Addicted to S U G A R

When you’re depressed, you cope with sugar. When life calls for a celebrate, you celebrate with dessert (aka sugar). Sugar has become the quick fix to deal with all of our feelings and problems. This is because sugar stimulates the "feel-good" chemicals serotonin and dopamine in our brain.  The problem is that sugar is highly addictive, as dramatic falls or spikes in our blood sugar affect the part of our brain controlling impulse. This leads to impulsive binging, irritability, and cravings for unhealthy sugary foods.

Research has shown that sugar is an addictive toxin. Today, the average sugar intake in North America is roughly 22-24 teaspoons per day, which is four times the amount that the World Health Organization suggests is healthy. This excess sugar contributes to a laundry list of health conditions including diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure.
 
One of the most noticeable and rapid effects of sugar is weight gain. When we eat refined sugar, our bodies break it down into glucose and fructose. Fructose not only activates processes in your body that make you store fat, but the high supply of glucose exceeds our energy demand, which again becomes stored as fat by the liver.

Why do we crave sugar?
Sugar addictions can be triggered by several underlying causes and can signify the presence of an existing health problem or condition. Some of these potential underlying causes include:

Adrenal overload or tiredness – Because your body can convert sugar into energy so quickly, eating sugar gives your body a fast and temporary boost of energy. Often when we crave sweets we really just need fuel.
Hormones – Women experiencing menopause as well as those who experience PMS, often crave sweets before menstruation. This is because hormonal fluctuations can trigger strong cravings for quick energy provided by sweets.
Depression and anxiety – Many people seek sugary foods when they experience certain emotions and develop an emotional connection with sweets. Sugar makes you ‘feel good’ temporarily before it causes you to crash, and consequently crave more.
Candida – Candida is a yeast that grows in your intestines due to an imbalance in gut flora. Candida feeds off sugar which causes you to crave refined carbohydrates and refined sugars. This in turn causes ‘bad’ bacteria overgrowth which causes several digestive problems.
Taste – The simple fact is sugar tastes good. People enjoy eating it because the truth is, it’s delicious.

So how do you kick refined sugar to the curb?

1. Eat often:  To curb sugar cravings that occur from low energy, spread out meals and ensure they include complex carbohydrates and/or protein. This helps to balance your blood sugar, and will help to lessen the cravings you experience.
2. Eat fruit: Many people crave sweet foods. Eating healthier sweet options like fruit (i.e. a bowl of berries, frozen grapes or dark chocolate dipped banana pops, or a few pieces of dried fruit) can help. Fruits do contain sugars as well (although are much healthier) so don’t overdo it, or pair it with a healthy fat (like nuts or nut butters) to blunt blood sugar increases.
3. Bump up the Fiber: Fiber swells and helps you to feel full and satiated which will decrease your cravings for foods.
   Exercise: When you feel the cravings beginning, go for a walk. Exercise not only gets you out of the kitchen and away from the temptations but has also been shown to reduce cravings.
4. Drink water: Sometimes cravings can just mean that what your body really needs is water. Drink a glass of water and wait 15 minutes before indulging. Chances are the cravings will have subsided. If you have a hard time drinking water try infusing it with berries, cucumbers, lemons and/or mint.
5. It’s just a craving: When you feel a sugar craving come on, really stop and think about it. Is it an emotional problem or stress that triggered you? Are you really hungry or did you eat recently? Sugar is not going to fix your problem, in fact it will just cause more. Often it’s just your mind trying to convince you that you need sugar, you’d be surprised how many cravings disappear when you step back and assess or wait a while.
6. Retrain Your Taste Buds: You really don’t need as much sugar as you think. The fast food industry and many prepared food suppliers hit what is called a sugar “bliss point” to keep you hooked on their food. Start putting less in your beverages, cutting down in your recipes and avoiding products with added sugar and your taste buds will adapt.
   Use Natural Sweeteners: Not artificial sweeteners, as these are filled with chemicals and actually contribute to cravings, weight gain and allergies. Using natural sweeteners such as Stevia or Coconut Sugar does not spike your blood sugar the same way table sugar does. In addition, small amounts of pure organic maple syrup or honey are also much better options as they contain many beneficial nutrients while providing you with the sweet flavour you’re craving.