Tips for someone with a sweet tooth trying to give up refined sugar?
Posted by dl-bailey on Nov 26, 2009 · Member since Oct 2008 · 286 posts
Hi
I really would like to give up or at least cut back my consumption of refined sugar or 'sugar bowl sugar'. I have done this is the past and looked and felt terrific. The problem is that I have a real sweet tooth. After a few months, I can't handle it and indulge chocolate or other sweets.
I am eating fruit to ease some of my cravings. This can only get me so far. Fruit is expenisve. Has anyone else given up sugar? Can you give me some advice? I don't want to rely on artifical sweetners because they are not much better than sugar.
Thank You
I also would like to do this.
lots of fruit. sorry, it's the only way. honestly, i have the biggest sweet tooth and now that my diet is based in fruit i do not crave sugar at all (except when i'm hungry, and then i just eat fruit).
other than that i would say just deal with it for about a month and then your taste buds will change (supposedly, i've never been able to give up sweets long enough to know this, though).
also, dates.
Try Stevia as a sweetener. It is natural as it is an herb. I've made muffins, etc. using it
you say 'refined' sugar....
are you against raw sugar?
with the exception of powdered, it is the only kind I use around the house anymore.
If you are trying to give up all sugar, I suggest apple juice, it is one of the sweetest juices around.
hespedal is right, fruits are the way to go! Snack on fresh, canned, or dried fruits. Figs and dates are the sweetest, though Medjool dates are so expensive and both are more like treats. I find slightly sweet fruits like apples and pears are best to get a sweet fix without just inciting me to eat more.
Also, my midwife who's big on nutrition told me to snack on a little bit of high protein food when I get a mad sugar urge because often that craving is a sign of protein deficiency. It doesn't always work for me, but eating a small serving of nuts has helped me avoid a sugar binge more than once.
berryraw-- what's your midwife's source on protein deficiency= sugar cravings?
protein deficiency is basically unheard of except for in cases of undernourishment, that's why i ask.
According to my anthro classes and textbooks, sugar cravings are programmed into our brains. We are modified fruitivores that used taste to tell when fruit were at it's ripest and most nutritious. The desire for sweet things are pretty universal. Everyone likes it and craves it most of the time. I believe that it has little to do with protein deficiencies. From what I understand, we don't actually crave protein, just fat, sugar, complex carbohydrates and salt.
I would like to stay away from raw sugar, maple syrup and brown rice sugar. They are better than white sugar, of course. However, they are still simple, slightly processed sugars. I would like to only consume them on special occassions or a few times a month.
I did go to the store and bought some ripe plantains, persimmons, sweet potatoes and bananas. My mom also wanted me to buy chocolate for her. Don't worry, I won't eat it. Chocolate is more expenisve than produce. A bag of M&Ms is $3.97 a medium bag and plantians were only a dollar a pound. This is a good development in my quest to kick my sugar habit.
According to my anthro classes and textbooks, sugar cravings are programmed into our brains. We are modified fruitivores that used taste to tell when fruit were at it's ripest and most nutritious. The desire for sweet things are pretty universal. Everyone likes it and craves it most of the time. I believe that it has little to do with protein deficiencies. From what I understand, we don't actually crave protein, just fat, sugar, complex carbohydrates and salt.
I agree, mostly (I don't know about craving fat or complex carbs, we don't have taste buds for either of those things). That's why I'm wondering what berryraw's midwife's source is :)
To us, some amino acids are sweet. Perhaps, the idea is that we are craving a 'sweet tasting; amino acid?
I have a terrible sweet tooth too and have been weening myself off processed sugars as well. I recently went to a Whole Foods cooking class with a chef who is not just vegan, she's like super vegan. No processed sugars, no flour, no oil, practically raw. She taught us how to make this amazing Chocolate FUNdue that tastes like a creamy, Reese's peanut butter cup, as well as date truffles(similar to Colleen's in The Vegan Table cookbook). If you want either of these recipes message me privately and I will share them with you.
berryraw-- what's your midwife's source on protein deficiency= sugar cravings?
protein deficiency is basically unheard of except for in cases of undernourishment, that's why i ask.
???? I'll have to ask her. She's probably just talking about a pregnant woman's protein needs. I just thought it might be helpful to stave off sugar cravings for others as well.
hespedal: I found a fact sheet on some nutritional stuff my midwife gave me concerning cravings and what the body may actually be needing. On the sheet it doesn't link sugar cravings with a protein need, but does say sweet craving may indicate "chromium, carbon, phosphorus, sulfur or tryptophan" needs. I'm not saying any of this information is actually true (how would I know?), just like the sugar-protein thing. It's just an idea that I was throwing out there, though I'm not trying to spread misinformation or anything. Anyway....
