Soda/Sugar addiction

[Gamma V]

I've been dealing with this to some extent since 2013, but it has become more concerning in the past couple years. At 4'11", I weigh between 162 and 163 lbs, meaning that I'm clinically obese. It's something my mother constantly nags me about. The main cause for this is my addiction to sugar and soda. I tend to drink at least two 12-oz bottles of regular soda a day. I also have a weakness for chocolate and other sweet treats. I have tried alternatives to soda, and have found certain flavors of Clear American Sparkling Water to be palatable, but, after a while, I'll get a craving for the real thing, get an 8-pack, and finish it in 3-4 days. My mother has tried constant nagging and lecturing, making me watch My 600-lb Life, and telling my stepdad, who does all the grocery shopping, not to buy soda when it shows up on the list. I like to blame this addiction on my autism and on the antidepressant I'm taking, which I've also blamed for the weight gain due to some antidepressants being known to have that as a side-effect.

Yesterday, just hours before joining this forum, my mother asked me if I even care about how much weight I'm gaining and the possibility of losing what little sight I have left to diabetes. When I told her I didn't, she became pretty hurt and just went up to her room. I started wondering if this apathy is just my addiction getting the better of me, an effect of the antidepressant, or a sign that the dosage of antidepressant I've been on for nearly five years is losing its effectiveness. I went so far as to leave a message on my doctor's voicemail asking her to remind me to discuss this issue with her during my next visit, which will be scheduled after she gets the results from a diagnostic panel she had ordered. Now, I'm starting to have second thoughts about increasing my medication. If this addiction and apathy is linked to them, increasing my dosage might make things worse. I don't think lowering the dose is an option, and going off is out of the question. My mother has told me that, although it is my decision to continue or discontinue the medication due to me being an adult, discontinuing means I will no longer be allowed to go out in public because my unmedicated outbursts embarrass her and her health is failing.

 

[xudo]

I've been pretty terrible with sugar my whole life, but I didn't notice any difference when I was on antidepressants. The only thing that helped me to lose weight and eat better was the pretty drastic decision t have a gastric band fitted.

 

[onlything]

I didn't see any influence of antidepressants on my sugar addiction and I've been addicted to sugar for my whole life. Depression on the other hand is a different thing altogether. Sugar and sugary products have a similar effect on human brain as some addictive drugs. Your body feels artificial joy and elevation, as well as sweet taste and these are things you're becoming addicted to. The more sugar you eat, the more sugar you crave and because sugar causes a sudden spark in glucose levels, you get crashed soon after into mental and/or physical exhaustion that can be a reason for your apathetic attitude.

I'm no professional but what I found helpful was tricking my brain into thinking that I still get the same amount of sugar while not getting it:

• changing white sugar to brown one, then to sweeteners like stevia for my sugary tea/coffee cravings
• instead of jellies or chocolate eating fruit-based sweets, first processed from markets with smaller doses of sugar, then self-cooked until sugary snacks turn into fruit snack
• slowly changing into dark chocolate lover (first 50%, then 70% up to 97% to get used to the taste)
  
• for example: instead of chocolate, different kinds of fruits dipped in a fondue chocolate; instead of soda: self-made fruit juices, smoothies or coctails sweetened with honey or stevia
• exercising, even if just a 5-min long set of stretches in the morning: because exercise releases endorphines that make you feel naturally elated
• small changes and steps but taken immediately and every day
  
• etc.

 

[Streetwise]

to lose weight fill your stomach with a lot of fluid! eat soup its salty something which you don't have enough of probably and it will give you the sedative effect you desire.
if you need carbs have pasta or brown bread, white bread is too sugary.
eat a wide variety of fruit , the fruit dates have a lot of trytophan which is the happy chemical,pineapple, grapes are very sweet and again they will calm you, refined sugar is too fast

