Sugar refers to short-chain carbohydrates that are sweet and used in food. Most people know sugar as a whitish crystal-like powder with a sweet taste that is often added to food. Each year, hundreds of millions of tons of table sugar are produced across the world. The sugar that you eat is scientifically referred to as “sucrose” which breaks down into both fructose and glucose in the body. Although sugar is a staple ingredient in many foods, some people believe that it is unhealthy.
Those who believe sugar is unhealthy may attempt to cut consumption of sugar and/or withdraw from it altogether. Despite the fact that some people claim to experience sugar withdrawals, the severity of symptoms experienced is up for debate. Those who are anti-sugar tend to argue that frequent sugar consumption can lead to mental health problems such as attention problems, hyperactivity, and foggy thinking.
Additionally some believe that sugar consumption takes a toll on their physical health – internally and in regards to gaining weight. It seems as though sugar affects everyone differently – some people are naturally more sensitive to its effects, while others may not notice much of any psychological change from sugar consumption vs. going sugar free. In any event, if you are considering the removal of sugar from your diet, below are some symptoms that people have experienced during withdrawal.
Factors that influence Sugar withdrawal
Below are some factors that may influence your withdrawal from the substance that is sugar. Things that may play a role in your withdrawal include: time span over which you consumed sugar, your average daily consumption, your individual physiology, and whether you just quit cold turkey or gradually cut your consumption.
1. Time Span
How long have you been consuming sugar? If you’re like most people, you have been consuming sugar for most of your life. The longer you have been consuming sugar, the more difficult it is going to be to just completely cut it from your life. Most average diets are filled with considerable sugar. The more sugar that you consume for a longer period of time, the tougher it is going to be to quit.
2. Daily Consumption
How much sugar do you consume on a daily basis? A couple hundred years ago, the average American only ate about 2 lbs. of sugar annually. In the 1970’s, the average American consumed about 120 lbs. of sugar per year. These days, your average American citizen consumes nearly 152 lbs. of sugar per year or 3 lbs. per week.
This is a pretty drastic change compared to what people were eating in the 1800’s. In general, the less sugar you consume on a daily basis, the easier the withdrawal process and the less likely you are to have severe discontinuation symptoms.
3. Individual Physiology
It should be noted that everyone is affected by sugar differently. Some people are more sensitive to its effects, while others won’t notice much of a withdrawal when they stop including it in their diet. Some people will have a more difficult time coping with cravings and other psychological symptoms when they withdraw.
A lot of your personal experience will be based on your individual physiology. Certain people are able to adjust to effects of cutting sugar from their diets quicker than others.
4. Cold Turkey vs. Tapering
Most people that quit consuming sugar do so by quitting “cold turkey.” In general, quitting the consumption of sugar without gradually weaning down consumption can lead to more extreme withdrawal symptoms. Symptoms will likely be more pronounced among people who quit cold turkey after having consistently ingested large amounts of sugar for years.
If you consume a significant amount of sugar daily, it may be best to gradually cut your consumption over the course of a week or two. By gradually lowering the amount of sugar in your diet, you are gradually adapting to this change and it is thought to be an easier process.
Sugar Withdrawal Symptoms: List of Possibilities
Below is a list of possible withdrawal symptoms that you may experience when you cut sugar from your diet. Perhaps the most prevalent symptom that people experience is a strong craving for sugar and/or carbohydrates during withdrawal. Also understand that not everyone will go through all of the symptoms listed below – withdrawal varies in severity and intensity based on the person.
- Anger: If you quit cold turkey, your mood may dip and you may notice that you are more angry and irritable than usual. The anger should not last more than a couple weeks, but may be difficult to cope with if it was unexpected.
- Anxiety: Various individuals have reported feelings of anxiety when they drop sugar from their diets. It is known that sugar can have an influence on dopamine levels and activity – which could be the culprit for these feelings. Certain individuals are more sensitive than others in regard to experiencing anxiety upon discontinuation.
- Appetite changes: Eating sugar can lead some people to experience increased cravings for carbohydrates. Additionally when you stop consuming sugar, you may notice that your appetite experiences some degree of fluctuation. Initially you may eat more or less than usual, but it should balance out.
- Cravings: The most obvious effect when you stop sugar is that you’re going to crave it. The cravings for sugar may be intense and difficult to overcome. If you stay the course and stay self-disciplined, you will eventually reach a point where these cravings subside. It may help to remove sugar substances from your house and/or keep them out of sight so that you don’t fall victim to the cravings.
- Depression: People can experience a crash in mood when they first come off of sugar. This dip in mood is typically not very extreme, but can feel like a low grade depression. Eventually your mood should bounce back and stabilize.
- Dizziness: In more extreme cases of withdrawal, individuals have reported feeling dizzy when they stop consuming sugar. Most people will not feel “dizzy” when they stop including sugar in their diets, but more sensitive people can.
- Fatigue: Sugar can provide some people with short-term boosts in energy. When a person quits including sugar in their diet, it is possible to experience some general fatigue and lethargy during the first couple weeks of withdrawal. Over the long term, a person should notice that normal energy levels return.
