Anyone else cutting down on refined sugar?

[Blackpanthers]

Seeing if anyone else is doing the same. I've one huge withdrawal headache tonight. I try to eat natural foods and not sugar alternatives and I'm feeling it tonight. I couldn't even have a g and t. Ha!

Anyway the headache has made me all the more determined because sugar isn't good for my mood either.

If anyone has any suggested natural alternatives, I'd love to hear them
My go to is unsweetened chai tea or brushing my teeth.

Anyone else doing the same?

Is it a good book Making?

I think we are conditioned from an early age to eat sugar look at breakfast cereals for an example. I also think some people still prefer savoury over sweet or vice versa. DH loves Christmas because he gets all my chocolate as I genuinely don't really care for it.

I drank a Diet Sprite today and now I'm dizzy, tired and have a headache. It is the aspartame in it so the rest has gone down the drain. I had missed it on the ingredients label.

I'm really not a fan of artificial sweeteners anyhow. If I am going to eat any sugar I'd prefer it in as natural state as possible.

Onwards!

Yes. I want to cut it out entirely but I'm doing Dry Jan, so kept in some sugar.

The days I don't have any, I feel much better than the days I do. DH bought brioche for breakfast so I had some and have been naggingly hungry all day as a result. I'm sure sugar triggers the brain to want to eat more than we need. On non-sugar days I don;t feel hungry. I've just had some chocolate too, which I bet I'd not have eaten if I hadn;t started the day with brioche!

I'll join you in trying to give it up for good.

Sugar definitely trains our brain to want more. That's why manufacturers put it in their products. And diet versions of things trigger the same desires as sugars. I read a book called The Case Against Sugar (can't remember the author) and it was an eye opener. They did tests on rats, they got them addicted to cocaine, heroin and sugar - given a choice, the rats chose sugar every time.. Paul McKenna's book explains it all too in simpler terms.

Yes, this book basically says what you three pp's have said. Even though I knew it to be true, reading it, and the seeing the facts, has actually switched off all cravings for sugar.

It won't let me attach a pic but it is this one
wordery.com/good-sugar-bad-sugar-allen-carr-9781784282394?currency=GBP&gtrck=VDkvT0tIMnFFRUl0ME15WlptTXhCdncxSlljeEEwUVFRN2p6OTZBN1dqQ0ZDV29CUlBCM1ViRnI0bDR3MnR5K3d2dUNQVWJKSFVSSzdlZVNrbFJsZ3c9PQ&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIwY_dmMfZ3wIVAbTtCh387gw8EAQYBSABEgLFZfD_BwE

I'm not giving up sugar for good by any stretch. I don't think in its natural form that its bad. I think all the hidden and processed stuff is more dangerous than sugar itself.

Also I'm not convinced about the evidence sugar in itself is addictive in the same way drugs are otherwise you'd see people ransacking sugar cane plants.

But we don't need to ransack anywhere because it's in everything..

I think it's addictive. I gave up smoking much easier than I gave up sugar. I was the biggest chocoholic ever. Within a few weeks of giving up sugar chocolate didn't bother me at all. When I started snacking again last year it was no time until I was eating loads again. I'm now a full on chocoholic again. Until tomorrow!

PS, in natural form it's not so addictive, and you digest it differently, according to the books. I never gave up fruit or honey, for example.

Hello, I have been (refined) sugar free since the 2nd of January, hoping to do it for 8 weeks which takes me up to my birthday and a holiday (no diet can withstand both of those, right?!)
Thanks for the book recommendation, I have heard a lot about Allen Carr's quit smoking book so that sounds promising.

What do the books say about something like tomato ketchup then? It contains sugar in various forms..

I will be talking about eating sugar on here. Just thought I'd flag that so its clear.

I have given up refined sugar before, for 7 months. I didn't experience any immediate difficulties, but breaking the habit of a sweet treat after dinner, biscuits when I was bored, sweet things to cheer me up etc - that was the hardest thing to conquer.

I relate to that. We get used to eating foods at certain times. That's a habit I've worked to break but is still a work in progress.

Even healthy people eat sweet stuff to feel better sometimes. Moderation is key IMO

I agree, all or nothing isn't sustainable.

Things like tomato ketchup were a no, they're full of sugar. It's a long time since I read it all, and my memory is bad, but basically things like whole fruit and natural sugars are different to processed. Fruit juices weren't, as they didn't digest the same. I just ate real, home cooked foods as much as possible, and whole grain breads etc. I wasn't extreme. I still went out and drank, I went out for meals and had desserts every now and again, had takeaways etc. I wasn't extreme. But generally I stuck to homemade, or if away, as basic as possible foods (I travel for a living so spend a lot of time in hotels and on planes). I lost an average of 1lb a week (although only lost inches and not weight initially) over 9months.

And that's why I wouldn't cut try to cut out sugar completely Honey. It needs to be sustainable and I know I personally wouldn't give on a bender from having had a pastie with sauce. I travel a lot as well with work. It definitely makes things more challenging.

I'm not arguing with you here, I'm getting the impression you think I am? Each to their own. I'm just saying what my experiences were when I did it before and what I read. The odd bit of something isn't going to harm, but if you do it quite frequently it may. I did find the more I stayed away from the manufactured, sugar filled things in general, the easier it was and the less I needed it. In fact it tasted horribly sweet.

I didn't think it was an argument by any stretch.

Totally agree, we all have to do it our own way. I'm with you @Honeyroar, it's all or nothing for me. Just the way I am wired but understand that it doesn't work for everyone. Over the years I have quit smoking, fizzy drinks and take aways using this approach. I do not miss or crave any of them, in fact they all repulse me. I am hoping to get to the same stage with sugar.

So moving on my new kitchen scales also arrived today. I am pretty good at eyeing up portion sizes but for me, its still worth weighing food. My TDEE is 1700 cals at the moment. It will change as I get more active and lose weight.

In any event I feel clear headed and focused which wouldn't have happened if I had my head in sugar all weekend.

I hope everyone has a great week

Just thought you might be interested in what happened to me yesterday. I'm on a diet and had been sugar free since Jan 1st. But DH bought brioche for breakfast yesterday and I decided to have two slices so long as I stayed within calories for the day. My lunchtime I was growling with hunger. All day long I felt grumpy, hungry, thinking about food. I ate 30g of choc and then another 30 and then another. And then white bread. I felt dizzy and grumpy too (not badly but noticably) and had a night sweat.

I think refined sugar really screws up our messaging system on hunger and contentment. In that sense, it is like an addictive drug as it just makes us want more more more.

It's really put me off. I just want unprocessed foods from now on.

I would love to reduce, or give up sugar. I love chocolate, sweets, cakes and biscuits. I am not fussed by savoury food. I tried a hypnosis app/pod cast but it had no effect at all, I was very disappointed, but I need to find another way.
I have no willpower around sweet stuff and I don't know how to break that.
Has anyone else tried the Allen Carr book?

Frozen grapes - really good to snack on :)