help for sugar cravings

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone,

I've been lurking for a few weeks now...I was on the dietsurvivors group for a

while before it folded, and I really missed the discussions. I think my IE

practice was better when I was reading those discussions and seeing people

mention struggles that I face but had never been able to put into words. I was

happy to find this group!

There's been a lot of great discussion over the last week about struggling with

cravings, particularly sugar cravings.

I want to put a different spin on all this than just checking your emotional

state (although that is still very important!)

First off, I think that just because IE asks us to discard silly dieting rules

does NOT mean we should discard nutrition rules, does not mean we should not try

to add in healthier options like fruits, vegetables, high fiber foods etc. You

might consider what you might try to ADD to your meals instead of just what you

are thinking of avoiding.

Also, consider that cravings are not always something you can just walk away

from. I have always felt that " wait 10 minutes " idea to be complete and utter

crap. I am insulin resistant, a step away from diabetes, and I've learned that

I get my worst cravings when my blood sugar dips and I am HUNGRY. There are

chocolate cake cravings, and then there are GIVE ME THAT DAMN CAKE NOW cravings.

I swear the car drives itself to fast food restaurants during those times.

Side note, you don't have to be insulin resistant or hypoglycemic to be affected

by blood sugar dips. I do believe stress, which would include emotional

turmoil, can also affect your blood sugar. Hunger too.

Sometimes cravings are a physiological response and not an emotional response.

You might be hungry...skipped a meal...ate a lot of processed or sugary foods at

the last meal, and your body is demanding the energy source it knows it can

process the quickest...sugar.

I am probably not explaining this exactly right, but basically, your body

processes the fuel, stuff like sugar processes much more quickly, then you crash

because your body has processed all the fuel. Your body tells you it needs

MORE. RIGHT NOW. So you grab a candy bar, a bowl of white pasta, and it starts

all over again. Binge. Crash. Binge. Crash.

Foods with protein and/or fiber take longer to process and so help keep your

body from the crash and crave cycle. Plus, they help you feel more full, for

those of you like me who just can't seem to eat enough to get satisfied. Even

if you still eat that sugar when you eat your protein, your body will still take

longer to process that sugar because of the protein.

Now, I'm not talking about huge portions of protein and fiber. This is not the

old Atkins idea of steaks and steaks. Part of my journey has been to try to

incorporate small amounts of protein or fiber in my snacks, or to try to keep

some handy for those times when hunger wanted to drive my car to 's. For

me, even just a tiny portion of nuts, a heaping teaspoonful of sugar-free peanut

butter, a few whole wheat crackers even, can help take the edge off.

When I first found out about my insulin resistance, I would try to keep small,

healthy snacks in the car, and I found that it really did help blunt the worst

of the cravings. I've gotten away from that habit unfortunately.

I know IE wants us to embrace hunger because so many of us are AFRAID to be

hungry. My personal IE journey involves NOT embracing hunger too much because

of the insulin resistance. With the resulting effect of the IR on my blood

sugar, I seem to go from kinda hungry to FEED ME. A LOT. RIGHT NOW. I really

think I eat more intuitively when I consistently add a little bit of lean

protein or fiber to my meals and snacks.

So...all that to say...for those of you continuing to struggle with the sugar

cravings like me, please think about adding in some small amount of fiber or

lean protein, versus beating yourself up over a sugar craving, or demonizing

sugary foods and going back into that diet " elimination " mode. You might find

it easier to deal with the cravings if you added in versus took away.