sugar addict

Originally Posted by kontai69

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Even more concerning would be the significantly increased likelihood of developing diabetes later in life. That and tooth decay. I wonder if the OP has ever had her blood glucose level checked and/or gone to the dentist recently.
hehe yes i am quite aware of all of this. SIGH. a couple lollipops/day isn't really that bad now is it.... er.. uhm.. man, i really should not have purchased that box of see's lollipops at the phoenix airport the other day. I have like 25 more to go before my house is free (more or less) of sugary snacks again. hehe and to answer your questions: no probs with the blood glucose level and go the dentist 2x/year.

Originally Posted by bbaquiran

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Sugars could spike your insulin levels, which would make it more difficult to lose fat.

ahhh right... i knew there was some scientific reasoning.

actually, i heard that diet coke (and the substitute sugars in general) have the same effect on your insulin levels as real sugar... so it's practically like drinking regular coke. anyone else hear this or know of its validity?

Originally Posted by Connemara

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Cutting out crappy sugars is something I'm trying to do. It's hard.

Just think about how you'll look in your later years or even sooner with your foot amputated, that should be enough incentive to try, right?

Originally Posted by The Snob

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actually, i heard that diet coke (and the substitute sugars in general) have the same effect on your insulin levels as real sugar... so it's practically like drinking regular coke. anyone else hear this or know of its validity?

I was drinking a coke zero when I read this, so of course I had to google...

This book suggests it's unlikely there will be a significant effect on insulin from ingesting aspartame.
Another book notes a slight insulin increase but only after 18 days of 2.7g of aspartame daily (the equivalent sweetness of 1.2lb of sugar). More reasonable levels (20-400mg) had no effect on insulin, glucagon, or blood glucose concentrations.

This study on 12 non-diabetics and 10 diabetics suggests neither aspartame nor saccharin would affect insulin or glucose levels. A similar study returned similar results.

I have heard that just the fact that the sweetness hits your tastebuds is enough to illicit insulin responses.

But... back to the topic at hand... its not the calories from carbs that mess you up, it's the insulin. You could go on a high calorie diet with fat/protein and not worry so much about gaining as much weight.

Originally Posted by bbaquiran

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I was drinking a coke zero when I read this, so of course I had to google...

This book suggests it's unlikely there will be a significant effect on insulin from ingesting aspartame.
Another book notes a slight insulin increase but only after 18 days of 2.7g of aspartame daily (the equivalent sweetness of 1.2lb of sugar). More reasonable levels (20-400mg) had no effect on insulin, glucagon, or blood glucose concentrations.

This study on 12 non-diabetics and 10 diabetics suggests neither aspartame nor saccharin would affect insulin or glucose levels. A similar study returned similar results.

ah excellent. i love message boards to tell me things i'm too lazy to google lol.

OK SO looking at all these responses, it seems imperative i cut the sugar which i will definitely try my hardest to do (after finishing this box of lollis heh heh). bah humbug.

As far as the artificial sweeteners go, I just don't do it. Too many uncertain factors, and I don't see the point - if anything it continues to condition you to crave sweet stuff, and not everything is sugarfree. 90% of the sweet stuff nowdays comes to me in form of fruit, dried fruit, and sometimes honey with yogurt especially post workout. I also feel like normal sweets are just too sweet for me now. Even my protein has stevia in it instead of the regular sweetener they use, although I am not sure if it actually works any better - but seems like its the best choice of alternatives available.

i hate the taste of stevia flavored protein. I eat splenda and sucralose but I don't find I really crave true sugar more because of it. If anything I just reach for more of the splenda/sucralose flavored stuff when I do need some sweet.