- Flu-like: In some cases, people actually experience a severe reaction to cutting sugar from their diet that results in very low-grade flu-like symptoms. If you have this severe of a reaction, it should subside within a few days. Most people will not experience this particular symptom when they cut sugar, but everyone is affected differently.
- Headaches: Initially some people experience headaches when they remove sugar from their diet. These headaches can be a result of tension and/or the changes you are going through by detoxifying your body from sugar.
- Insomnia: Dropping sugar from your diet may temporarily result in changes in sleep patterns and arousal. You may notice that you are unable to fall asleep at a proper time because you feel anxious or your arousal has changed; this will eventually go away. Consider taking melatonin or using some sort of relaxation exercise before bed if it’s a big problem.
- Irritability: During the acute phase of cutting sugar from your diet, you may become snappy as a result of not having the sugar that you crave. Sugar can influence dopamine, a neurotransmitter responsible for pleasure in the brain. When we are no longer getting the same stimulation, we may become irritable.
- Mood swings: It is fairly common to experience minor mood swings when you initially cut sugar from your diet. The mood swings may consist of some minor depression, anxiety, and/or other negative feelings. Eventually your moods will stabilize without the influence of sugar, but it may take a short while for your brain to adjust.
- Shakes: In some cases, people can actually shake when they drastically cut their sugar consumption. These shakes are usually a result of cold turkey withdrawal, but are typically not too severe; they will eventually subside. This is actually a fairly common symptom among people who stop consuming sugar that were previously consuming high amounts.
- Sleep changes: The withdrawal process may affect sleep to a certain extent. During the withdrawal you may notice changes in energy levels, arousal, and mood. All of these factors are thought to influence our ability to get a good night’s sleep. Do not be surprised if your sleep is slightly influenced.
- Weight changes: Most people notice that they lose weight when they drop sugar consumption. Weight loss is generally due to the fact that people stop eating unhealthy foods and drinking beverages that are sugar-filled.
Sugar Withdrawal Duration: How long does it take?
There is no exact science suggesting that sugar withdrawal takes a specific amount of time. The duration for which you experience withdrawal symptoms will largely depend on you as a person. Some people are able to quickly adjust to functioning without sugar, while others may have a difficult time resisting cravings and the feelings that they get when they have something sugary.
Based on various experiences, most people do notice that they go through some sort of a withdrawal period when they drop sugar from their diet. However, the length of this withdrawal period is subject to variation. Some people felt considerably better and were virtually withdrawal-symptom free within a few days, while it took others up to a full month to feel completely natural and detoxified from sugar.
In general, it is thought that the reason people experience withdrawal symptoms in the first place is largely based on individual sensitivity as well as dopamine. When you stop consuming sugar, your dopamine levels may temporarily drop – leading to various psychological symptoms. To help address this problem, it is recommended to consume lean protein, fruits like blueberries and apples, as well as nuts for additional nutrients.
It is also recommended to avoid sugar-replacement products as these substances act similarly on the brain and can also have eerily similar discontinuation symptoms (e.g. aspartame withdrawal symptoms). Additionally if you are a big soda drinker and/or like energy drinks, you could also be experiencing caffeine withdrawals; this is something to consider. Most would agree that it’s up for debate as to whether there is even such thing as “sugar withdrawal” in the first place.
Some people don’t experience much of any noticeable change when they drop it from their diets, while others notice significant cognitive and psychological changes. If you have successfully weaned yourself off of sugar, feel free to share your experience in the comments section below.
It is so reassuring to read these entries. I am 7 days off sugar and have had headaches, flu-like symptoms, more fatigue in evening than usual. I don’t really crave sugar but do think about stuffing a cooky into my mouth; but then I think how I would feel afterwards and easily resist. This is new, exciting and I hope the flu-like symptoms go away asap: sore throat, some nausea, some dizziness. Hope my skin gets better! Thanks to all for the comments.
Only into my 2nd day. Made some sugar free brownies to help ease the pain. I’m not sure if going cold turkey is for me. Plus I’m conflicted about whether to eat fruit or not. Any suggestions?
I quit sugar 4 days ago and I am still experiencing, the fatigue, light headed, anxiety, I was very grateful to view this sight now I realize this is normal. I have kept daily a piece of fruit and potatoes, which seem to give me a little relief. I keep looking forward to the next day, as I know it will improve, hopefully this is tomorrow. I seem to be craving more caffeine for the tiredness, although it doesn’t seem to help. Any suggestions how to beat this withdrawal?
I started primal/paleo 18 days ago, no sugar, alcohol, carbs (pasta bread rice the usual culprits). Pretty rough at first then felt better all the way around, this week not so good – body aches, hard to sleep twitchy body while trying to rest, irritable. Even thought I’m exercising, still not feeling fully energized yet. I ran out of my magnesium/calcium/vitamin D – so I’m pretty sure that has some effect.