I've been dealing with this to some extent since 2013, but it has become more concerning in the past couple years. At 4'11", I weigh between 162 and 163 lbs, meaning that I'm clinically obese. It's something my mother constantly nags me about. The main cause for this is my addiction to sugar and soda. I tend to drink at least two 12-oz bottles of regular soda a day. I also have a weakness for chocolate and other sweet treats. I have tried alternatives to soda, and have found certain flavors of Clear American Sparkling Water to be palatable, but, after a while, I'll get a craving for the real thing, get an 8-pack, and finish it in 3-4 days. My mother has tried constant nagging and lecturing, making me watch My 600-lb Life, and telling my stepdad, who does all the grocery shopping, not to buy soda when it shows up on the list. I like to blame this addiction on my autism and on the antidepressant I'm taking, which I've also blamed for the weight gain due to some antidepressants being known to have that as a side-effect.

Yesterday, just hours before joining this forum, my mother asked me if I even care about how much weight I'm gaining and the possibility of losing what little sight I have left to diabetes. When I told her I didn't, she became pretty hurt and just went up to her room. I started wondering if this apathy is just my addiction getting the better of me, an effect of the antidepressant, or a sign that the dosage of antidepressant I've been on for nearly five years is losing its effectiveness. I went so far as to leave a message on my doctor's voicemail asking her to remind me to discuss this issue with her during my next visit, which will be scheduled after she gets the results from a diagnostic panel she had ordered. Now, I'm starting to have second thoughts about increasing my medication. If this addiction and apathy is linked to them, increasing my dosage might make things worse. I don't think lowering the dose is an option, and going off is out of the question. My mother has told me that, although it is my decision to continue or discontinue the medication due to me being an adult, discontinuing means I will no longer be allowed to go out in public because my unmedicated outbursts embarrass her and her health is failing.

 

[oregano]

I've battled sugar addiction for many years too. Finally my mom said that my sugar addiction was far too expensive and that I should throw all my candy in the trash and go pretty much cold turkey, and my mom would keep a container of Nesquik in the main house to smooth the withdrawals. The withdrawal was horrible, three weeks of nausea sickness and eventually profuse sweating. After that it was still a struggle, but nearly four years later I eat only one or two candy bars a day instead of two dozen. I've read that refined sugar has similar biochemical properties to cocaine. You will simply have to throw the chocolate in the trash and face the withdrawal head on.

 

[Gamma V]

I know it's been a while, but I feel that I need to post an update. Yesterday, I had an appointment with my ophthalmologist, who said that my left eye had elevated pressure, which, upon being notified by my mother of my sugar consumption, suspected to be caused by sugar. I have an appointment with my GP on Tuesday to discuss the results of the lab work I had done last month. I have another appointment with the ophthalmologist on November 7th for a more thorough exam. After that, he wants me to have some more lab work done to see if I have diabetes. I haven't had a soda since Monday, instead drinking flavored sparkling waters, which may be all I'll be getting from now on. I still have a craving for a full-sugar soda and hope every day that, when my stepdad returns from a trip to the store, that I'll see an 8-pack of Pepsi in his hand, in the trunk, or on the kitchen counter. So far, that hasn't happen, and I'm afraid I'm facing a full cut-off this time. I don't know how long the cravings will last before I either get depressed, have a meltdown, or just give up on soda. I'm kind of obsessing over soda to the point that my mother would rather not hear that word, or any synonym, come from my mouth. I don't really feel the same without the stuff.

 

[onlything]

I know it's been a while, but I feel that I need to post an update. Yesterday, I had an appointment with my ophthalmologist, who said that my left eye had elevated pressure, which, upon being notified by my mother of my sugar consumption, suspected to be caused by sugar. I have an appointment with my GP on Tuesday to discuss the results of the lab work I had done last month. I have another appointment with the ophthalmologist on November 7th for a more thorough exam. After that, he wants me to have some more lab work done to see if I have diabetes. I haven't had a soda since Monday, instead drinking flavored sparkling waters, which may be all I'll be getting from now on. I still have a craving for a full-sugar soda and hope every day that, when my stepdad returns from a trip to the store, that I'll see an 8-pack of Pepsi in his hand, in the trunk, or on the kitchen counter. So far, that hasn't happen, and I'm afraid I'm facing a full cut-off this time. I don't know how long the cravings will last before I either get depressed, have a meltdown, or just give up on soda. I'm kind of obsessing over soda to the point that my mother would rather not hear that word, or any synonym, come from my mouth. I don't really feel the same without the stuff.

