Why Do We Crave Sugar? Reasons and Tips to Resist/Avoid

Sometimes we just can’t stop craving chocolate, cakes, or bubble tea. Excessive sugar consumption can lead to diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity. But why do we crave sugar? Here are some potential reasons and how to beat it.

3 Common Factors That Lead To Sugar Cravings

♦ Sugar stimulates dopamine and serotonin release:

Sugar consumption stimulates the release of dopamine, also known as the “feel-good hormone” or “happy hormone”. When we eat sugar, our brain releases dopamine that makes us happy.. That’s why, when we cut sugar from our diet, we lose this dopamine pleasure. Dopamine also plays a role in developing an addiction. On the other hand, serotonin is a feel-good hormone that promotes relaxation, calmness, and fullness. When our body starts associating pleasure with sugar, we want to stay happy by consuming more sugar. This can turn into a vicious cycle of seeking happiness. In other words, we might be ‘addicted’ to sugar.

♦ Blood sugar imbalance:

Blood sugar spikes occur when we consume more sugar on a daily basis, and our body releases insulin to bring it down to safer levels. However, insulin may cause your blood sugar level to drop too much, leading to sugar cravings. That’s why we recommend supplementing sugar consumption by adding enough protein and healthy fats in a regular diet to keep you full for longer periods and also reduce untimely hunger.

♦ Lack of chromium:

When our body has chromium deficiency, insulin function can be affected and lead to poor sugar tolerance too. This deficiency can easily develop a sugar addiction. So, we recommend including foods like mushrooms, eggs, and meat to supplement chromium intake. Adults should consume less than 200 micrograms of chromium per day.

Tips to fight sugar cravings

The following suggestions will help reduce your sugar intake. As there are no shortcuts to great achievements, let’s start by changing your daily routine. Then you can slowly adapt to lighter-tasting foods, and eventually, change your eating habits.

✔️ Read and compare the ingredient list and nutrition label before purchasing. Choose low-sugar foods in place of high-sugar foods.
✔️ Avoid artificial sweeteners.
✔️ Use a measuring tool (e.g., a teaspoon) when you cook to avoid adding too much sugar. Add just the right amount of sugar. You can even avoid or replace sugar.
✔️ When purchasing beverages, ask for low sugar or choose sugar-free smoothies, tea, coffee, and juices.
✔️ Choose fresh juices instead of bottled or canned ones, and juice made from concentrates.
✔️ Replace cakes, bread, and biscuits with fresh fruits and nuts on your work days.
✔️ Go for a walk half an hour after dinner, and try not to have desserts.
✔️ Getting a good night’s sleep will give you adequate energy throughout the day and suppress your appetite.

What happens to your body when you quit sugar?

Quitting sugar can be challenging. When you start reducing sugar intake at first, you’re prone to experiencing negative side effects such as headaches, fatigue, and mood swings. In addition, quitting sugar can significantly change your body physically and mentally, making it difficult for some to stick with the diet change. Giving up sugar from the diet causes a rapid reduction in the effects of dopamine in the brain. Apart from its rewarding effects, dopamine also controls the release of hormones and regulates nausea, vomiting, and anxiety.

That said, if you can stick to the plan to quit sugar, you’ll see some amazing health benefits. You’ll have better skin, look younger, sleep better, lose weight, lower your chance of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes, improve oral health and much more.

Does sugar feed abnormal cells?

When we consume carbohydrates and sugary foods, our body breaks them down into glucose, which fuels our cells to produce energy. Both healthy cells and cancer cells need glucose for energy. Unfortunately, there is no way to stop feeding glucose to abnormal cells and save all glucose for the healthy cells.

There is insufficient evidence to support abstaining from sugar or starchy foods is effective in curing dreadful disease. Eating sugar in moderation as part of a healthy diet does not cause cancer. However, too much sugar intake can lead to unhealthy eating patterns, including obesity, which are risk factors for many health conditions. Being overweight or obese throughout adulthood is associated with an increased risk of at least 12 dreadful diseases, according to The World Cancer Research Fund and the American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR). Researchers are still investigating the link between obesity and life-altering and threatening diseases.

People suffering from severe health conditions need enough energy and nutrients to fight the illness. We recommend patients follow the advice of their attending physicians and nutritionists. Also, remember to consume sufficient, but not excessive carbohydrates, protein, oil, vegetables, and fruits. Reduce the intake of unnecessary added sugars (such as refined sugar, granulated sugar, rock sugar and brown sugar) to benefit from the medical treatment and improve the chances of recovery.

In conclusion, sugar is not bad in and of itself, but it can be combined with a balanced diet and regular exercise to keep you healthy. If you find sugar is negatively affecting your health, and are considering cutting down to reduce sugar cravings— it’s best to consult your doctor first. Then, you can slowly change your daily diet and eating habits. It takes time to adjust to the new diet, but stick to it, and you’ll eventually control sugar cravings and enjoy the benefits of having a healthy body.

References:
https://www.cancer.net/blog/2021-11/does-sugar-cause-cancer
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/wellness/explaining-the-siren-song-of-sugar-and-how-to-beat-the-habit/2018/01/26/8a9557f8-f7ae-11e7-a9e3-ab18ce41436a_story.html