Going to Trader Joe’s tomorrow to get a bottle. I’ve done primal before, it takes my body about 40 days to adjust to fat burning in place of sugar burning. After 40 I felt great, dropped two pant sizes. But over time, buying a new home (packing, moving etc.), stress with work – slipped back to the sugar laden-carb foods. My resolution is firm. Just need to make adjustments by adding back my supplements, and be very patient and constant with exercise.
Watch Fed Up on Netflix. You will understand why you are having sugar withdrawals. Sugar is worse than cocaine. You are eating more of it than you even know.
I can vouch that there definitely is such a thing as sugar withdrawal symptoms! I have a food addiction. I eat all sorts of junk food, including sugar, what seems like all day and all night. Every time I try to cut out sugar (I don’t consume any caffeine so it’s definitely the sugar) I suffer with extreme lethargy and afternoon headaches. It’s only been two days since the last time I stopped and I literally want to pop my head off.
Hi, I cut out sugar 5 days ago. I feel ok, apart from the irritability! But then I’ve always been pretty irritable. I have felt a little more bloated than usual last couple days but I think my body is so sensitive to these kinds of things, I know it will sort itself out. I hope it will anyway!
I cut out sugar for 6 weeks years ago and I lost 20lbs. I was also the slimmest I had ever been even though I have weighed less than that since. No sugar seems to be the way. I remember I slept really well, could think more clearly and just felt pretty good really! Hoping for that again.
I am eating bread (brown) for the time being, not very much though. I’m not eating fruit until I have lost the weight I want, I will then reintroduce it. I have a blog about it if you want to check that out.
Leaving my 2c as I found this site helpful for myself. I’ve been sugar free for just this month of August (10 days), and during which, I’ve been hit with a common cold. My sinus has been affected the most, with strong headaches, and fatigue levels dropping and I’m sleepy all the time, especially early into the eventing between 7pm-8pm. Which is unusual for me, as I’m normally around 11pm tired. :) In my mind, I’m doing fine without sugar, but my body has reacted in what I’d consider a bad way.
I tried to quit once. For a full month I quit all processed/added sugar. I was miserable. I went back to sugar. A tear came to my eye when I ate my first bite if chocolate cake after my month away from sugar. I never felt that feeling of more energy, etc. I only felt worse the whole time. It was one of the worst months of my life. I have some health issues, so I was hoping this was my cure. I am now trying to simply limit sugar. I still feel bad when I am limiting. Should I have tried longer than a month???
I’m so glad I found this site! I started having a problem with Irritable Bowel Syndrome so I cut out processed food and sugars. I am SO fatigued! I nap during the afternoon and still sleep through the night. I’m supposed to go on an active vacation next week so I’m thinking about adding more sugar again. Maybe just fresh fruit. I don’t want to be a zombie.
Awesome to hear other’s stories. Geez this is crazy. No sugar for a week.I have had an insatiable thirst for water…lots of it, and oh my God I can eat again! Wow, I can’t tell you how long I’ve struggled with my appetite and food. I’ve realized my body was being starved and malnutritioned. My hair has been falling out…sugar robs the body of B Vitamins and then makes you less able to deal with stress and then me not wanting to eat.
It all makes sense now…. I thought my thyroid was messed up, my hormones, parasites from living abroad. What was wrong with me?! Damn white powdery poison… I was so dizzy yesterday, have had a fever and chills and just don’t feel good. But I’ve been eating a lot of meat, vegetables cooked and fresh and beans lots of them….think bean soup, they regulate your blood sugar and keep it stable…and prickly pears if you have them in your area.
I’ve also been juicing and drinking fruit waters I make in the blender. It’s like wow my body is telling me how sad it was, what I need to do now and how she’s so happy I’m giving her true nourishment now. Much love on the self love journey. Muah!
I’m interested to hear what defines “cutting out sugar” to people on here. Exactly five days ago, I gave up sweets, snack cakes, cookies, and literally every type of dessert, because I figured cutting it out cold turkey would prevent a resurgence of cravings. However, I did not give up bread products – although I exclusively eat whole grain, or at the very least, whole wheat. I’m a 24 y/o male. Five days into this (knock on wood), the only real effects I’ve experienced have been a massively increased hunger, and some pretty bad cravings for the stuff I stopped consuming. In terms of energy levels, I feel more energized but I’m not sure if this is a placebo.
I’m doing the 8 week blood sugar diet which means no refined sugars at all. This includes bread, pasta, starchy veg like potatoes (including sweet potatoes!) and most fruit. After the 8 weeks are up I’m going to maintain any weight loss and, hopefully, stable blood sugar levels by doing a low carb 5:2 Mediterranean style diet. Hope that helps!
I’ve been sugar free for 5 days now. I’ve had the major mood swings and the lethargy and I’ve also got a cold but it is the middle of winter so I’m not sure if that’s a symptom or just a cold. Interestingly enough no major cravings yet. I haven’t been presented with anything yet so that makes it harder when you see it and have to say no. I also have lot my appetite.
I still get hungry but before I was just constantly hungry like I had worms and nothing would stop the hunger! Now I’m satisfied most of the time so I’m happy that my stomach isn’t constantly nagging me! I’m surprised that sugar is such a legal thing when it’s just as bad as alcohol, drugs and cigarettes! Sugar is a drug!
