My Fight Against Sugar

[bigedshult]

Sugar can be addictive just like anything else so try to control your addiction. If you need help with that talk to your doctor and he can get someone to help you with that craving. In craving is hard to control so you need all the support and help you can get you have a baby I hope you were married and your husband can help you by encourage  not to eat so much sugar. If you had typed to DIB is with the baby bear watch out you could keep it. My wife had to decide to diabetes when she is pregnant with our last two children and after the second one it diabetes type II diabetes state aid. In she has it today that was over 30 years ago. It is no fun being a diabetic when you have to have is the shots every day

[Screwedupclick4life337]

Good luck trying to avoid the sugar

[PGS28]

Tere2 I know the feeling! lol I try to look at sugar now as disguised diabetes- looking all delicious and irresistible but causing so much havoc to the body, teeth, AND skin lol  But a certain level of sugar is still necessary (you don't want to have low sugar blood levels), so don't beat yourself up for indulging a little.

bigedshult The next time I speak with my doc I'll bring it up. Thanks for the suggestion, I'd never thought of that. Also thanks for the heads up about Type 2 diabetes still being present, my prayers to your wife and kids.

Thanks ScrewedUp.  I'm actually not avoiding, just limiting

Guys I just want to remind you of the importance of reading the labels on the foods we eat.  Yesterday I wanted a protein shake, and just out of curiosity looked at the sugars- 22 grams!!! Then I looked at the sugars on whip cream and not only was the whip cream lower in calories but it also only had 2 grams of sugar per serving, and one serving is 2 tablespoons, which is a nice amount.  Read the labels.

Good luck trying to avoid the sugar

[bholmes618]

Sugar addiction is absolutely real.  I know of the risks and it causes me pain and I STILL indulged in it heavily.  I did some research yesterday and I'll share a few of the tips I found:

brush your teeth to get a sweet taste in your mouth
try fruits instead of sweet
drink water and make sure you are eating regularly and enough vitamins (sugar cravings signify a vitamin deficit)

Hope this helps!

I have always been a sugar addict (even though I have read a lot of articles that say that there's no such thing). I can cut almost anything else out of my diet and not miss it but not sugar. I would be a lot healthier without it. I wish there was a fool proof plan to stay away from it.

Any particular vitamin or just in general?

[paints]

I used to eat a lot of sweets, especially chocolate, and I craved raspberry filled donuts.
I started eating (organic)apples with peanut butter or apples with cheese as a snack instead.
I stopped drinking diet sodas or anything diet, because of the artificial sweeteners.

Most everything I eat is organic, non gmo.

I take chia seeds for energy and to help lower my bp. Chia is also supposed to be good for diabetes.

[diala84]

I have found that stevia has helped a lot. I combine sugar and stevia to make different baked goods to eat. At first I would use more sugar than stevia and over time I started using mostly stevia. Pure Agave nectar is also a good option as long as you make sure they don't sneak other sugars into it. You don't have to get rid of everything sweet you just have to chose the right options. High fructose corn syup, cane sugar and simple carbs all do terrible things to your health. I was also told by a dentist that xylitol was good for fighting tooth decay because the bacteria in your mouth can't use it as a food source. xylitol is in some gums and I believe it can also even be purchased on its own.   

Some supplements that have helped me are milk thistle (detox the liver), a probiotic blend supplement, a greens drink in the morning. I feel much more energized and have fewer cravings. 

[gwendolynconrad]

Try not to eat starches food such as rice and potatoes and sweets

[Jenai123]

I find the more fruit I eat the hungrier I am. I think it's because of the natural sugars in them. Also, bread and pasta because carbs convert to sugar in your body. I try to stick to low fat meats and veggies and whole grains like barley.

[kat112073]

I crave sugar and lately I've been eating it far too much.  I now have a couple of cavities and I still eat it. When I was pregnant I had type 2 diabetes but it supposedly went away after my pregnancy so I didn't worry about it.  I'm not having complications now related to diabetes, but my toothache recently spread to my head and caused me to have a headache and that's when I knew I had to do better.

I am declaring a personal war against foods loaded with sugar.  I recently went from 167 to 136 and since March 14 have adopted a healthier lifestyle but I've never been able to control the cravings.  I'm going to treat this addiction as it is- an addiction.  This post will be a reminder of my goal.

To arm myself I:
posted a note on my fridge that says "Sweets Carry:  Tooth decay, Diabetes, Empty calories"
posted this thread to remind myself of my goal
performed research on what causes cravings, how to fight them, and healthy alternatives

Hope this helps someone else, good day FC!

[Delphyne]

Tere2 I know the feeling! lol I try to look at sugar now as disguised diabetes- looking all delicious and irresistible but causing so much havoc to the body, teeth, AND skin lol  But a certain level of sugar is still necessary (you don't want to have low sugar blood levels), so don't beat yourself up for indulging a little.

bigedshult The next time I speak with my doc I'll bring it up. Thanks for the suggestion, I'd never thought of that. Also thanks for the heads up about Type 2 diabetes still being present, my prayers to your wife and kids.

