To think that sugar (chocolate) addiction is real?

[JustCallMeSliths]

Not necessarily up there with alcohol and drugs etc (as in harmfullness) but do you think people can be addicted to sugar, specifically chocolate?

I've gone cold turkey on chocolate. I was eating at least 2 family sized bars a day. I tried cutting down but couldn't do it. It's been 3 days and I'm struggling so much. I don't think it is just the sugar withdrawal.

Yes, I'm whinging and need to just do it.

@PirateWeasel butter and (raw or manuka) honey on oatcakes works for me. Or peanut/almond butter in a date.

@alittleprivacy

Processed sugar and naturally occurring sugars are completely and utterly different and have incomparable effects on our bodies and the gut microbiome. I looked into this extensively when I quit sugar and eating as much fruit as you want is shown to aid weight loss and has a positive impact on the digestive system.

I'd be really interested in seeing the reports/data behind this. Genuinely.

But nicotine is addictive for everyone.

Sugar isn't. Lots of people can happily eat no chocolate for days, even when it's in the house. I just ate 6 squares of fruit &nut. That is not addiction, just a snack I fancied.

If sugar IS addictive, how come so many people eating it are not addicted?

Yes it hits pleasure centres in our brain, but that does not equal addiction.

Solitude you could say the same about alcohol though, and no one claims that's not addictive? Just not everyone gets addicted. You have to have the right circumstances and chemical response to it.

solitude I enjoy a cigarette but only ever have them when I go out and drink which is only about 3 times a year. I used to be a smoker but gave up and now only smoke socially. I am certainly not addicted to them so nicotine is not addictive to everyone?
Same with alcohol, I drink 3-4 times a year and enjoy it when I do but am not addicted. Some people are addicted to alcohol, so why isn’t everyone?
Just because not everyone is addicted to sugar, doesn’t mean some people aren’t.

Yes I think it's real and I think I have it

Ok, fair enough I guess

Still does not explain why sugar (and overeating) now is more of a problem than, say, 50yrs ago, for humans

Lots of people claim to be addicted to sugar, and there is lots of pseudo science about it. But do you eat sugar straight from the packet when there are no chocs/biscuits in the house?

Hell yes. icing sugar is best I will also go to extraordinary lengths to GET sugar in a bad phase - i'll drive out late at night and scoop bags of sweets off the shelf in a bad phase just like my alcoholic dad would have gone off to hunt down a can of cider for breakfast.

I vaguely remember a programme with one of the van tulleken doctors who said that the specific ratio of fat to sugar found in cakes etc is what is addictive to humans, so more than just sugar in itself. Which might explain why we don't eat sugar straight out of the packet butdoeat tons of chocolate.

I remember that, but not sure it applies to a hardened sugar addict such as myself - i prefer stuff like haribo, virtually pure sugar and low/no fat. Chocolate doesnt have anywhere near the draw.

I think because the availability of these sugar laden foods is far far greater than it was 50 years ago. Food companies have realised how cheap and addictive stuff like high fructose corn syrup is and have shoved it into so many of their products without people being aware until it was too late.

Metabolic disorders are on the rise probably due to environmental factors and vastly increased exposure. Trashy carbs are cheap, plentiful and widely available, literally at every checkout you go through. Aisles and aisles in the supermarket. Pre 1970s you needed to seek them out, rather than them being all around you 24/7.

So it has normalised snacking on junk. Everybody does now. If you don’t, you are the weird one. I am the odd mum who doesn’t shove crisps and biscuits into her children’s hands as soon as they finished their swimming class. Really is it necessary? Common thing to see though.

I also think people confuse the concepts of sugar and carbohydrates

GCSE biology will tell you the three food groups and carbohydrate is one of them which consists of sugars and starches. They are grouped together because of how they are identically metabolised by the body (using insulin)

So haribo are fast acting carbs
Pizza is slightly less fast acting carbs but still highly processed and addictive
Lentils are low GI (ie less fast acting) but still on the same spectrum

‘Sugar’ addiction is carb addiction. You’ll just get the greatest hit with haribo and dairy milk. But pizza and bread are on the same spectrum

I find the carb+fat combo irresistible whereas sweets - ugh. But it’s not just the taste is it-appearance, texture and context too. Sweets are associated with having a good time for instance. Sugary snacks are often very attractively packaged and the crinkling of a packet is enough to make you go “oooh”.