There are two sources for the information listed at the bottom, here they are (if interested maybe you could try to track them down):
Lectures, Cheryl M. Deroin, NMD, Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine, Spring 2003 (healthy food recommendations)
Benard Jenson, PhD The Chemistry of Man B. Jensen Publisher, 1983 (deficiencies linked to specific cravings and some food recommendations)
I am keeping track of my diet on fit-day. As I have been decreasing my sweets, the total percentage of my fat intake has increased slightly. It is all good fats, but still fat. Mostly from nuts, seeds and some oil in cooking. I think that I will have to work on this after I kick the sugar habit. My salt intake is still pretty low.
I now feel like a weirdo - I do not crave sugar at all but I do SERIOUSLY crave protein from time to time. It's not really a taste-craving, though, so perhaps that's different.
Now, I know that having an underdeveloped sweet tooth, I may be of little help - but once upon a time I did eat a good few sweets... most of it can be learned. In the meantime, sweet-tasting herbal teas, sweet spices (like cinnamon and ginger), replacing your refined sugar slowly with darker and less sweet varieties (maple syrup, dark brown sugar, molasses, blackstrap), aaaaand, this is the one that surprised me, when I used to eat sweets, I'd immediately want more, but eating something else sweet just made me crave sugar, because in the absence of sweetness, my mouth tasted bitter. So what helped, ironically, was to eat bitter/sour things, because by comparison, plain mouth tastes pleasantly sweet afterwards (having less enamel-eating acid probably also had something to do with it!). So on the rare occasions I do want something sweet, strangely enough a slice of lemon or a pickle or some bitter greens really hits the spot.
Saskia, I think you should post those recipes for everyone to see, including me!! :)
Saskia, I think you should post those recipes for everyone to see, including me!! :)
I will send them to you, and anyone else privately, if you message me. I don't want to post publicly because I don't have permission from the creator, although she seemed pretty happy to share her recipes.
Hespedal, I remeber hearing/reading about sugar cravings during pregnancy being an indicator of needing more protein, but 'm not sure where. I saw a nutritionist who said that sometimes shes seen vegetarian/vegans, who gain more weight during pregnancy because they develop food-aversions to their typical protein sources, and in turn, crave carbs for energy....this makes more sense, I had tons of food aversions and sweets seemed more tollerable while I was pregnant.
I'm assuming the same is true for non-veg's and their protein sources while pregnant.
As for the refined sugar, I use lots of agave, and sometimes maple syrup in baking. Fruit is good, I need to take that advice myself and load up on more fruits. When I was still in Hawaii, ((I'm in Minnesota temporarily for a couple years,)) I ate tons of yummy fresh fruit, mangos, citrus, pineapple, but being in minnesota I feel guilty bad buying so many non-local fruits plus they are expensive, and its harder for me to appreciate things like apples-boring!
As for the refined sugar, I use lots of agave, and sometimes maple syrup in baking. Fruit is good, I need to take that advice myself and load up on more fruits. When I was still in Hawaii, ((I'm in Minnesota temporarily for a couple years,)) I ate tons of yummy fresh fruit, mangos, citrus, pineapple, but being in minnesota I feel guilty bad buying so many non-local fruits plus they are expensive, and its harder for me to appreciate things like apples-boring!
I live in CA and am lucky enough to get local fruits and vegetables in the winter. Also, I have been buying frozen fruits like blueberries and cherries. Most of them are grown in the US. Apples, pears, citrus, sweet potatoes, persimmons, pomegranates, squash, brocolli, cauliflower, cabbage and certain greens are most abundant during the cold season. Maybe, someone should start a list of seasonal produce by area.
When I started reducing my sugar intake, my fat intake also went up. You have to eat something and when you give up such a common and readily available a food as sugar is, you'll find that you have to munch on more fats to keep yourself full and/satisfied (at least this is what happened to me). As long as they are good fats, you shouldn't be worried about the increased uptake.
I have also been eliminating refined sugars from my diet over the last couple of months. I feel great, but I still have sweet cravings every once and awhile. To cure my sweet tooth, I've been baking muffins, brownies, cookies, and loafs while using fruit to sweeten them. Some fruit "sugars" I have been using in baking include: date purees, prune puree, applesauce, apple juice concentrate, and mashed bananas.
DB, I forgot that I also buy frozen berries, but yes, I miss going to the farmers market and getting cheap/organic fruits and veggies year-round!