When comes down to just making weight, net calories are what matter. BUT, in terms of overall health, it could be extremely detrimental to your health. Like someone else mentioned, not only does it **** with your insulin levels (which could make it difficult to lose fat), it also provides your body with no real nutrients (vitamins, etc.). Here's an article that provides a quick rundown of the problems a high-sugar diet causes: http://www.mercola.com/article/sugar...s_of_sugar.htm

Originally Posted by The Snob

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a couple lollipops/day isn't really that bad now is it

Yeah, I guess that is not too bad.
Seems like your sugar addiction is not as bad as mine was. Per day, I used to eat several candy bars, a small bowlful of jellybeans/Skittles, several donuts, etc. Again, this was per DAY! Per week, I used to drink 3 GALLONS of sugared Kool-Aid.
After many many years of doing this (and gainly a huge potbelly as a result), I decided to quit or at least greatly reduce my sugar consumption around 2 years ago. I have since lost 20lbs. I'm proud to say that I haven't had a single piece of candy/donut/chocolate in those two years. I also only drink diet soda or just plain water.
I still have a slight sweet tooth which I satisfy mainly by eating raisins. From what I've read, raisins are actually semi-healthy. They are all natural (no artificial colors/flavoring like candy), are a good source of fiber, contain beneficial anti-oxidants, and even have chemicals which fight the bacteria that causes cavities.

Originally Posted by kontai69

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Yeah, I guess that is not too bad. Seems like your sugar addiction is not as bad as mine was. Per day, I used to eat several candy bars, a small bowlful of jellybeans/Skittles, several donuts, etc. Again, this was per DAY! Per week, I used to drink 3 GALLONS of sugared Kool-Aid.
Wow! Lately I've been limiting myself to one sweet treat per day max. One cookie, one brownie, one bag of fruit snacks, etc. It's doable. I worry because my mother developed diabetes in her early 30s. She was rail thin (truly she looked anorexic) but for the past 15-20 years had gorged on all kinds of sugary ****. She would buy one of those Entemann's or Freihofer's cakes everytime she went to the grocery store and go through it quickly. She still eats candy, brownies, various other **** every day. If we have people over for dinner and they bring a cake, you can bet on her quietly sneaking multiple slices later in the night. She just doesn't get it.

Originally Posted by Connemara

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Wow!

Lately I've been limiting myself to one sweet treat per day max. One cookie, one brownie, one bag of fruit snacks, etc. It's doable.

I worry because my mother developed diabetes in her early 30s. She was rail thin (truly she looked anorexic) but for the past 15-20 years had gorged on all kinds of sugary ****. She would buy one of those Entemann's or Freihofer's cakes everytime she went to the grocery store and go through it quickly. She still eats candy, brownies, various other **** every day. If we have people over for dinner and they bring a cake, you can bet on her quietly sneaking multiple slices later in the night. She just doesn't get it.

stop being a ************* what the hell is wrong with you.

nothing like a nice sugar high before nap time

I'm really skinny, so getting fat aint an issue, but, since coffee has started to become less potent due to my tollerence i need to add more bitter black stuff to my cup and even more sugar to make it consumeable, i'm serioulsy going to loose an arm to diabeties soon if i dont cut back.

Originally Posted by Wrigglez

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I'm really skinny, so getting fat aint an issue

I don't know about that. I use to think the same. When I was 20-30 yo, I was stick skinny (5'6" and 120lbs). I (stupidly) assumed that since I must have been blessed with good genes and a high metabolism, that gave me a free ticket to eat whatever I wanted and as much as I wanted, as I have always done. So I continued to eat excessive amounts of sugar, ***** foods, etc and thumb my nose to those who diet. I snickered at those who order a salad as I munch down my double bacon cheeseburger, large fries, and large Coke. I also (stupidly) thought that since I exercised at 2-3 times/week (running/cycling), that pretty much made me 100% immune to gaining weight.

Throughout my 30's, I did not even notice (more like in denial) that I was gaining alot of weight and it wasn't pretty. I had a chubby face, flabbly chest, and a huge pot belly (gained 4 pant sizes) and weighed over 140lbs.

I finally came to my senses a couple of years ago when my dad ridiculed me saying that he was a 70yo man and had a flatter stomach than I did at 38yo. Like I said in my post above, I started watching what I was eating. Cut down sugar 90% among many other things. I'm 40yo now and now weigh the same as I did when I was 20 (120lbs). Not too many people can say that.

Something to think about.