Prevent and overcome sweet food addiction & bull; hello healthy

The desire to eat sweet foods and high in calories is programmed in our brains from birth. The desire to consume as many calories as possible is a human instinct to survive. But as the times change, sugar and high-calorie foods are easier to obtain. It also triggers life changes with high sugar consumption and causes sugar craving aka addicted to sweet foods.

What is addiction to sweet foods (sugar craving)?

Sugar craving is a form of addiction or addiction that occurs in the brain due to excess sugar consumption. We often do not realize that we are addicted to sweet foods because they are integrated into our daily diet. This has become a big problem when we tend to eat large amounts of food right after tasting sweet foods.

The process of addiction is characterized by the brain's response to sweet foods causing the secretion of serotonin and endorphins which make us tend to be calmer or known as " neurological reward ". The habit of consuming sugary foods also causes a decrease in the performance of the leptin hormone to signal to the brain that we still have enough calories. The result is an increase in the desire for food consumption, especially sweet foods.

How is the process of sweet food addiction?

Everyone who experiences sugar craving has different triggers, but the process of the desire to eat sweet foods again can be explained in simple terms as follows:

1. Consumption of sugary foods that come from sugar or artificial sweeteners causes glucose levels to rise very high.
2. After stopping consuming sugary foods or drinks, a condition occurs crash where blood glucose levels drop very dramatically.
3. This condition makes the body react to trigger hunger or the desire to eat sweet foods again, to restore blood sugar levels to what they were after eating.
4. If you respond to hunger by eating sweet foods again, it will cause the process to return to normal and cause the desire to consume sweet foods to increase.

Health impact of sugar craving

Addiction conditions cause a person to want to consume sugar continuously. If not fulfilled, it can cause various behavioral changes such as unstable emotions, difficulty concentrating, or hyperactivity. Not consuming sugar for a while can also cause anxiety, feeling discouraged, or feeling sleepy.

Excessive sweet consumption causes unnecessary calorie storage, because basically it is fulfilled from other types of food, even though it doesn't taste too sweet. Sugar craving cause nutritional imbalance because we prefer foods that are high in glucose than foods that contain vitamins, minerals, protein and fiber. As a result, it can trigger excess fat accumulation and disrupt the balance of cholesterol levels in the body. In a long time, this has triggered obesity and causes various degenerative diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

How to deal with sweet food addiction

Avoid things that trigger you to eat sweet foods

Some things are stressful or annoying mood may be a trigger for you to eat a sweet snack. This unconsciously makes it difficult to stop snacking. If this happens to you, overcome it by avoiding sources of stress for a moment and choosing activities that tend to distract you such as reading books, watching movies, or talking to friends or family.

Improve your diet

Snacking on sugary foods can also be triggered by eating habits when you start to feel hungry. To keep the body feeling full for longer, add food sources that contain protein and fiber. In addition, prevent the reduction in excess blood sugar levels by consuming healthy snacks that are rich in fiber such as whole grains, fruits and vegetables every 2-4 hours after mealtime.

Regular physical activity

High consumption of sugar can cause the brain's mechanism to produce endorphins instantly, and this habit will be difficult to break. One way to overcome this problem is to replace the mechanism of endorphins formation by physical activity. Exercise can also distract you from consuming sweets and can help your body absorb food nutrients better.

Avoid consuming artificial sweeteners and added sugar

Sugar craving not only related to high sugar consumption patterns but also the problem of sugar consumption addiction. Consumption of artificial sweeteners, in addition to being unhealthy, cannot help overcome the effects of addiction caused because the brain can still respond to sweetness. Consumption of foods labeled "low fat" is also not good if you want to cope sugar craving because it has added sugar.