© Gluten Free Society
This week I thought I would focus on sugar because we are in the middle of the holiday season and the problem becomes much more pronounced socially due to parties, family visits, eating out, etc. We all know that gluten in a major problem in our diets, but most people accept sugar without thinking of it's detrimental properties. A little sugar here, a little there...before you know it you are sick and incorrectly blaming the aging process, not the food.

Take the quiz here.

Most people like sugar, but can you actually be addicted to it? There is a big difference between someone who eats sugar every once in a while compared to someone who eats it constantly, craves it voraciously, and lets it impact their health to the point of feeling physically and emotionally sick. You may or may not be addicted to sugar - read on to decide for yourself...

So to answer the question, "Can you really be addicted to sugar?" You bet you can! It's not an addiction that is talked about much yet, because it's so socially acceptable. My friend, who is known as the Sugar Addiction Specialist, Samantha Taylor says, "It's when that white substance starts to be something you don't want to live without; starts to affect your health negatively and you don't know how to get yourself to stop eating it - that, my Friend, is when there is a problem."

Yes, that is hard question to ask, "Could I possibly be addicted to sugar?" I know that many who love sugar don't really ask themselves that question yet when they do ask it and they honestly look at their life, they usually say, "Oh my gosh, I think I am addicted to sugar!" It can be a rather shocking moment because you always knew something was 'off' but you surely didn't connect that you were addicted to sugar, I mean, come on...it's only sugar, right?

Research Supports It

Well, studies have shown that sugar can be very addictive and, just like with drugs or alcohol, it's only addictive in certain people. Some people can have one do-nut and it's no big deal whereas someone who struggles with a sensitivity to sugar, that do-nut can turn into 4 more, then cake or cookies later or some kind of other chocolate. My friend Samantha Taylor, who was a sugar addict for 30 years and is known as the Sugar Addiction Specialist can attest that, "For a sugar addict, eating sugar turns into eating more and more sugar and it doesn't stop!"

Have you ever just been sitting there at work or home and a thought pops into your head about a dessert you like? You start to see yourself eating it and then all of a sudden your brain kicks into gear of how you are going to fulfill that vision? That dream...that fantasy....yes, you get whisked off into the sunset with you and your sugar and all is great until....the 'come down', the sugar crash. Dah, dah, daaaaahhhhh.....

The ride up is great, sure tastes good but boy, when it's over and the high of the sugar wears off and the joy of the flavor is long gone, you are left with plummeting blood sugar levels that totally whack out your body from your mood to how clear you can think, to your energy level, to hot flashes, to snapping at the kids, or to needing to take naps. Yes, that is the life of how some people addicted to sugar live.

It's like this unhealthy, dysfunctional relationship where the person is fun to be with for a little while, then something happens, they just turn on you and it gets weird! Do you know what that is like with sugar?

Many people who are addicted to sugar have been for many, many years. Samantha has seen that the average person addicted to sugar was since childhood or at least for the last 10 to 20 years and many of them didn't think they were addicted until they actually heard about a sugar addiction from Samantha. And they found that once they learned how to overcome the addiction, they were shocked that they did NOT crave it anymore.

"That is the main fear people have," Samantha says, "when they think of overcoming their sugar addiction. They think they will always crave it but what they find out is they actually don't crave it when it's out of their system. It really is an amazing thing to experience when it has messed with your life for so long!"

Now wouldn't it be good for you to know if you are addicted to sugar? How can you tell? The best thing to do is take this short quiz so you can self-diagnose yourself. Who knows yourself better then you? No one....that is why YOU get to decide if you are addicted to sugar or not. No one else can you tell you, so take a minute to take 'The Quiz' and find out if you really are addicted sugar.

P.S. This quiz can really help shed some light on this for you and see if you really are addicted to sugar or not. Take a few minutes to just take the quiz, you will be glad you did!

Dr. Osborne - The Gluten Free Warrior