Can't seem to give up sweets and sugary carbs?

[Lex]

.
It may be that your brain chemicals are activated in the same way they would be if you were addicted to cocaine or heroine.

Kind of scary, if you think about it.

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. . . the scientists suspect that sweets like drugs can activate an “incentive system” in the brain that helps reinforce behaviors. Activation by food is generally beneficial. It makes us want more and keeps us alive. Sweets, however, packed with calories, may create extra activity that helped us in primitive times when food was scarce, but is not needed today. Some also believe that gorging on sweets may alter the system so that it caters to addiction rather than survival, propelling some people to repeatedly binge.

Recent behavioral tests in rats further back the idea of an overlap between sweets and drugs. Drug addiction often includes three steps. A person will increase his intake of the drug, experience withdrawal symptoms when access to the drug is cut off and then face an urge to relapse back into drug use. Rats on sugar have similar experiences. Researchers withheld food for 12 hours and then gave rats food plus sugar water. This created a cycle of binging where the animals increased their daily sugar intake until it doubled. When researchers either stopped the diet or administered an opioid blocker the rats showed signs common to drug withdrawal, such as teeth-chattering and the shakes. Early findings also indicate signs of relapse. Rats weaned off sugar repeatedly pressed a lever that previously dispensed the sweet solution.

http://apu.sfn.org/content/Publications/BrainBriefings/sugar.html

[borlis]

1. I have heard that drinking diet soda will actually

make you crave sweets. I am not sure if it's the Nutrasweet or not, but when I heard this it does kind of make sense.

[Sugarbleus]

2. I've said for a long time that Sugar is addicting...

It has been for me at least. Hence, my handle "Sugarbleus".

I started on the sweets when I quit drinking back in 1985. H was into sweets all along; I had never held that particular craving. Mine up to that time was salty stuff.

So Hubby with his chocolate thing going on started to get to me as well. THEN I quit smoking in the late 80's and the sugary eats went through the roof!

To this day, I CRAVE something sweet...preferably chocolate, but anything will do in a pinch. I cannot rest, I cannot sleep...I'm inconsolable when there is ZERO sweets in the house.

I can go all day long without it but when evening comes AND even after a full meal, I start looking for sweets to calm me down.

It's HORRIBLE. I eat regular meals (but not on a regular schedule) then gorge on sweets aftewards. I hate to cook, I have pain and mobility problems which inhibit my desire to STAND at a stove; my doc yells at me to eat breakfast and three squares so my metabolism bumps up. If I make a single serving meal for everyone, I still go for the sweets afterwards. I tried eating MORE food to fill my stomach but it doesn't work..I still crave those sweets. I'm very overweight and HAVE to reduce PDQ. Isn't there anything, any supplement, any medicine anything?? that can curb the sweets cravings??? It would be a life saver for me. :(

Help! SB

[Eloriel]

3. I lost my craving for sweets

by following the South Beach Diet religiously. I had no cravings from Day 1, and went on to lose 31 lbs. between Jun 18 and September last year.

Then I hit a plateau for basically the whole month of September and as someone who doesn't like to cook anyway (okay, I HATE it), I got a little bored with the whole "diet" thing, and slipped into maintenance mode. I was doing fine with that -- not losing, but not gaining and for the most part following the diet principles but more relaxedly. But then I quit smoking on Dec. 10 and my food (sugar) addiction flared up like you wouldn't believe (so I can definitely, definitely sympathize).

I am still dealing with the "addiction" issue -- but the diet is still the best, IMO, for dealing with sugar cravings.

Bascially, you eat enough protein and VEGETABLES, vegetables, vegetables that you keep your blood sugar at a nice even keel, which is precisely what's required.

The first 2 weeks are a little tough: NO SUGAR AT ALL, NO FRUIT and NO GRAINS, but after that you go to Phase 2 which is considerably easier.

I recommend it highly, and there are a couple of discussion groups on the internet which are VERY helpful (new recipes, tips, answers to your questions, morale support, etc.).

My one caution is this: I believe it needs to be a lifestyle change and not something to try to do for a period. I'd still be following it had I not had that little interruption. The author of the diet is a cardiiologist, and he's got some terrific info in the book which I think explains everything very well. It certainly helped me. Participants can count on improved cholesterol levels (both kinds), improved triglycerides, improved blood sugar and blood pressure -- and a nice, quick weight loss on Phase 1 and reasonably later.