Hi all. Entering third day of sugar (almost) free diet. I say almost free, because I’ve noticed that there’s sugar practically everywhere, from milk and juices to most of the fruits. Anyway, got pretty clear symptoms of withdrawal by now. Headache, foggy head, funny stomach, feeling like I want to puke. Got to say, they are all there, but none is too overwhelming, though I still feel like crap.
I hope I get through this, because it is difficult to function like this. I also decided to quit saturated fats (which are just as bad as sugar) at once, so my struggle is in two fronts. I’ll report again in a few days. Good to see I’m not fighting this thing alone.
I gave up sugar a week ago. Had been eating desserts every night: ice cream, doughnuts, cookies, red licorice and dark chocolate. Dark chocolate gives you endorphines, so missing those feelings of well-being. Sleeping more, feel irritable and crave sugar, on my mind a lot. Feel great psychologically for doing it. Going on a 7-day diet of vegetable soup, little meat and low carbs to lose 12-20 lbs. Sugar detoxing 1 week first to prepare.
This is my 10th day of paleo-vegan. Just some sugar cravings, and today I felt a little dizzy for the first time, but it was really soft. What makes it feel really worth it is seeing how all my body fat is vanishing.
About 5 days ago, I eliminated sugar, processed foods, coffee, and alcohol from my diet, and I have never felt more unstable in my life! I quit all of these cold turkey, which probably isn’t the best, but I needed to for health reasons and I’m trying to keep my eye on the prize. I have been a sugar addict for a long time. I have been experiencing pretty extreme withdrawal symptoms including insomnia, shaking, fatigue, extreme irritability, a general malaise, emotions all over the place. Now on day 5, my symptoms have somewhat decreased, and my cravings are pretty much gone. Physical exercise has been the only reason I’ve made it this far and I’m feeling motivated to continue.
I decided to quit sugar a couple of weeks ago but found it so hard to the point where I’d sneakily eat cakes in the kitchen. I restarted and have now been almost completely sugar free for 5 days now (not including small amounts of sugar in Greek yoghurt, etc.) I have been experiencing very extreme fatigue (sleeping 3 hours earlier than my normal bedtime), stress and the sugar cravings are unreal. My family does not want to quit their sugar addiction with me so there’s always sweet stuff laying around the house which makes it that much harder.
I’ve been refined sugar free for 3 weeks now and, whilst I love the food I am now eating (nuts/avocados/seeds/coconut) I still have painful bloating and a very ‘slow’ gut. Is this normal after this amount of time? Everyone seems to be saying how energised they are feeling and I still haven’t felt that. The scales are moving downward a bit but I wonder if I have developed an intolerance to something – or if my body is still adjusting. I know everyone is different but just wondered if you had come across this before?
I’ve been sugar free for about a week and a half. I’ve been very tired and moody which I expected. But the past few days I’ve appeared to have come down with a cold/flu. I’m nauseas and my nose had been running and I feel achy all over. I guess I’m one of the lucky few who get to experience these side effects. I was very addicted to food and have a tendency to binge eat. So it might take me a while to feel good again.
But it’s worth it I’ve already lost 4 lbs, with 100+ to go. But I think if I can get through these few weeks of feeling crappy I can lose this weight in the next year or two. I have to admit it’s not an easy thing to give up!
That’s fantastic. Keep going. I’m a binge eater too. I used to be a health fanatic and I totally fell off the wagon and now can’t seem to get a grip. I came off sugar two days ago and feel like I’m dying! I hope I can stay off because it clearly is so unhealthy.
I have been off sugar since January 2015. (6.5 months) My first few days were low energy and I broke out! I can tell you that I feel great! I have lost weight 15 pounds and my husband has lost 25 since he started 1.5 months ago! Along with stopping sugar I don’t eat anything white like bread, pasta and rice, etc! Fruits, veggies, nuts and whole grains, etc. – are my diet! There are 2 great documentaries to watch Fed Up and Food Inc. It is amazing what is put in our food! I wish you all success on your journey! I will never go back to eating sugar or processed foods again! This is the best I have felt since I was a child! I am 60 years old too!
Wow, Colleen, so good to hear! I turned 60 in June. I’m on my 3rd day of no sugar/gluten/alcohol. I’m typing this from bed because I feel like I have the flu. Stabbing pains, achey joints, no energy at all. Yesterday I was crabby and sooo tired. I had been off gluten for 5 years, but it’s been creeping back into my diet recently. Otherwise I eat pretty well – organic, mostly local whole foods. Very encouraging to hear how good you feel. I’m looking forward to it!
I just started trying to get off sugar. I want to lose weight so I have been using my fitness pal and set my carbohydrate goal to 60g. Today was my 2nd day and I was so tired. I went and got a diet coke and a candy bar to get some energy. I started to research sugar withdrawl and sure enough I have all the symptoms. I am so glad I found this site, I am going to get back on the wagon tomorrow.
I am off sugar/flour for the past 3 days. I have never felt so tired, so foggy and so completely drained. I’m hoping this will go away soon. I’m also having stomach issues. But again, this is someone who ate sugar every single day in large quantities-donuts, cakes, cookies, dessert everyday.
