Sugar cravings are as normal as a craving for a whole hearty meal at times. While little cheat days once in a while are all right, the constant craving for sugar can be too intensive for some. And sugar poses great health risks that leave long-term suffering from incurable diseases like diabetes.
Sugar craving is so common that 98% of women feel them from time to time, as opposed to 68% of men. Especially stress, anxiety, and depression kick in the urge for overly sweet consumption, which can eventually lead to a habit. But health issues like weight gain, obesity, and heart attack also increase with such cravings that might seem harmless in the beginning.
To stop craving sugar, we need to understand why and how we crave it so much. Sugar helps to release serotonin, the feel-good chemical that fills us with joy. Now, put two and two together, and no wonder those cookies from Marry MacLeod Cookies Toronto tasted so good!
Our brain is also naturally wired to like the taste of sugar. Sugar can also just be a force of habit that some people have developed, like eating high-sugar chocolates, pies, or cakes after a heavy meal as dessert. We also tend to crave sugar more if we go hungry for longer hours. Craving all the delicious food is a natural instinct, then.
But it is not all hopeless, as there are many ways to help combat it. The ways to keep sugar cravings at bay are:
Switching to healthier alternatives like spiced sweeteners
You can like the taste of sweet but not sugar, so why not trick your brain into thinking everything sweet is sugar? Cinnamon ground tastes just as sweet as sugar with actual health benefits. Even cardamom tastes great as a sugar alternative.
Stop drinking soda more than water or healthy liquids!
We need enough hydration in our body, and any fluid is necessary for consumption, yet, some people make a habit of drinking carbonated soda or beverages more or as frequently as water. It is a seriously harmful habit that makes one chug way more sugar than advised. Energy also drinks massive punches of sugar that are harmful to drink frequently. Instead, plain water is what keeps the body amply hydrated.
Paying Attention to Your Body
One needs to understand one’s own body pattern and needs in order to figure out how to stop consuming sugar. What causes the trigger to sudden sugar cravings? What sort of sugary foods meet those cravings? Also, the body clock with food is also a cause of excessive sugar intake.
Switching to Whole Foods
Sugar also can camouflage itself into many foods, especially processed food like many condiments. Whole foods provide all the nutrients with little to no sugar in them. It also keeps calorie counting ideal for individuals in check. With an increased habit of consuming whole food, sugar cravings can be kept at bay.
Avoiding Caffeine
Caffeine can oftentimes cause increased sugar intake. Caffeine can cause a lack of sleep which prompts more temptation and eventual sugar intake. Caffeine also increases stress levels in overconsumption; people tend to put and develop habits of preferred sugar intake with such beverages, which can lead to regular sugar consumption.
Getting Enough Sleep
Sleep reduces our stress and replenishes our bodies. With a lack of sleep, our stress is through the roof, and that is when our brain conditions us to crave something good and tasty. Hence sugar cravings increase with a lack of sleep. Researchers have found a correlation between lack of sleep and the overconsumption of food.
Switching to Fructose
The only thing naturally sweet with no adverse health effects are fruits! Fruits help to meet sugar cravings and are a source of pure nutrients and necessary vitamins. They also contain fibre, and every time a person has a sugar craving; they can reach out for fruit and meet the craving with no harm inflicted.
Having a Balanced Diet
Having a diet fixed up, and a balanced meal plan is way more rewarding and less risky than trying to figure as one goes. A balanced diet has strict rules, and it becomes a habit hence breaking out of it to consume sugar becomes taboo. A balanced diet also has natural sugar options.
Eating Ample Protein and Healthy Fat
Protein and fat together take time to digest the food and process it. So, people feel not hungry for longer and not wanting to eat anything sugary. Protein also helps the body immensely. Healthy fats can be found in nuts and seeds. Such fats keep our body’s lipids intact.
Exercising regularly
Regular exercise can help combat unnecessary cravings. Exercise also releases feel-good hormones, so the sugar habit is replaced by the reward-reaping benefit of exercising, which also helps to keep the body in shape.
Alternative food can help to replace sugar directly and contribute to stopping the craving altogether.
Berries: All sorts of berries are low glycemic food which causes them to be so sweet yet inflicts no health hazards. Berries also reduce inflammation and are full of water content, keeping them full for longer and providing hydration.
Seeds: All sorts of seeds are very healthy snacking options than cake or sugary items. Certain types of fat and fibre in seeds fulfil the sugar-craving tendency. Pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, and sesame seeds are all healthy options.
Beans and Lentils: Switching to a plant-based diet is one of the healthiest options as it reduces the chances of sugar cravings. It also makes people full for longer and prevents cravings. Lentils are a great source of energy for body replenishment.
Dark Chocolate: Although it may sound outrageous, why is chocolate on the list of healthy foods? But dark chocolate is a great exception to polyphenols as well as antioxidants. It also meets up the demand for sugar cravings in a way less harmful manner.
Sweet Potatoes: Packed with minerals and vitamins, sweet potatoes naturally taste incredibly sweet and delicious. With roasted or baked options, sweet potato is the best sugar-craving-meeting healthy alternative.
In conclusion, sugar craving itself is not a disease on its own. But the harm inflicted upon health over the course of its continual consumption can be irreversible. Heart attack, diabetes, stroke, obesity, and many more health risks are posed by a single ingredient. Hence avoiding those cravings is like a future investment toward health and happiness.