You need to understand that it's really important for you to stop drinking it, as well as eating anything sugary, both for your physical and mental health. It's going to be hard, especially in the beginning but I'm sure you can do it. Sugar is just as, if not more, addictive as drugs, so for some time you will feel very differently on sugar-free diet.

 

[Gamma V]

I'm (hopefully) not going completely sugar-free, but at least sugary soda-free. I'm actually craving some fruit right now.

 

[onlything]

I'm (hopefully) not going completely sugar-free, but at least sugary soda-free. I'm actually craving some fruit right now.

Natural sugars aren't that bad if eaten in moderation. It's white sugar that should be avoided. Have you tried incorporating some natural remedies in your diet like mint and stevia? You can buy a plant and add leaves to everyday meals. Dried stevia leaves are good for baking for example, so if you crave sweets, you may get some healthier alternative with this.

 

[Gamma V]

I haven't considered the natural remedy thing. I'm a bit apprehensive about Stevia since I heard that it has a bit of a bitter aftertaste. The same fear of aftertaste, along with conspiracy theories, caused an aversion to artificial sweeteners for a while. IIRC, the sparklers I drink are sweetened with aspartame/acesulfame, which I'm not sensitive to nor have I noticed much aftertaste from. I still have a bit of sugared lemonade in the fridge to drink, as well as some orange and cranberry juice. I've actually mixed the latter with a strawberry sparkler for some pretty tasty results. The cranberry juice has no added sugar.

 

[onlything]

I haven't considered the natural remedy thing. I'm a bit apprehensive about Stevia since I heard that it has a bit of a bitter aftertaste. The same fear of aftertaste, along with conspiracy theories, caused an aversion to artificial sweeteners for a while. IIRC, the sparklers I drink are sweetened with aspartame/acesulfame, which I'm not sensitive to nor have I noticed much aftertaste from. I still have a bit of sugared lemonade in the fridge to drink, as well as some orange and cranberry juice. I've actually mixed the latter with a strawberry sparkler for some pretty tasty results. The cranberry juice has no added sugar.

I haven't noticed any bitter aftertaste in the leaves on my plant. It may be though that it's autumn, a flowering season, so the leaves are currently the sweetest. Or just processed sweeteners are like that. I hate artificial sweeteners with passion due to that. It's true, however, that stevia does not taste like sugar. It has its own sweet taste just like fruits do. If you're not sure I would recommend going to a specialised gardening shop that sells it and clipping a leave for yourself. You'd see if it's something you can get used to.

 

[Gamma V]

I saw my primary care physician on Tuesday to follow up on some blood work I had done last month. The results of the tests were normal, but the doc recommended I do some blood sugar tests at home to get a general idea of what they're like when I'm not fasting. The blood tests I had done required an 8-hour fast. I actually needed help to get my first reading done, and when I tried to do another one this morning, I kept getting errors. If I'm gonna need help doing the tests every time, then I hope I DON'T have diabetes. Otherwise, it may be best to go to assisted living or a nursing home if possible.

 

[Lemon Zing]

Sugar is worse than heroin, or so I've heard. I'm addicted to cold coffee. I don't ever really have hot coffee at all, but I do drink a lot of tea and fruit juice, if I have any. But I think the sugar and caffeine makes these products super addictive. I'm always buying those bottled Starbuck's drinks, but within hours, I'm craving another drink, because I think they dehydrate you quickly.

 

[pjcnet]

Sugar is worse than heroin, or so I've heard. I'm addicted to cold coffee. I don't ever really have hot coffee at all, but I do drink a lot of tea and fruit juice, if I have any. But I think the sugar and caffeine makes these products super addictive. I'm always buying those bottled Starbuck's drinks, but within hours, I'm craving another drink, because I think they dehydrate you quickly.