When I was about 16/17 I stopped drinking can sodas (I was a Dr. Pepper addict) I was up to about 10 a day I quit cold turkey and never really felt any symptoms except for a slight headache every now and then. I stopped eating all junk food type sugars (candy, cupcakes ect) I found myself wanting them even if they weren’t around to look at. Now, at 19, I’m back to eating sugar (but still no sodas) and I’m trying to quit. Today is the second day and I already woke up with fatigue, slight headache, dizziness, and crazings. So maybe it just depends on a lot of things.
I am so glad I found this site, I tried tapering the sugar off for about the past two weeks. Two days ago I quit cold turkey, I feel like I’m dying hah. I thought NO WAY this could be from sugar, I am so nauseated I can’t keep food down. I took two sips of a juice drink and a little bit later I felt GREAT! I could eat, felt jittery with energy. SCARY. I don’t want something that makes me this dependent on it. I quit smoking 5 months cold turkey and looking back the symptoms from that make me laugh at how mild they were. SCARY.
I know how you feel. I hate knowing that my body is so dependent on a substance that when I don’t take it, it makes me feel so ill. It’s only been two day for me but I really have to stick it out this time. This feeling is crazy! Headaches, dizziness, EXHAUSTION! Kudos on the quitting smoking thing.
I stopped eating sugar two weeks ago, I’m still feeling dizzy. I’m not sure if it’s sugar withdrawal or perhaps I may have vertigo, because my head tends to spin when I turn it to the left when lying down in bed. It just seems to be a funny coincidence that I started getting the head spins in bed the day after I quit eating sugar. I do have a partially damaged left ear drum though, so it’s possible that I do have vertigo, even though I never had any dizziness issues until I started my sugar detox. I’m not really sure what to make of it.
I quit sugar cold turkey over two months ago since I was diagnosed with Stage 1 fatty liver. Today, my fatty liver is gone, my cholesterol is record low and I don’t crave for sugar anymore. Best of all, I lost 7kgs in 8 weeks. My advice is, don’t think too much about it. Be strong with your decision and don’t back track. The reward is worth the effort.
I realized I was just drinking too much soda (for me, that was a half-can of Coke or the equivalent pretty much every day), and way too much chocolate (although I only eat dark chocolate.) I gave up the chocolate and soda three weeks ago. For five days now (approx. 2.2 weeks in) I started having severe gastrointestinal difficulties.
I haven’t ever had the flu, but I think people suffer with that from the flu. I have been tied to the bathroom for days (with periods of feeling normal for several hours), nights are the worst. I get severe pains sometimes, and can’t sleep because of the frequent feeling of “need to go.” I have not been depressed, anxious or anything like that (except when this “illness” began), and I don’t crave soda or chocolate, although I did for about two days.
I am fighting the need to go see a doctor, spending thousands of dollars on tests because of my high deductible. Should I wait it out? I am eating lightly, drinking a lot of water. Thanks for any responses. As of today it has been three weeks. I was eating a LOT of dark chocolate and/or mints, and felt like I was constantly eating/drinking sugar all day, then I gave it up cold turkey.
Hi Diane, It’s interesting how everyone says that if you eat chocolate choose the dark chocolate. However a lot of the dark chocolates aren’t actually dark. They are labeled and look like dark chocolate but the cocoa percentage is very low usually being 40-60%. A good percentage is 78-100% depending on how much you can take.
I am now at the end of day 7 of sugar free (or pretty close to it). I just slept for 3 hours in the afternoon and ready for another sleep. My tummy hurts, feel sick and a bit emotional/anxious. Keep waiting to vomit. Today I haven’t eaten much as it just doesn’t appeal to me which I think has also made me feel a bit sick. Slight headache but that feels like the least of my troubles compared to my fatigue and sickly feeling. Tempted to eat something sugary but know I need to just stick it out. Wish me luck.
I’m currently struggling with sugar withdrawal. My symptoms are very similar to hypoglycemia, but I have tested negative for that. Shakiness, racing heart, mood swings, etc. Let’s hope this passes! I’ve been tapering off sugar for several weeks now and have only experienced this feeling twice in the past week.
So about two years ago my husband went through a terrible episode where we thought he was having a heart attack. Ended up he didn’t have one, but was told he was a walking heart attack waiting. One of the things he changed was switching up his pop for water with the little no sugar packets. I did this with him and now I no longer need the packets. I, however, did not change anything else. Now this past Saturday, my doctor has given me two months to make a change myself or he will have to treat me as I am that close to being considered diabetic.
So I have found that in the last three days that making substitutions seems to be my way although the withdrawals are not absent. This is what I have been doing and maybe some of you can offer other advices for me. I am still only drinking water, I have switched up my usual morning breakfast of one packet of maple and brown with the no sugar one. I have switched my usual Wendy’s lunch run with healthy choice (although I noticed just about everyone is pasta).
