Sugar = The Blues

About three months ago I gave up refined sugar.  I must say WOW!, what a change!  The first three days were misery as my body started to adjust.  Now I think of refined sugar as a low grade rat poison.  Some of the changes I noticed after giving up sugar were:  I lost 15 pounds (240 to 225), my memory and brain functions started improving, snoring went away, my appetite decreased - I would get full easier, and my energy level has picked up to where I do not need coffee in the morning to wake me up!

I can't say enough how I feel like a prisoner that has been set free.  I would like to know if anyone else has given up refined sugar and what happened as a result of it.

I just wanted to say 'well done'.... I've never had a particularly sweet tooth myself but I know quite a few people that have done the same thing you did and had roughly a similar experience.   Other benefits they noted were .... foods they'd never previously thought of as sweet (such as carrots) suddenly tasted very sweet... fewer mood swings..... fewer hunger pangs.  The people I know were following a Low GI diet where they'd also reduced their intake of refined starches in favour of more wholegrains.   Have you gone down that route or are you happy to have just kicked the sugar?!

GI-Jane, I knew I could count on you!  Your posts are very insightful and spot on!  I have not gotten rid of white flour totally.  Usually it comes in the form of a Subway sandwich.  Although I do mix it up with whole wheat and Ezekiel bread at home.  I will get rid of it eventually but I have not gotten to that point yet.

I have been making my changes slowly so that I avoid the freak out factor and don't go into misery mode and revert back to bad habits.  I have relegated myself to the fact that I am not on a "diet" but am changing my way of life.

Funny you should mention that about carrots, because not only do they taste sweet but also cabbage juice is also sweet.  I have gotten into juicing vegetables from time to time.  This was only so they would get eaten instead of rotting in the fridge.  I have found that one can make a fantastic soup from the pulp of those juiced veggies!

One other thing I forgot to put in my original post is my cholesterol came down to under 200.  My doctor wanted me on statins because it was in the mid 200's.  Now with exercise in the picture, I may be able to dodge that bullet all together.

Thanks for your reply!

Ahhhhh so this explains my bad moods lol! As part of the healthier me I gave up sugar on Wednesday and I have been in the worst moods ever since, couldn't explain it at all.  Wednesday and thursday I was craving foods all day, although i have noticed since yesterday, I havent really felt hungry at all between meals.

Even better, I just went for a jog for the first time since wednesday and somehow I've managed to cut 5 minutes off my usual 45min run!!!! oh yes!!

Tigzy,

That's awesome!  Since you are a student, in a week's time you may notice your studies going better and recall improving.  After a month, your thinking will become clearer.  I was addicted to coffee.  I still like to have a cup but I don't need half a pot to get me going in the morning anymore.  I have also noticed better flexibility in my hands as well - strange stuff.

Please keep me posted of your progress.  Best wishes!

i believe having less sugar and white flour helped me also... not in a super dramatic way, but i am more sensitive to sweet and other tastes, plus it is healthuer!

I just feel better about myself for giving it up... I dont crave it as much now :]

I have cut out most refined sugar and have noticed a big difference, but would like to cut them out completly soon.  Now that I am used to a much lower intake of sugar I don't think it would be as big of an ajustment.  before I started eating better I was sugar was my main vice.  I look back at all the candy and junk I ate...gross!

Congrats for your success bigdad!  Positive changes are so great!

I have to say reading this and all of the comments has made me want to give this a shot.  I've grown up with my dad who is a huge sugar and carb lover...it'll be difficult to get outta the cycle, but i'm hoping for the same results! School is about to start too (my first year of college), and i could totally use the extra energy and focus!

thanks for the inspiration!

Thank you everyone for the responses.  A couple of you decided to give it a try and I would like to compare notes a week into it, a month into it and lastly 3 months.  If you don't mind, add me to your buddy list and give me an update!  I find the affects of sugar so fascinating, I think we can cure a bunch of health problems with some education.

Hi,

I just joined today 8/7/08. I have been trying not to eat anything that is'nt natural. I would like to know more about what you have given up. If you don't mind.

Thanks

The biggest change was cutting junk food out.  Sodas were a huge weakness.  Many times I would have a soda with lunch.  We also would keep Hershey kisses around the house, sometimes a problem and sometimes not.

My wife had candida and is into healthy eating so the rest of the fridge didn't have many items with sugar in them.  I will say you have to read the labels on everything. :(  Many varieties of ketchup will have sugar added, light salad dressing will have it, and on and on.

Don't worry about all forms of sugar.  Lactose in milk is fine and the sugar in a piece of fruit is ok.  Fruit has vitamins and fiber in it which lessens the negative affects of pure sugar.  The time when sugar is not ok is when it is added to processed food.  If the ingredients have an "ose" in it such as sucrose, dextrose, malta dextrose, lactose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, or sugar, stay away from it.  You may have to shop at a health food store to find substitute items you can't do without.  It will be some work at first and some live and learn along the way but it pays off down the road.  If I need a sweet, I will grab a piece of fruit.  If I needed to sweeten something, I would use honey.

I have heard it said that if you shop around the edges of the grocery store and eat more natural and whold foods rather than shop up and down the aisles and eat process foods, you will be much healthier.  If you have any specific questions, feel free to drop me a line.

I too have given up the refined sugar that I have been addicted to all my life, and boy what a difference!! I have my coffee for the flavor, not the caffeine anymore.. The few times I have tried to eat something with sugar, it actually made me feel ill, and the after taste it left was not enjoyable..

My mind has come back 10 fold, in fact at the age of 48 I am going to college in a couple of weeks.. If you told me this a year ago, I would have laughed, but I passed my cpt (since my sats were 30 yrs old!), and I am now a freshman!! It is like some fog has lifted, it is truly beautiful..

I have also noticed that moods are a lot more stable, and since January, I have had no nightmeres and sleep a lot sounder..

From the lifestyle changes (mainly giving up the refined sugar), gone is my diabetes.. My cholesterol is down to 188 and my liver functions have returned to normal (I have fatty liver disease)..

I still have a long way to go with the weight loss, but I now look at it as a byproduct of changes I have made.. Being healthy comes first.

 

Gave up eating crap food and sugar 6 months ago (salt too)... The amazing thing was that natural food began to taste delicious.  I realized I over spiced and sugared my coffee to death because I had delevoped an addiction.  When I removed them I no longer missed them.  My black coffee in the morning is great and I do not miss that sugary creamer I used to love.

P.S. went on vacation last week and ate ice cream...it was like "crack" in my body...huge surge of energy with a sleepy crash thereafter...  still worth it

Hi everyone,

I don't know if anyone will see this three months later.  Just wanted to let you guysy know i started a new group, "kicking the sugar habit."

I am on my 4th day sugar-free and very intersted by what you all said here.  Have you kept it up since August?

Please join my group if you're interested! 

ugh. sadly, I have broken my no refined sugar rule a few times :[ I am trying to get back on board!

Hey

Sorry to revive this old thread, but I'm wanting to give up sugars and sweeteners and just wondered if it would be OK to continue eating natural sugars ie fruits, especially to begin with. Or should I go completely cold turkey on this and then introduce fruits back in???

Thanks :)

That's what I did.  I use honey to sweeten stuff.  I eat fruit to satisfy my sweet cravings.  Everyone is a little different.  I believe the less chemical sweeteners used and the more natural less processed or not processed at all the better.  But that is my take.  Good luck!