Something that you may not know about me is that I am a recovering sugar addict. I’ve loved sweets all my life. I come by it naturally, as my parents and grandparents have all dealt with the same curse. I have fond memories of my mom making my grandmother’s cinnamon roll recipe. Hot out of the oven, the scent of freshly baked bread with butter and cinnamon wafted through the house. As they cooled on the table, I would wander back and forth through the dining room, grabbing one cinnamon roll after another until I felt utterly sick. The same went for home-baked cookies that my mom made, though I didn’t limit myself to only home-baked goods; handfuls of Oreo cookies from the cabinet did just fine. My dad had a liking for Kit Kat and Twix candy bars, so there were always packages of them in the cupboard that I could eat.

When I grew up and got out on my own, my sugar binging didn’t stop, and I added soda with which to wash those sugary treats down. At first, I drank diet soda with my sweets because I didn’t want to gain weight—as if that made any sense. Then as I learned more about artificial sweeteners, I decided that plain old cane sugar was healthier than Aspartame, so I switched to regular soda for a couple of decades. Especially if I was stressed, having a sweet treat and washing it down with a 32 oz. soda “that the doctor ordered” made me feel better. Yes, Dr Pepper was my drink of choice. It not only soothed and comforted me when I was stressed, it was a source of celebration when life was going well.

By the time I was a mother of four boys, I had shifted the way we had eaten to a healthier, whole foods diet, but I still really loved sweets. I generally punctuated every meal with some sort of treat, and I was still addicted to soda. But, by then, I was also a little embarrassed about my sweet tooth. That’s when I started hiding it and having my treats out of sight. It’s also about the same time that I went to my naturopathic doctor for some blood work to check my hormone levels. She decided to run some other blood tests, as well, including my blood sugar levels. Despite being relatively thin and fit, my blood tests showed that I was diabetic. What?!?! How could that be? I ate so—ahem—healthfully!

That became a turning point in my health journey. I gave up soda (it’s been over 14 years since I’ve had even a sip!), and I worked hard to give up sweets. I can’t say that I never indulge in having a treat now and then, but I’ve learned to limit them and choose healthier versions. I’ve also been able to reverse the diabetes with food, herbs, supplements, and learning how to handle stress better.

Dealing With Sugar Cravings

If my story of having a sweet tooth sounds familiar to you, you’re not alone. Lots of people deal with cravings for sweets or addiction to sugar in one form or another. The good news is that there are ways to deal with it so that it doesn’t negatively impact your health. Try these tips from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition:

• Reduce or eliminate caffeine. The ups and downs of caffeine include dehydration and  blood sugar swings and may cause sugar cravings to become more frequent.

• Drink water. Sometimes sweet cravings are a sign of dehydration. Before you go for the sugar, have a glass of water and wait a few minutes to see what happens. Caution: soft drinks are now America’s number one source of added sugar.

• Eat sweet vegetables and fruit. They are naturally sweet, healthy, and delicious. The more you eat, the less you’ll crave sugar.

• Use gentle sweets. Avoid synthetic, artificial sweeteners and foods with added sugar. Use gentle sweeteners like maple syrup, raw honey, dried fruit, coconut, and stevia.

• Get physically active. Start with simple activities like walking or yoga. Start with 10

minutes a day and gradually increase. Being active helps balance blood sugar levels,

boosts energy, and reduces tension which will eliminate the need to self-medicate with

sugar.

• Get more sleep, rest, and relaxation. Simple carbohydrates, such as sugar, are the most readily usable forms of energy for an exhausted body and mind. If you are in a chronic state of stress and/or sleep deprivation, your body will crave the quickest form of energy there is—sugar.

• Evaluate the amount of animal food you eat. According to yin/yang principles of eating (such as in Macrobiotics and Traditional Chinese Medicine), eating too much animal food (yang) can lead to cravings for sweet (yin). Imbalances can also occur with too little animal protein (for some individuals). Through experimentation and intuition, you can find which foods create balance for you as an individual.

• Eliminate fat-free or low-fat packaged snack foods. These foods contain high quantities of sugar to compensate for lack of flavor and fat, which will send you on the roller coaster ride of sugar highs and lows.

• Experiment with spices. Coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom will naturally sweeten your foods and reduce cravings.

• Slow down and find sweetness in non-food ways. Every craving is not a signal that your

body biologically requires sugar. Cravings often have a psychological component. By

identifying the psychological causes of food cravings and substituting lifestyle and

relationship adjustments accordingly, you can begin to find balance and take charge of your health. When life becomes sweet enough itself, no additives are needed.

Getting off Sugar

After implementing the suggestions above, see if you can ween yourself completely off of processed sugar. Focus on crowding it out with whole fruits and vegetables, clean sources of protein, and healthy fats, like coconut and olive oil, avocados, nuts, and seeds. Sometimes it’s helpful to follow a clean eating plan for a few weeks to help eliminate it. Once you go a couple of weeks without processed sugar, your body will stop craving it and begin craving more healthful options.

Enjoy Healthy Versions of Sweet Treats

Getting over a sugar addiction doesn’t mean that you can never enjoy a sweet treat again; just choose a healthier version. For example, try snacking on apple slices dipped in crunchy almond butter or eating a scoop of plain Greek yogurt sweetened with some Stevia and topped with berries or nuts for a delicious, sweet treat. One of my favorite treats these days is a healthy, dairy-free version of ice cream—in fact, I like it even better than real ice cream! Click here for the recipe.

Sweeten Your Life

Honestly, I think one of the best ways to avoid falling back into a sugar addiction is to sweeten your life. In what ways can you make your life more flavorful and fun? What areas of your life need more satisfaction? Look at those areas to see what small shifts you can make to add more balance and contentment. Without a doubt, improving these parts of your life will be much more gratifying than any sugary sweet you could eat.

“It is the sweet, simple things of life

which are the real ones after all.”

Laura Ingalls Wilder