I have switched my usual bag of chips with lunch to no sugar jello and in my drawer I have changed out the usual candy with no sugar Russell Stover’s candy. When I get home I still have dinner but have decreased the portion size and took out the potatoes and bread. For night snack I have changed from my oversized bowl of cereal to a piece of fruit. Only making sure to have only one piece. Last night I added a spoonful of peanut butter. I am on my third day and feeling very hopeful. I think if I don’t buy any of the crap and have it around work or at home that this will help.
I do remember my father in law who was diabetic being able to eat as much popcorn as he wanted as long as it was just popcorn and nothing added. Anyone hear of that? I just wish I had someone following me around to slap anything that I shouldn’t have out of my hand. Lol. The withdrawal symptoms seem to be increasing more today, but I think if I try to go to bed earlier that might help also limiting my electronic use. So any other advice is helpful after this rather long comment. Thanks!
Dear Erika, This is my third day of the Whole30 which is a 30-day program to eliminate foods that may be making us unhealthy — look it up at Whole30 (dot) com. I am 69 years old and look much younger and I know from experience that every time I go through another “Renaissance” improving my food choices, increasing walking, and perhaps adding meditation, that I can achieve that I look years younger than I did just a few months ago.
If you are a young person, you have GOT to do a lot of reading about how unhealthy the Standard American Diet is — they don’t refer to it as “SAD” for nothing. Living in Manhattan since 1966 I was fortunate to work with Europeans in two different fields — restaurant business and French investment firm. I have also had many friends from other cultures. Europeans laugh at us for making such poor food choices and winding up spending so much more money at the doctors.
Europeans on average, spend around 25% more on food than most Americans do because they know that eating the very freshest most nutritious foods will make them healthy and save them a boatload on medical expenses. I would also suggest that you read a small book called: FOOD RULES by Michael Pollan. This little book will protect you from the ravages of our food culture. There are whole supermarket aisles that I don’t walk down because I wouldn’t eat ANYTHING in those aisles.
AND I worked for a while in the legal department of a major conglomerate and observed the attorneys laughing at how they screwed the public – -but the support staff they were bragging in front of WAS the public. I stopped eating all foods produced by that mega-company immediately and I never forgot the ruthlessness of those men, the worst I ever worked with. I wound up on this site as I am experiencing symptoms of sugar withdrawal at the moment – lack of energy and focus and frontal headache (and I rarely get headaches) but this will pass and I just took two enteric-coated aspirin (the kind that are easier on the stomach).
Learn all you can and you will become one of the healthiest folks you know — and it matters a great deal as we never know what’s down the pike. If, God forbid, you wind up in an accident of some sort, and you have provided yourself with good nutrition, you stand a better chance of surviving and recovering sooner. Good luck to you – it is very worth improving your nutrition as we are living longer and longer and want to enjoy it! -Angelina
I’ve been sugar/starch/fruit and properly dairy free for a week now (already gluten and caffeine free). My first attempt was a fail. I felt so crap that after three days I convinced myself that I’d bought into some fad diet and was starving myself (despite eating plenty of protein and veggies and not actually being hungry).
After finding sites like these, I realized I was experiencing sugar withdrawals. I’d cut down my actual sugar intake months previously when taking probiotics, but it seems starch in my diet just stepped up and filled the void. On my second attempt at cutting starch too, I was feeling pretty bad by mid-morning and that was from merely switching out one slice of GF toast.
I experienced headaches, gurgly tummy and diarrhea, itchy skin, dry mouth, fatigue, low mood and insomnia. The second time I’d also started taking Milk Thistle and I think its helping. The really bad period only lasted a day and a night this time, with occasional fluxes of feeling like crap for an hour or so here and there.
This has been an on and off thing for many years and have gradually switched to a healthier diet. I’m trying to totally break the sugar habit now. The anxiety is especially difficult because I live alone and that just gets extremely scary. It helps to read these comments because I tell myself I’m going to feel good soon. Thank you all for your experiences.
I quit drinking Pepsi recently (two months now). I was drinking their “Throwback” version made with real sugar vs High Fructose Corn Syrup as I was drinking up to four 20 oz bottles a day (each bottles was 260 calories and 64 teaspoons of sugar each). The first two weeks were tough as I love Pepsi and have been drinking it for over 40+ years. I was anxious and quick to anger and I craved it immensely. I have substituted using Poland Springs seltzer water (Raspberry Lime is pretty darn good) to still enjoy the carbonation.
When giving this up I noticed I was also not craving Fast Food (McDonald’s), Candy and chips as much even though I hadn’t intended on giving these up. My appetite is back on track for better home cooked foods and I do feel so much better. I am choosing not to drink diet soda for a host of other reasons and I am drinking more coffee (black with no sugar) to boost me when I need me a pick me up. I chose the soda first as it was the single largest form of calories I consumed in a day that did not provide the benefits my body needed.
I may eat a little more, but my choices are healthier and at the times of day I need it with little to no snacking. I am losing weight slowly but that wasn’t my main concern as I just wanted to avoid developing type 2 diabetes due to my over the top sugar consumption. I do intend to make better eating choices slowly to avoid drastic changes that will cause cravings. If I desire a soda I choose ginger ale once a week as a treat and I drink a lot more water to stay hydrated in the summer (within proper guidelines as you really can drink to much if not careful).
