier, you can see exactly what you can eat guilt free, what you have to be careful of and what you can only eat as a special treat.

Keep in touch and let me know how you get on. By the way we are a similar age so face the same problems when it comes to losing weight.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

Ive just ordered the book 😊 will keep you posted

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

Great, good luck, I’ve just read your previous posts and it appears we both need to lose around 4 stone. Let’s do it together, we can encourage each other 😸

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

That is such a good idea 😁 will be in touch when ive got the book (Fri)

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

Have a look at it then pm me over the weekend and we can fix the start date for our diet. I would suggest weekly weigh-ins every Wednesday morning. I’m off to bed now so we’ll talk at the weekend or earlier. Night night. By the way, my name is Sue.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

👍 Cheryl. Night night

[PandQs in reply to Jasminflower59]

Cheryl and Sue, good luck to both of you. I’ve lost 3.5 stones since changing to LCHF way of eating. It stopped my cravings for sugar within weeks, and my hangry moments between meals. My inspiration to make the change was watching two videos on YouTube called The Skinny on Obesity Episodes 3 and 4 which explain insulin resistance and addiction to sugar. The rest of the series are well worth watching too.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to PandQs]

Did you get withdrawals? Did you go from loads to none or did you do it gradually?

[PandQs in reply to Jasminflower59]

I went from a low fat diet thinking things like bagels, dry toast, crumpets, baked potatoes, and jelly beans for treats would keep my weight, and became obese doing it. Straight to LCHF, loved it totally. I don’t recall any withdrawal symptoms like headaches, but maybe my now happy head and body have wiped out any memory of temporary discomfort. I now love eating butter, cream and cheese, eggs, bacon etc. Haven’t had a cake, biscuit or sweet since last July and haven’t missed them. I occasionally have 100% chocolate as a treat, but went through Christmas and Easter without any real problem, just stayed focused on the benefits I was achieving. Now addicted to trying on smaller size clothes instead :))

[WebMistress IF Star in reply to Catmad10]

Oooh I haven't heard of the GI diet. I need to look into this! ♡

[Catmad10 in reply to WebMistress]

When you’ve investigated let me know what you think.

[Jasminflower59 in reply to Catmad10]

Will do. There's some interesting resources being offered here. I'm going to look at these later. I'm off on a spa day today with daughter. She's very fit and looking to do fitness stuff in the gym. Not me, I want a flipping rest! Cx

[Catmad10 in reply to Jasminflower59]

I’m off to see a friend who has just had a quadruple heart bypass surgery. I’m taking over salad stuff and cooked chicken. Have a great day at the spa, I’ve never had a spa day but I hear you get pampered and can relax. 😄

[Kai--]

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Douglas Lisle explains how we break 'The Pleasure Trap' — sugar addiction 🍬🍭 🍫 or whatever our ‘temptation’ is, Jasminflower59 & Catmad10 — if this interests you: healthunlocked.com/nras/pos...

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m.youtube.com/watch?v=jX2bt...(Not working as expected?)

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Yes, absolutely worth it. Be patient 😌 🙏 & loving 🥰 with yourself. Allow yourself time 🕰 📆 🗓 . If/ when you lapse, forgive yourself & move on. Try & try again. Yes, you CAN absolutely do it, Jasminflower59 & Catmad10! ☺️ 🙏 🍀 🌺 🌞

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[WebMistress IF Star]

That list of foods you listed are the same I love to eat for fats. Yum!

[Eternity6]

It for me is the one of the hardest addictions ever only for three months did I manage it , I darent even admit how many bars of choc I was consuming for years n years after death of my mum I went into overdrive, then along came Easter I was given n Easter egg n once again the choc crave started n I’m fighting a battle again not as much as before only 3 bars of choc a day now, but still not good, I could kick myself as for the 3 months I was eating very little sugar my health improved n I lost weight , so I’m back to square one, I will do it again but everyday is a real battle I do not drink or smoke, I will add I do not need councilling over the death of my mum , I’m in a happy place but realised it was a habit forming thing

[HOBIEONE]

Should Read FOOD Addiction.

[amykp]

For me, moderation was difficult...it was too easy to slip: "just a teeny bit more!" I went cold turkey. The line was simple, black and white. I went from too much to none at all. In the beginning that even meant no fruit, no "taste" of anything.

The way I did it was to allow myself artificial sweeteners--splenda and stevia and erythritol (and there's a new one, allulose.) I didn't go crazy with them, partly because I'm not sure how healthy they are (tho I am convinced they are thousands times better than sugar) and also because they just don't taste as good. But they helped so much with cravings. I know not everyone agrees with this but it worked for me!

Eventually you really do lose your sweet tooth. I still use artificial sweeteners occasionally, but much less.

Also, the whole low sugar thing was part of a low carb high fat diet. It was easier to give up sugar in my coffee when i drank it with heavy cream.

PS--lost 60 lbs this way, and kept it off!

[BridgeGirl]

“all carbohydrate is sugar to our body “ - what a neat, concise way of putting it 😊