“Hi, my name is Ada and i’m a sugar addict!” – that’s how my introduction would sound like if I joined an sugarholic anonymous group :-P.

I’m laughing but it’s not really funny. Sugar addiction, in my opinion, is one of the most awful addictions one can have, just like alcohol and drugs. And even worse, we are not really aware of our daily sugar intake because it is hidden in almost every food product you can buy in the supermarkets.

Do you know that huge craving, those very often moments when you feel like you must have something sweet NOW? Do you know those days when you know you have a Nutella jar in the house and you wake up at night just to have another spoon of that sweet chocolate cream? THAT WAS ME! And i’m going to be honest, in those moments I never thought I could ever have self control, because every time I tried not to have a dessert just for one day, the next day I was binge eating all the chocolate I could found in the house. And then I would go buy some more.

Meanwhile I gathered deeper understanding about nutrition and I learned how to calm down my uncontrollable cravings and I actually managed to get rid of this addiction.

Let me tell you what I learned 😉

What is SUGAR?

The refined sugar and his relatives you can find in the supermarkets are a source of pure energy. When consumed, it causes our blood sugar levels to spike and then drop very fast. Those are the moments when you feel that desperate craving again and that is how you create a vicious circle. The refined sugar and his relatives have absolutely NO NUTRITIONAL VALUE and NO BENEFIT what so ever. Instead, it teaches the body not to use the fat deposit and also, store more of it.

Having a sweet tooth from time to time is normal, especially for us women ;-). But huge sugar cravings are a signal that something is wrong and unfortunately, most of us ignore this signal and mute it with another chocolate. If you have an uncontrollable sugar craving, you need to understand that this is your body trying to shout that it needs a change and you better listen to it if you want to have a good health.

What is the body trying to tell us and why we shouldn’t consume sugar?

Your big sugar cravings have multiple sources: a chromium deficiency, a lack of vitamins and minerals, or in translation, a diet rich in anti-nutrients and poor in micro and macronutrients, quality proteins and good food stuff.

Sugar is, unfortunately, addictive and you can find it in everything, from lemonade and juices to bread and sauces, from sausages and smoked meats to fruit yogurt. You will be amazed how many of the foods in the supermarkets contain sugar nowadays. You can be sure that most people have way too much sugar in their diets without even knowing it. Some studies even show that sugar addiction is worse then cocaine addiction!

Our daily diet contains approximately 30 table spoons of sugar. But why is that so bad you ask? Because:

– sugar does not nourish the body;

– sugar and all the other desserts you can find in the supermarket flood our body with toxins, weakening the immune system and massively increasing the risk of developing cardiovascular and degenerative diseases;

– causes obesity, cellulite;

– increases the amount of visceral fat ( the most dangerous one, the fat around your vital organs)

– accelerates the ageing process, by destroying the collagen in your skin ( substance that gives the skin its elasticity );

– causes permanent tiredness ( at 25 I was feeling like I want to retire already );

– causes diabetes, erectile dysfunction, arthritis, kidney malfunction, Alzheimer’s disease, high blood pressure, high LDL cholesterol values, depressions, etc;

If you are reading this that means you know you have a sugar problem, so stop thinking “It won’t happen to me!”. Trust me, IT CAN HAPPEN! I had the same mindset until I ended up round like a ball at 25. You are not an ostrich, get your head out of the ground and see the harsh reality, so you can learn how to take care of yourself until it’s too late.

How do we end up being addicted?

Most people end up with a sugar addiction by using sweets as an anti-depressive and we already established that is wrong. When your sugar level drops, your depressive state of mind comes back and usually, it comes back amplified. So no, sweets are not happiness, on the contrary, they worsen your problems and makes you fat and sick, even though, for a very short period of time, you feel that sugar rush.

Also, always reaching for a dessert when you are hungry will increase your sweet tooth progressively, until you reach a point where you cannot recognize genuine hunger because your body sensors malfunction.

Are the diet sweets the answer?

No! Most diet sweets contain synthetic sweeteners which are even more dangerous than normal sugar. With the diet desserts you still get an excess in your diet but this time, you don’t even know about it, considering the sugars are well hidden behind incomprehensible ingredients.

How can we avoid the excess sugar?

The only good replacement is a portion of fruits, any other replacement is pointless in my personal opinion as an ex-addict.

There are healthier options, however, this options only trick you when your biggest problem is THE EXCESS. We all know honey is natural. If we are lucky enough to buy a genuine natural one, we are going to use the honey as a sweetener and we will be quite pleased with ourselves that we are making a healthy change. Even though honey contains some vitamins and minerals, because it is liquid, it has less volume then the sugar crystals so we end up fooling ourselves and using a bigger quantity. Stevia and agave syrup fall into the same category.

To have more control over your sugar intake and know exactly what you are consuming, you want to know all the names of the ingredients that are actually sugar or synthetic sugar: acesulfame-K E950, cyclamate E952, sucraloze E955, aspartame E951, advantan E969, saccharin, glucose, glucose syrup, fructose, fructose syrup, corn syrup, dextrose, xylitol, sorbitol, glucitol, erythritol, maltitol, agave, stevia, molasses, maple syrup, yacon syrup.

Tricks for eliminating excess sugar:

If you are determined to nourish yourself with good food and give up sweets fast, with a balanced diet and some tricks, in 2 weeks the sugar cravings will be reduced. Even though most addicts do not really believe it is possible to get rid of that desperate need for sugar, trust me, you can actually do it, just try my method and you will see it works! It’s quite easy, start by excluding sodas from you menu, deep fried anything, white flour and every food stuff that contains is, and in general, do your best to stay away from processed foods that come in a wrapper.

Not everybody can go cold turkey so until you manage to nourish yourself with fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds and quality protein, we can use the classic trick – daily lemon with water. In this way we can control that big sugar craving better. Also, smelling vanilla essence can help reduce sugar cravings.

Conclusion: Sugar destroys your body, it does not contain any nutrients, makes you fat and sick. If I, the one that was eating a full Nutella jar in 2 days and then wanted more, could do it without any help, YOU CAN DO IT TOO!

I wish you good health! 

Ada Florea

Certified Level 4 Personal Trainer

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