Be patient and the positive changes will make you feel a whole lot better. It doesn’t hurt that my fat belly is going away on it’s own and my clothes are fitting better if not loosely. Do not try to do it all at once, do use baby steps as it isn’t a race, just a desire to improve your own quality of life in your body and each small step will help. No one needs more stress in their lives so make the changes gradually to avoid adding to the stress in your life. Take care, Peter.
I have gone on a no sugar/gluten free diet to treat Candida, and I am experiencing moodiness, anxiety, depression, and mild flu-like symptoms… I’m definitely glad to be going through this process, but will be so glad to be on the other side of it!
I quit refined sugar and alcohol 9 days ago and cut way down on carbs. Eating fresh fruits and veggies and lean meat and drinking lots of water. Trying to by organic and hormone free as much as I can…Experienced a lot of crabbiness the first few days and a low grade headache comes on every afternoon/evening but I’ve already lost 5 lbs and I’m finding my morning mood to be much better. I just know it’s worth it to be healthier and thinner.
I have been on the paleo way of eating for about ten days and I am feeling snappy with the wife more, but I am staying the course as I want to change my lifestyle.
I’m on week 1.5, going 30 days sans sugar. I’ve been ok…headaches, cravings…the usual…but going into week 2 I am noticing some HELLA brain fog and loss of motor skills. Is this normal? I feel like I’ve been poisoned! Thanks for writing about this :)
About 2 years ago I decided I wanted to get my health back. Sugar has been a huge addiction for me ever since I can remember, and cutting it out was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I managed to lower my sugar intake significantly for about a year to a point where I would get this weird bruised feeling whenever I over-consumed sugar, even if that meant eating an extra piece of cake. My body started to reject sugar completely!
After that year I hit a wall (life kind of got in the way) and I was eating sugar like never before; I even reached a point where I wouldn’t eat anything except for a few days except chocolates, sweets, etc. in attempt to compensate the calories. I gained weight, which was the hardest part for me, and the more I gained the more sweets I ate.
I’ve been trying to cut / lower my sugar intake ever since – I would go up to a week of low sugar intake, then binge on sweets for a few days, repeat cycle for the past year. The main reason for the binging was because I didn’t understand why I was getting EXTREME shakes, dizziness, nausea, and so on, and it scared me. But after reading this forum I’m determined to beat this addiction and get my health back.
Currently I’m on day four, again, and experiencing withdrawal symptoms, but now that I know that its normal I’m hoping to break through this repetitive cycle I’ve put myself through. Thanks to everyone who posted on here, knowing that you’re not alone is a real relief and very motivating, and I wish you all the best of luck :)
Very interesting! I tried to give up all refined sugar earlier this year and had flu like symptoms for approx a week. I stuck with it for a month and had huge weight loss and felt great. Unfortunately the old habits crept back and I’m now eating more refined sugar than ever as well as drinking a lot of caffeine. I feel asleep last night without my usual sweet treat and had terrible sleep, restless legs, and can feel the beginning of those flu like symptoms again already. Quite scary that the symptoms can arise within just a few hours. Clearly I need to make a change, am going to try do it, wish me luck.
I am a sugar addict. Was consuming 1/2 can of butter toffee nuts after dinner a day and a candy bar for lunch. I have consumed candy to an excess for 20 years on a daily basis. I am on day 3 cold turkey, no sugar. Withdrawal? Yes! I hit nausea about 4 pm every day, along with a headache and fatigue. I feel like I am starving to death so I am pounding the water. But, upside I have lost 1 pound already. I am not a quitter and I will beat this. Hang in there guys. If I can do it, so can you!
I’ve been “sugar free” for 7 days. I’m still having periods of anxiety and intermittent fatigue. My motivation seems to come and go. I think in a few weeks I’ll be kicking bu##! I’m sleeping so much better; my mind feels clearer; I awake refreshed!; and most importantly I feel like I have some control over not HAVING TO EAT every 2 hours. I’ve lost almost 5 lbs.
This is my second attempt. What I learned the first time is that I was low on certain amino acids and on Omega fatty acids. After supplementing with those I was able to do this. I’ve lost almost five pounds even though I’ve been eating a bit many macadamia nuts. (For perspective I’m currently 142 at 5.5. And at 123 people start thinking I’m anorexic. So five pounds is substantial for ME.
When I’ve craved sugar or crave a “treat” I eat macadamia nuts, drink water and take fish oil supplements. Again figuring out the amino acid thing was HUGE!! Julia Ross’s book “The Mood Cure” was helpful in figuring out what I was low on. There’s a free quiz online too. “Sugar Free” means I gave up refined sugars AND the foods that convert easily into sugar – potatoes, pasta, bread, honey, certain kinds of fruit.
I don’t “hate on people” who are still eating foods that convert easily into sugar. I just feel a little frustrated that they don’t realize that they are making it HARDER on themselves. Those foods spike blood sugar and continue cravings. Both Dr. Hyman and Dr. Fuhrman do a good job of explaining this. I’ve given up thee most sugar laden fruits TEMPORARILY for the same reason. I will be adding most of those fruits back into my diet. Good luck!
