Addiction & Recovery

Stuart G

(38,726 posts) Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:25 PM Mar 2022

An addiction rarely discussed..Yes, I have it ."SUGAR" in COOKIES AND CANDY..Should we discuss it?

NOT NATURAL SUGAR...BUT PROCESSED FOODS LIKE COOKIES AND OTHER TREATS THAT HAVE IT ADDED

"Sugar that’s added to processed foods is much more harmful to your health than the natural sugar in whole foods like fruits and vegetables....: (from a discussion on dangers of sugar)....and I crave it sometimes.....

But this is an addiction forum ...and this is ...my current addiction..& I love sugar

(and have loved it as long as I can remember... I bought ice cream 2 days ago..

(I just found out that a large glass of Orange Juice fulfills my sugar needs for an entire day..After that, all
is extra and possibly harmful. depends how much)

11 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

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An addiction rarely discussed..Yes, I have it ."SUGAR" in COOKIES AND CANDY..Should we discuss it? (Original Post) Stuart G Mar 2022 OP

I've heard quitting sugar is harder than giving up cigarettes. MLAA Mar 2022 #1

I believe there was a study with rats a number of years ago: which was fierywoman Mar 2022 #6

Try Monkfruit Sweetener DanieRains Mar 2022 #2

Keto diet. After a couple of weeks I lost interest in sweet things. Ocelot II Mar 2022 #3

I did keto for a couple years blueinredohio Mar 2022 #10

I love sugar too! Chainfire Mar 2022 #4

I think it has been shown that people who give up alcohol then start eating more sugar. fierywoman Mar 2022 #7

On my Reddit alcohol forums, person after person talks of sugar cravings irisblue Mar 2022 #8

So .. basically you were going keto? Cool! fierywoman Mar 2022 #9

Not so much as formal keto, I suspect I was some vitamin/mineral/nutrient I was deficient in. irisblue Mar 2022 #11

lots of good information on subject..... markie Mar 2022 #5

MLAA

(18,653 posts)

1. I've heard quitting sugar is harder than giving up cigarettes.

Reply to Stuart G (Original post)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:28 PM

Mar 2022

fierywoman

(8,123 posts)

6. I believe there was a study with rats a number of years ago: which was

Reply to MLAA (Reply #1)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:59 PM

Mar 2022

harder for them to give up, sugar or heroin. In that study it was easier to give up heroin. So, have courage everyone!

DanieRains

(4,619 posts)

2. Try Monkfruit Sweetener

Reply to Stuart G (Original post)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:29 PM

Mar 2022

As sweet as sugar, and zero calories.

All natural.

I haven't had sugar in years.

KETO diet.

Ocelot II

(121,220 posts)

3. Keto diet. After a couple of weeks I lost interest in sweet things.

Reply to Stuart G (Original post)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:32 PM

Mar 2022

And after a year, a lot of weight.

blueinredohio

(6,797 posts)

10. I did keto for a couple years

Reply to Ocelot II (Reply #3)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 03:19 PM

Mar 2022

but still had sugar cravings.

Chainfire

(17,757 posts)

4. I love sugar too!

Reply to Stuart G (Original post)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:42 PM

Mar 2022

I always have. The older I get the more I indulge myself. Something else will kill me before the candy will.

A little off subject, but related; I have noticed, anecdotally of course, that people who crave sugar also crave alcohol. I am a long term (25 years) dry recovering alcoholic. (I never went to any meetings, so I may have just been a drunk instead of an alcoholic) I have seen the connection too many times to blow it off as coincidence. I wonder if there has ever been a study that links the two addictions, or if I am just full of it....

fierywoman

(8,123 posts)

7. I think it has been shown that people who give up alcohol then start eating more sugar.

Reply to Chainfire (Reply #4)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 03:00 PM

Mar 2022

irisblue

(34,367 posts)

8. On my Reddit alcohol forums, person after person talks of sugar cravings

Reply to fierywoman (Reply #7)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 03:10 PM

Mar 2022

Some use sugar foods to get off the alcohol, many report, after a week or so, increased sweet cravings.

My first 2 weeks of sobriety, I wanted green salads with baked or grilled chicken breasts on top. I got a lot of veggies in a lot of salads.

fierywoman

(8,123 posts)

9. So .. basically you were going keto? Cool!

Reply to irisblue (Reply #8)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 03:18 PM

Mar 2022

irisblue

(34,367 posts)

11. Not so much as formal keto, I suspect I was some vitamin/mineral/nutrient I was deficient in.

Reply to fierywoman (Reply #9)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 03:22 PM

Mar 2022

About 3 weeks in, I realized that I needed to do at least a multi vit.

markie

(22,937 posts)

5. lots of good information on subject.....

Reply to Stuart G (Original post)

Sat Mar 19, 2022, 02:52 PM

Mar 2022

always easier said than done... keep away from processed food but, that's why they call it addiction

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/246273/hooked-by-michael-moss/

if you don't have a paywall...
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/12/books/review/hooked-michael-moss.html

HOOKED
Food, Free Will, and How the Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions
By Michael Moss

As an entree to Michael Moss’s excellent new book, “Hooked: Food, Free Will, and How the Food Giants Exploit Our Addictions,” try this experiment. Imagine or — even better — place two bowls in front of you: one with potato chips; the other with whole walnuts. Make sure they are both good quality brands and fresh from a never-opened bag. Sample a walnut first. Enjoy how its initial slightly bitter crunch transforms into something soft, buttery, faintly woodsy. Next munch a potato chip. Its flavor is less complex than the walnut’s, but every chip instantly delivers an intense combination of salt, sugar and fat. They are so crispy you can hear them snap between your teeth, and then they miraculously dissolve into nothingness on your tongue, making you want another. And another. And another......

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