In fact it is said (see Gary Taubes WHY WE GET FAT) that the thought of eating a carbohydrate food is enough to stimulate the release of insulin and since insulin is the fat storage hormone this could be a problem as I expect we are frequently “triggered”

I agree we seem to have a fear of going hungry (“you need to keep your metabolism going” “you need to eat sugar for energy”) and kids in particular are never allowed to be hungry. My DD does an hour’s dance in the morning and they broke halfway through and some of the mums had set up a picnic for the class. How is that necessary?! Yep I’m a kill joy as well Paradise

My DH bought me sugar free chocolate from Aldi, that might work.

The snacking culture in this country is horrific

Even if people just stuck to mealtimes and ate nothing (at all!) between, we’d see health improvements. Constantly raised insulin is a total disaster for your health

People I work with are eating something every hour. They aren’t aware what even a piece of fruit between meals does to your metabolism

I know mooncup at my work too and not only do they want to do that they want to foist it upon everyone else - donuts, cakes etc brought in and fasting, well that is dangerous and your metabolism will slow down and you’ll get fat🙄
I hate the “you’re a killjoy if you don’t indulge in sugary snacks” culture.

Ha fasting!!!

I do a couple of 23/1 days usually in a week, depending on how i feel and what I’m doing and people literally can’t compute it

I must have an ED
It can’t be healthy
You’ll pass out
Etc etc

Lol mooncup yep I’ve heard all the clichés. “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day”🙄

“Everything in moderation” which would not be so bad if moderation was actually moderation. In the 80s we managed it (can of Coke on a special occasion) but we can’t seem to do it anymore

I’m in my BMI but I’m not thin. But apparently I have gone too far. I’d get it if I were 7st or something. 🙄 but imagine if I said well you’ve gone too far and eaten too much

My mother in law told me that if I didn't eat some sugar then my body would digest my heart muscle and I'd die.

I don't think my sugar intake is toooo bad apart from chocolate. I don't avoid it but don't really eat/drink much with it in. I appreciate there is lots of hidden sugar in stuff but we rarely have pre-made sauces etc.

Again, I'm not comparing myself to an alcoholic but last night the only thing stopping me from going out in the dark in really bad weather to walk to the shops for chocolate was having to get my son out of bed. I physically felt I needed it. I felt ashamed of myself (cue overly dramatic music).

I've been getting headaches and am a bit shaky today. I need to go to the shops but have worked out exactly what money I need to take and will only take that so that nothing "falls" into my basket. This is ridiculous.

@JustCallMeSliths I agree with you, it's so hard! This is the first time I've managed more than a week without chocolate. I'm good at not buying it during the weekly shop, but then I bully my husband into buying me chocolate on his way home from work.

I'm determined to crack this!

OP, you will crack this 👍

Just remember there is no ‘one drink is ok’ when you are an alcoholic. It’s exactly the same with sugar, I am afraid. The times I let myself have some, I regretted it later as my appetite and cravings came back with full force and it was hard to rein it in again. A few bites turn into several days of struggle. So not worth it. Think of another way to reward yourself/ give yourself a bit of pleasure. I have fruit if I want something sweet, doesn’t seem to have the same negative effect as processed sugar. Or maybe something non-food related.

Treat it like an addiction it is, don’t feed it, don’t test it. It will only go one way...

It’s definitely addictive. I naturally lean towards healthy savoury food (e.g. don’t particularly like fried things) but chocolate and ice cream are my downfall. I can’t have them at home because if I do, I will eat them! I went through a phase when I used to have chocolate after dinner every night.

It’s definitely addictive

No it’s not definitely addictive

And by having that kind of approach you’re setting yourself up for failure. “It’s not my fault I threw myself head long in to that box of chocolates. It’s addictive after all”.

Rather than “oh shit I was greedy so the next time - damn it I’m not going to be greedy”. We don’t allow our children to sit in front of the TV scoffing an entire box of chocolates, so I’m always baffled that so many mumsnetters seem ok doing it themselves.

@PirateWeasel To gently help a chocolate problem:

Have a couple of squares of 85% cocoa chocolate daily - no more than 20g - for 2 weeks
then move to 90 % cocoa e.g. Lindt Mild Excellence 90%, available in most supermarkets - that has only 1.4g sugar for 20g

Just a little v high cocoa choc can usually fit into even low carb diets

Many people find small amounts of v high cocoa chocolate satisfying and very chocolatey, but the v small amount of sugar avoids the urge to binge.
However, it may take a few weeks until you really enjoy the taste, rather than it merely being something that stops a binge.

If 85% is too tough a first step, you could start with 70% cocoa chocolate (but no filling)

I now have vegan Vivani 92% cocoa, just 1.3g sugar for 20g, but a very chocolatey flavour