How to Stop Sugar Cravings Naturally

Last Updated on January 28, 2023 by Lori Geurin

Sugar cravings can be a significant problem for many people, especially women. It’s essential to understand what causes sugar cravings and how they can affect your health and happiness. This blog post will help you learn more about the topic by providing some practical solutions to naturally stop sugar cravings.

We’ll cover topics like why we crave sugar in the first place, which foods are most likely to cause these types of cravings, and how you can take steps toward breaking this cycle of craving and overeating that may have become an unhealthy habit. You’re not alone; Let’s do this together!

First, let’s take a look at a real-life example.

Table Of Contents

Jane, the Sugar Addict
1. Understand the Causes of Sugar Cravings
- Here are other causes of sugar cravings:
2. Avoid Eating Processed Foods
3. Get Enough Sleep
4. Eat More Vegetables and Protein
5. Limit Sugar-Loaded Beverages
6. Avoid Sugar Substitutes
7. Supplement Your Diet

This post may contain affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of my affiliate links, I may get a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you so much for supporting our little blog. I appreciate you!

how to stop sugar cravings naturally / donuts and coffee

Jane, the Sugar Addict

Jane had been feeling bad for a while. She was at her breaking point and knew she needed to make a change. Jane felt like she could barely keep up with the demands of being a mom, full-time employee, and wife all on her own.

She would try to get some time in for herself, but it never seemed like enough. Lately, she’s noticed having some intense cravings for sugar, feels tired all the time, and has gained back 10 pounds of the baby weight she lost. She decides to learn how to get healthy by making more time for some new healthy habits.

On her break at work, she starts walking outside in the sun instead of sitting on the bench like usual. She drinks 12 oz of water at lunchtime before eating anything else or returning to work. She also started circadian rhythm fasting.

One day as she was writing in her journal, she began thinking about some recent discoveries she had made. Jane didn’t realize sugar could be addictive like that! She had been making excuses for why she should be able to eat sugar whenever she wanted it, but now she realized sugar was taking a strong toll on her life.

Her motivation to change and new healthy habits are making a difference. Within a few weeks, she notices that her sugar cravings have gone away! She feels focused at work again, has more energy, sleeps better at night, and can now run around with her kids several times a day.

Before she knew it, she felt healthy for the first time in years, lost 10 pounds, and decided to embrace her new healthy habits for the long term.

You’re not alone if you can relate to Jane’s struggles and sugar cravings. So, let’s learn about some strategies to stop sugar cravings naturally.

Quora Answer for How to Stop Sugar Cravings

I recently answered this question on Quora and wanted to share my reply here because it’s a common question for a lot of people:

How can I stop sugar cravings? I’m trying to diet, but my cravings for sweets are so bad that I end up binging.

Here’s my reply:

You may have heard that sugar is as addictive as cocaine.

So quitting sugar is not really about willpower. Eating sugar is a learned behavior with a physiological response. So it takes some time to unlearn that pattern of behavior and alleviate the cravings.

Many things can trigger cravings for sugary foods, including hunger, depression, or low-normal levels of insulin in the blood.

With hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), people often crave something sweet.

Considering all factors, how do you stop sugar cravings?

Well, it is to eat real food—vegetables and protein—in place of processed foods high in sugars and refined carbohydrates.

Here are some more quick tips that have helped me eliminate severe reactive hypoglycemia symptoms, eliminate sugar cravings, and lose 30 pounds.

LATEST POSTS

Natural Ways to Stop Sugar Cravings

Avoid sugar, simple carbs, and artificial sweeteners because eating more sugar just increases cravings and can lead to disease, insulin resistance, and weight gain. (After the first few days without sugar, it gets easier)
Exercise. Walking is a great activity you can do anywhere!
Eat high-quality protein or healthy fats when you feel a craving.
Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water.
Try intermittent fasting. My doctor suggested it when I started having severe hypoglycemia. I started slowly at first and have been doing it for years. (Here’s more on how to start fasting: Intermittent Fasting Guide: A Great Way To Lose Weight).

Sugar cravings are super annoying, but they can eventually be tamed if you’re persistent and work to improve healthy habits.

Don’t give up! Hope this helps!

That’s the end of my Quora answer, but I’d like to add a few more strategies to round out the list.

Get our FREE weight loss guide + FREE access to our entire resource library.

natural weight loss tips | LoriGeurin.com

More Natural Ways to Stop Craving Sugar

1. Understand the Causes of Sugar Cravings

There are many causes of sugar cravings.

Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) is a significant factor, and you may want to read my post on how I eliminated reactive hypoglycemia symptoms by adopting an intermittent fasting lifestyle.

Here are other causes of sugar cravings:

Hunger. It’s easy to confuse sugar cravings with hunger; sometimes, sugar won’t do the trick when you’re hungry.
Depression, Anxiety, Stress. People turn to sugar for a quick mood boost, but this isn’t healthy. Sugar causes sugar crashes and makes it even harder to feel good.
Tiredness. Sugar helps people stay awake, but it’s a temporary solution because the sugar will just make you tired later

2. Avoid Eating Processed Foods

Prepackaged food tends to have high sugar content, such as cookies, cake, ice cream, etc. They’re also loaded with unhealthy ingredients that can lead to weight gain and other health problems down the line.

Don’t get me wrong. Sugar isn’t the only factor in weight gain. It’s sugar AND other ingredients in processed foods that typically cause problems when they are eaten together.

3. Get Enough Sleep

Getting quality sleep may help lower unhealthy blood sugar levels. Restorative sleep is also crucial because sugar cravings often increase when you feel tired and stressed.

Here’s some more info on getting good sleep.

4. Eat More Vegetables and Protein

Eating sugar can also lead to a decreased appetite for other food, such as healthy fruits and vegetables. Make sure you’re getting the recommended servings of veggies in your diet.

Eat sugar in moderation and try to replace sugar with natural sweeteners like stevia or honey.

Here are some blog posts with healthy recipes and nutrition tips.

5. Limit Sugar-Loaded Beverages

Sugar cravings are often triggered by sugar-loaded drinks such as soda, gourmet coffees, energy drinks, etc. These can be addictive sugar bombs that pack on the pounds.

6. Avoid Sugar Substitutes

Like sugar, sugar substitutes like aspartame and sucralose have been linked to weight gain. Make sure you read the labels on sugar-free products so you can avoid sugar substitutes too.

7. Supplement Your Diet

Consider taking high-quality supplements such as magnesium, calcium, and vitamin D to keep your body functioning correctly and boost energy levels.

Conclusion: Eliminate Sugar Cravings for Good

Maybe you can relate to wanting something sweet now and then. (I know I can!) Whether it’s a piece of cake or a candy bar, sugar cravings are tough, but these tips can help.

Eliminating cravings doesn’t happen overnight, but with some persistence, you will be sugar-free in no time. Because you’re sweet enough already. : )

Do you have other ideas about how to avoid these pesky cravings? Let us know below in the comments! And, if you’ve found this helpful, please share so others can enjoy it too. Thanks so much!