PS. If you are trying to lose weight – try to get off of anti-histamines. They cause weight gain too.
First of all, all of you who are giving up sugar and caffeine at the same time, you have all my respect. That is incredibly hard. I never give up caffeine, just switch from coffee to tea and back. Secondly, those of you who give up all carbs, fruit, and potatoes, etc, please don’t hate on those who haven’t. Giving up refined sugar seemed to be the goal of the original article, and refined sugar is the truly insidious destroyer of our mental and physical function.
If you’re having a truly hard time, try some sunflower seeds with honey and a pinch of salt before bed. It should lift your headache and help you sleep better. I’m on day 10 after falling off the wagon, and I thought I was dying when I started. I blamed my migraines on stress. But I’ve found coconut water, 33 oz, to be incredibly helpful.
Honestly, I pre-treat my sugar withdrawals. This is the second time that I’ve decided to kick sugar. The first time, I made it several months before I let a difficult situation in life send me into a tailspin. My eating was horrible.. a lot of sodium, sugar, saturated fat…lots of fast food and soda. Well, I’m back at the cutting out sugar and processed foods. What I like to do is pre-treat myself.
On day one, I’ll eat my breakfast and then work out… Around 9:00, I’ll take a couple of Tylenol to pre-treat the inevitable feeling like crap that’s sure to hit. About 5 hours later, I’ll do the same. By bed time, I feel bad, but I can stomach it OK with not being at work late at night. I’ll do that for 4 days… Then I’ll cut back to 1 Tylenol twice a day for another 3-4 days or as needed.
Honestly, this works for me. This time, I did have to extend my Tylenol treatment a day or two longer than the last. I was wondering why I was so nauseous and dizzy today. Finally I remembered that it’s the cutting out of refined sugars that’s kicking my tail. Pop a Tylenol and I’m OK. That doesn’t mean that I’ll stay on my diet. I’ve fallen off before. But, if I can just permanently kick soda, I think I’ll do pretty well.
I’ve never been the type to go out of my way to get candy or anything. It’s the sugary drinks that have been the problem. And yes, I know that some will criticize my use of Tylenol/Advil/Ibuprofen/Aspirin or whatever, but I think a week of using the stuff is well worth kicking sugar to the curb.
This is day 6 without sugar. I felt OK until this morning. I was ready to go to hospital until I read about sugar withdraws. I had sweats, shaking, racing heart, and shortness of breath. I am only eating meats, green vegetables, and fruits. I do not feel hungry or have cravings. I have never had an addiction, but guess it was sugar. Good luck to everyone.
I am a 16 year old, and have been doing research about sugar seemingly for years. I gained a lot of weight over the summer and the year and finally said enough is enough. I am in week one without sugar and from someone who loved ice cream and cookies and never really did sports, to signing up for cross country, I’m pretty proud of myself. Of course I am shaky, fatigued, and get headaches no matter how much water, I know it’s temporary.
It takes me 2 weeks to get back to an OK place. The body has not evolved to process the amount of sugar we put in it, so I expected the symptoms to be severe. I have an autoimmune condition and sugar made my joint pain worse. First week was painful physically, second week has been just fatigue, weird sleep, and moodiness. I feel much more able to love around though and my joint pain is gone :) so it has really been worth it. I used to consume a lot of sugar on a daily basis though.
Day 4 of no chocolate and hot chocolate (my energy boost in the morning). Hard to stay awake in class for the past two days, pretty bad brain fog and just extremely exhausted. Yesterday I was wondering if something was wrong with me. Never been so tired in my life. I stopped eating the sugar because I thought it was making my energy levels irregular so I thought cutting it out would show immediate improvement. Glad I found these comments to see that it’s just withdrawal. On the plus side, my complexion looks amazing and my tummy is a lot smaller!
I have quit sugar since 3 days ago, yesterday I was energetic, but today I’ve been having consistent headaches and a bit of dizziness since morning and by evening it’s gotten worse. I know that the body is detoxifying and hopefully it will go away sooner(I’m being patient). I had no idea not eating anything that contains sugar for 3 days could result me in such headache.
I’m a runner and I was wondering if anyone knows quiting sugar will prevent the muscles to grow?
And is the sugar in fruits consireded to be healthy? I think so, I’d like to eat fruits frequently as my base nutrition (I’m a vegetarian).
I wanted to lose some weight faster that with exercise alone, so following a chat with a friend, I went on to reduce as much refined sugars as possible. Over 14 weeks I lost the weight, but boy their was some days I had all the bad symptoms (feeling low, headaches, dizzy, etc) for no reason, and the only way to correct it was to up the sugar a bit and the bad symptoms when away almost straight away. I know some will say I should keep at it, but the bad symptoms are not nice.
I am on day 3 now of my sugar detox. I’m not nearly as hungry and my food cravings are very minimal. I felt mentally and physically refreshed on day 2. I did, however, wake up with a headache today.