Thanks ScrewedUp.  I'm actually not avoiding, just limiting

Guys I just want to remind you of the importance of reading the labels on the foods we eat.  Yesterday I wanted a protein shake, and just out of curiosity looked at the sugars- 22 grams!!! Then I looked at the sugars on whip cream and not only was the whip cream lower in calories but it also only had 2 grams of sugar per serving, and one serving is 2 tablespoons, which is a nice amount.  Read the labels.

Good luck trying to avoid the sugar

I have to agree.  It is vitally important to read labels when a person is trying to avoid sugar.  I had bought a garlic butter sauce that I was assuming (wrongly) would be rich in fats and low in sugars.  Well, I had not read the label.  It was not real butter - it was soy oil.  And it was loaded with high fructose corn syrup.  *sigh*

This is why I try to cook from scratch whenever possible.  I usually make my own sauce, but didn't want to this time. 

This is especially important for people following an Atkin's or Ketogenic diet.  So many foods contain sugars. 

[alice44]

A LOT of us can identify with your battle.  I know it i an addiction, because if I stay away from it - I don't crave it.  Water, fruit and brushing your teeth are great ideas.  I think they all work.  Right now, I am going to go brush my teeth 

[Azanne07]

I battle with an sugar addiction too. I count my calories everday and remind myself everyday how much healthier I could be without the sugar and what I could accomplish with my life if I didn't consume as much

[PGS28]

bholmes618 I don't remember my research saying sweet cravings were a result of the absense of any one vitamins, I think it was speaking in general in terms of making sure the body gets the overall proper nutrition it needs in order to avoid such cravings. I'll look it up later, and if I find out otherwise I'll let you know.  Thanks for asking!

paints This is my first time hearing of Chia, I'll look that up in a minute.  I'd also thought about going organic but for some reason let go of that notion.  I'm thinking about it again now.  I kicked soda in 09, I stopped craving it years ago.

diala84 I feel like I hit a gold mine with your post lol Thanks for all the info.

Jenai123 I just recently became aware of the natural sugars in fruit

Delphyne I agree that making food from scratch is the best way to control what you eat.

alice44 I have this same sentiment with sunflower seeds and cashew nuts.  I literally have to stay away from them because I have found out the hard way they are a hunger trigger for me.

Azanne07 Hello fellow calorie counter! lol What is your daily maximum?  Mine is 1,000 and I know that's 200 below the recommended daily consumption but I lowered it because I don't limit myself on anything except oil, meat, and sugar and a lot of the foods I eat is considered unhealthy.

I battle with an sugar addiction too. I count my calories everday and remind myself everyday how much healthier I could be without the sugar and what I could accomplish with my life if I didn't consume as much

[Delphyne]

bholmes618 I don't remember my research saying sweet cravings were a result of the absense of any one vitamins, I think it was speaking in general in terms of making sure the body gets the overall proper nutrition it needs in order to avoid such cravings. I'll look it up later, and if I find out otherwise I'll let you know.  Thanks for asking!

paints This is my first time hearing of Chia, I'll look that up in a minute.  I'd also thought about going organic but for some reason let go of that notion.  I'm thinking about it again now.  I kicked soda in 09, I stopped craving it years ago.

diala84 I feel like I hit a gold mine with your post lol Thanks for all the info.

Jenai123 I just recently became aware of the natural sugars in fruit

Delphyne I agree that making food from scratch is the best way to control what you eat.

alice44 I have this same sentiment with sunflower seeds and cashew nuts.  I literally have to stay away from them because I have found out the hard way they are a hunger trigger for me.

Azanne07 Hello fellow calorie counter! lol What is your daily maximum?  Mine is 1,000 and I know that's 200 below the recommended daily consumption but I lowered it because I don't limit myself on anything except oil, meat, and sugar and a lot of the foods I eat is considered unhealthy.

I battle with an sugar addiction too. I count my calories everday and remind myself everyday how much healthier I could be without the sugar and what I could accomplish with my life if I didn't consume as much

We went totally organic.  If you want a good reason to do so, watch "The World According to Monsanto".  It is a documentary that is available to view online on some sites, I think. 

Organic foods also tend to have less pesticide residue.  There are many veggies we can truly taste a difference with.  Cucumbers are the biggest.  I can tell by taste alone if a cucumber is organic or genetically modified.   Rice is another example.  There is some rice that it is being genetically modified with human DNA. 

[almorin]

I have been doing good at avoiding processed sugar.  I have started a 90 day weight loss plan and looking at reaching my weight loss goals.  Avoiding excess calaries that is devoid of nutrition is essential if I am to reach my weight loss goals.  Processed sugar certainly wrecks havoc with not only ones weight loss efforts but also a persons general all round (overall) health as this forum topic points out.

Wishing all well in their own fights against addictions and their desires to be healthier!