Believe me sugar is not worse than heroin which I wouldn't even wish on my worst enemy, sugar addiction can still be a real issue for many, but if you'd experienced heroin you would realise that it's many times worse (I've been clean for over 12 years). I still don't want to belittle sugar addition however and there's a lot more people suffering from it without receiving any support.

Caffeine is obviously additive too and what's worse is energy drinks that contain high levels of both sugar and caffeine are more recently the in thing for many, they definitely should be regulated much better and perhaps shouldn't even be sold to anyone under 18 as currently the marketing actually appeals to children / teenagers and even though they're dangerously addictive and extremely bad for you there's no big and obvious health warnings either, please click here for an article on energy drink addiction. Even many standard cans of pop such as Coca-Cola contain high levels of sugar and caffeine, but energy drinks are often a lot worse still. Obviously the manufacturers will try to play down and even deny any adverse effects and/or potential addiction as they're making $Millions, well more like $Billions out of them and they make a lot more money when people are addicted to their products, also if they admitted a problem they know they could start receiving law suits. It's interesting that the Coca-Cola Company officially denies the presence of cocaine in any of its products, past or present even though historical evidence strongly suggests that the original Coca-Cola did in fact contain cocaine which was obviously a lot more addictive than caffeine and therefore even better at generating more sales, especially when combined with high levels of sugar. In my opinion there is a level of corruption which is unfortunately common where there's power and/or wealth at high levels, in short I truly believe they want people and even children to be addicted to their products and they will do what-ever they can get away with to make this happen as effectively as possible even if it is harmful. You can certainly bet that energy drinks companies have some of the very best lawyers in the world advising them and are always ready to fiercely defend themselves and their assets if and when it ever becomes necessary.

My friend was very addicted to energy drinks for a while and had to come off them slowly, it was a real addition, but while people hooked on street narcotics often get help from addiction support centres or equivalent, others worry that they won't be taken seriously if they turn up and say I'm addicted to energy drinks, coffee and/or sugar and they also often don't want to be associated with a centre like that so they rarely get professional help. Sugar, caffeine and energy drink addition should be better publicised as a potential problem and people should be told that there is support available, perhaps even separately from narcotic addition centres for Heroin addicts Etc.

Finally most people who take street narcotics are aware that they're dangerous from the very start and are fully aware of the potential risks (it unfortunately doesn't stop most people who start taking them from believing that they will be-able to control and/or handle them however when virtually every time they're very wrong). With sugar, caffeine and especially energy drinks however a lot of people including many children and teenagers don't even realise that there could even be a potential danger until it's too late, especially when these drinks are fully accepted and sold openly in most local shops without any obvious health warnings, so in my opinion they're often not even partly responsible for their addiction. The whole situation needs to change, but it will take a lot of strong people to make that happen, all standing up against very strong opposition from wealthy and powerful product manufacturers, perhaps then governments will eventually add stricter regulations at least and people will be become better educated.

 

[Streetwise]

I haven't considered the natural remedy thing. I'm a bit apprehensive about Stevia since I heard that it has a bit of a bitter aftertaste. The same fear of aftertaste, along with conspiracy theories, caused an aversion to artificial sweeteners for a while. IIRC, the sparklers I drink are sweetened with aspartame/acesulfame, which I'm not sensitive to nor have I noticed much aftertaste from. I still have a bit of sugared lemonade in the fridge to drink, as well as some orange and cranberry juice. I've actually mixed the latter with a strawberry sparkler for some pretty tasty results. The cranberry juice has no added sugar.

The best one is fruit sugar it's low on the glycaemic index so you could use it if you are diabetic and you don't need very much as it sweet

 

[Gamma V]

I often regret taking my first drink of soda, which had to have happened when I was very young, given that my father always drank it. I grew up in the late 80s and 90s. Back then, no one really seemed to complain about sugary drinks, and I never got fat from what I did drink. It would be nice to have support centers for sugar addiction, but they don't seem to exist or are not covered by Medicaid.

 

[Nick12]

You are not obese be proud who you are i wish you the best best day ever