As a recovering alcoholic with almost 16 years of sobriety I never believed that anything could be as harmful to my health as alcohol when I fully understood the disease of alcoholism and its fatal affects if not treated. Over the years despite eating reasonably healthy I have found my consumption of sugar become alarmingly like my alcohol addiction. I started to experience ill health and major issues with autoimmune related diseases such as my psoriatic arthritis. I started to pay more attention to the times I felt worse and almost without exception connected those times to a sugar binge. A sugar binge for me represented not just an extra cookie, but an entire apple pie followed by a large bar of chocolate. I would eat 6 Krispy Kreme’s at a time. I slowly started to recognize an old enemy the effects of acting on an addiction. The guilt, the depression and major negative physical consequences such as joint pain, skin rash, headaches and tiredness became normal.
I could eat 6 donuts at a time
At first I was in denial, how could I have a debilitating hangover when I had not drunk alcohol for 15 years? I knew hangover’s only too well having been an active alcoholic for 20 years. I could not believe I had to deal with another addiction not just a compulsion like many alcoholics have to deal with but a true addiction. For me sugar addiction is real I don’t care if the scientists do not agree with me I know what addiction feels like and I got there with sugar. On the 1st of January I decided to stop eating sugar and it has been extremely difficult the cravings have been as bad as the early cravings for alcohol. There is no moderation if I touch it just like booze the vicious cycle of craving and bingeing begins. I am now 6 weeks free of refined or natural sugar and physically I feel much better my joints are in less pain and I am able exercise more. I am still struggling with cravings which I deal with by eating fresh fruit or vegetables and I try to eat lots of lean protein to help me stay full which seems to reduce the cravings. I believe just like alcohol that I will not be able to eat sugar again even in small amounts which is hard to accept but just like my recovery from alcohol addiction let’s go one day at a time.
Here are some useful resources which I would like to share with you.
This article discusses the connection between sugar and alcohol and I completely agree with what it says from own personal experience.
http://www.drrobertamorgan.com/rfm-notes-090410-addiction-to-sugar-and-alcohol.htm
This slideshow from WebMd covers giving up sugar backed with some useful information which again I can relate to.
http://www.webmd.com/diet/ss/slideshow-sugar-addiction
This Video clip from Sweet Suicide is simply fascinating:
