If your sweet tooth sets you continually aching for desserts and candy, you may be hooked on sugar. Eating sweets excessively actually works like addictions to alcohol and drugs, triggering natural "feel-good" opioids in the brains, according to integrative physician Dr. Frank Lipman in an article for the Huffington Post. A sugar-coated diet can also incite reward signals in the brain, which often trumps self-control and moderation and leads to addiction to the sweet substance. Pursue strategies to harness cravings for sweets and get your body back in balance.
Steady Blood Sugar
Needing a sugary snack or dessert to lift your mood or give an energy buzz signals that blood sugar levels could be low. Keep blood sugar on an even keel by eating three meals and two modest snacks -- aim for 100 calories each snack -- spaced out at regular intervals. Skipping meals or going too long between meals causes blood sugar to drop, resulting in cravings.
Become a Sleuth
Try to eat foods in their purest and most natural and whole form -- including sugar. A diet overloaded with sweet stuff may not involve plain old white or brown sugar. Processed foods containing high-fructose corn syrup are everywhere -- in bread, salad dressing, pasta sauce, crackers, snack chips, commercially prepared sauces and marinades. Scrutinize labels to ferret out cravings-causing corn syrup and dextrose. The natural sugars in fresh fruit are an excellent substitute for these high-fructose, processed sweeteners.
Up Your Protein
Protein promotes satiety and keeps you satisfied longer between meals. Protein is also known to release the insulin-balancing hormone glucagon. Eating protein particularly matters in the morning, since getting started with a breakfast of carbs and sweets can lead to a day struggling with sugar cravings. Evenly space out protein throughout the day, perhaps having a snack of a low-fat cheese stick or 2 tbsp. of almonds or other nuts.
Find Distractions
Wait 15 minutes after a meal to see if you still crave dessert. Often, you will find the feeling passes, especially if you immediately distract yourself by reading a magazine or watching TV, brushing your teeth and taking a walk. Drink water or herbal tea -- some of the flavors, such as licorice and red hibiscus, taste naturally sweet without added sugar. Practice focused, meditative breathing to calm the mind and take the focus off cravings.
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