But it's not an easy diet because sugar is in EVERYTHING (and that's why we need a diet to begin with -- the constant bombarding of our bodies and blood streams and pancreas with sugar! sugar! sugar! eventually causes the kind of metabolic imbalance that leads to obesity and the other problems (and even more, incl. cancer and Alzheimers). So that means we have to do a lot of food prep to avoid all those packaged foods which contain all that SUGAR.

Now, there are some other things that can help with cravings. There are herbs that help with blood sugar issues (stabilize them) and that should help, tho in MY case I've not noticed enough help when I needed them. I've also just finished quickly reading a book called "The Body Ecology Diet" and there are a number of things she mentioned in there that help with cravings. I'm going to go back thru to cull those.

The herb stevia is the best sugar substitute, IMO. The South Beach Diet allows some artificial sweeteners, but as someone else pointed out, at least for SOME people these stimulate sugar cravings, and I think they're poison besides. I'll not touch Splenda or NutraSweet. You can find stevia in little sugar packets or bulk mixed with a filler called FOS, or in a clear liquid or white powder. In these latter two cases, you use a very small amount because stevia is such a potent sweetener -- 1 tsp as the equivalent to 1 C sugar, for example. (I think that's the conversion rate.) There's another -- Lo Han??? -- I haven't tried it. Stevia is available in your local healthfood store. I use the NOW brand liquid and white powder.

Umeboshi plum paste is something that may help with cravings (I've used it that way in the past), but it's wild and NOT for the faint of heart. VERY salty and very sour, without an offsetting pleasant taste of any kind to go with that. You just take 1/8 of a tsp at a time. It's a Japanese product, and I'm sure it does wonderful things for you, but I'm not sure what. It probably helps disperse phlegm (mucous), among other things.

South Beach is wonderful and will really, really help with the carb cravings -- but you have to immerse yourself in it and follow it to a T for 2 weeks and after that Phase 2 is easier, more manageable.

Good luck!

[lavenderdiva]

4. What a fantastic result, Eloriel!

31lbs in 3 months! Amazing... I'm glad you found us over here; its always wonderful to read your posts, no matter what forum I'm in!! Check your PM, ok? :hi:

[Sugarbleus]

6. I for one am VERY glad I found this forum...lavenderdiva

I think this can be really exciting for me. Heck, we've got the latest political info along with specialty groups inside one place.

Whadda deal! :woohoo:

[lavenderdiva]

7. one stop 'shopping'! and a fantastic group of people to boot!! n/t

[Sugarbleus]

8. Indeed....

As an afterthought, I wanted to mention that we can come in here to help each other without having to pay enormous costs for online diet journals/groups...

I'm sending in some bucks to DU just because this setup is so wonderful!!!!

Happy happy joy joy... LOL

SB :hi:

[Sugarbleus]

5. Wow, Thanks El..

I've heard of stevia...then forgot about it. A friend of mine used it while doing the Atkins diet thingy.

I'll go look for it in healthfood store. I have been using nutrasweet in coffee and cereal. :hide:

Some years ago, before I got THIS big, I used weight watchers. It worked for me...........until STRESS happened. Bing batta boom, weight comes to visit again. Anyway, I do remember that once I started the diet plan, I eventually DID lose the craving for sugar! Takes time and patience of course. I best get started PDQ eh? lol

Mind you, I don't ever expect to get into a bikini again but going down a few dress sizes will be FABULOUSfor me :)

Thanks for the info and encouragement ((Eloriel))

Sugarbleuuuuuuus

[AlCzervik]

9. I've been on the South Beach diet for 8 days now and believe it not

at about day i stopped craving sugar, i won't lie the first few days were bordering on ugly but i'm glad i didn't give up because now i don't want it. I'm not saying it's permanent but right now it's working.

[Eloriel]

10. If you are very careful about managing your grains, fruit,

and the higher glycemic value veggies allowed on Phase 2, you can stay ahead of the curve. I know because I've been there.

But you do have to be careful. And committed. (I know because I've been there. :-( )