Caffeine and sugar will lead to relapse
Guest
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: The Deep South
Posts: 14,636
I have sugar issues and have cut way back. Eating my sugar in the form of fruits now, on the paleo diet. Still drinking about four cups of coffee per day which I'm ok with but probably need to cut down to 1-2 cups. I do think my metabolism is sensitive to both sugar and caffeine. And I can see this tying into PAWS and even a relapse. So ideally, it's probably best to cut out most processed sugar as well as caffeine. Sent from my iPhone using SoberRecovery
Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Western Washington
Posts: 202
I agree with others that I personally find there is a connection between my sugar and carb consumption/cravings and my alcohol consumption/cravings. When I was drinking, if I wanted to stop drinking early in the night I would eat sugary food and that would sort of hit the same spot and I would go to bed not feeling deprived or frustrated.
When I quit drinking, I allowed myself to eat junk food with little to no restriction for about the first 2 months. After that (and of course gaining weight during that time) I have started a low-sugar low-carb, high vegetable and lean protein eating plan (_State of Slim_ is the book I'm following.)
I'm finding that with dramatically reduced carbs/sugar, I have way less desire to eat junk food or to drink. My mood overall seems much more stable.
I haven't given up caffeine, though I would imagine doing so would contribute even further to that feeling of stable mood & blood sugar. Still, a girl's gotta have at least one vice!
When I quit drinking, I allowed myself to eat junk food with little to no restriction for about the first 2 months. After that (and of course gaining weight during that time) I have started a low-sugar low-carb, high vegetable and lean protein eating plan (_State of Slim_ is the book I'm following.)
I'm finding that with dramatically reduced carbs/sugar, I have way less desire to eat junk food or to drink. My mood overall seems much more stable.
I haven't given up caffeine, though I would imagine doing so would contribute even further to that feeling of stable mood & blood sugar. Still, a girl's gotta have at least one vice!
Grateful
Join Date: May 2013
Location: NC
Posts: 1,763
It was suggested to me during my early days in sobriety to eat some chocolate if I was having strong cravings for alcohol. Notice that was for early in sobriety. Alcohol has a ton of sugar in it, so when you stop drinking abruptly your sugar levels are going to be out of whack. I noticed that my craving for sweets slowly returned to normal over the first few months as my sugar levels balanced out. It sounds like this person took some information with a smidgen of truth in it and exaggerated it wildly for her own benefit.
As far as caffeine goes I don't think I fit the norm. I can go for weeks or months drinking several cups of coffee a day and then go weeks or months without drinking any. Lately I've been struggling with insomnia so I haven't had any coffee for a couple of months (I will have a diet coke when I wake up -- then water / juice / low cal gatorade).
If having coffee and cookies available at meetings constitutes "promoting" caffeine and sugar then most of the meetings I attend are guilty.
As far as caffeine goes I don't think I fit the norm. I can go for weeks or months drinking several cups of coffee a day and then go weeks or months without drinking any. Lately I've been struggling with insomnia so I haven't had any coffee for a couple of months (I will have a diet coke when I wake up -- then water / juice / low cal gatorade).
If having coffee and cookies available at meetings constitutes "promoting" caffeine and sugar then most of the meetings I attend are guilty.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 3,359
Chocolate is great with high >90 Cocao content. Milk Chocolate is actually really bad for you. The history is chocolate in the form we know it today was refined by Nestle and Lindt. Most chocolate only has 35% cocao content. Pure Cocao fights free radicals in our bodies and is actually a super food.
Sugar is not bad. Processed sugar is. I have removed all processed foods from my diet seven months ago. The results are quite amazing. I am down 35lbs, body fat dropped from 25% to about 15% and continue to trade fat for muscle. My energy level is high, although I also try to nap in the middle of the day, as naps stimulate human growth hormone release.
You may want to look into removing wheat. I also removed all wheat based products (flour, gluten etc).
I have tried to remove all genetically modified organisms from my diet. GMOs are created by a laboratory process that transfers genetic material into the DNA of an organism. There are nine genetically modified (GM) food crops currently on the market: soy, corn, cotton (oil), canola (oil), sugar from sugar beets, zucchini, yellow squash, Hawaiian papaya, and alfalfa. Notice that wheat is not one of these. Although wheat has been hybridized through natural breeding techniques over the years, it is not in fact a GMO.
Sugar is not bad. Processed sugar is. I have removed all processed foods from my diet seven months ago. The results are quite amazing. I am down 35lbs, body fat dropped from 25% to about 15% and continue to trade fat for muscle. My energy level is high, although I also try to nap in the middle of the day, as naps stimulate human growth hormone release.
You may want to look into removing wheat. I also removed all wheat based products (flour, gluten etc).
I have tried to remove all genetically modified organisms from my diet. GMOs are created by a laboratory process that transfers genetic material into the DNA of an organism. There are nine genetically modified (GM) food crops currently on the market: soy, corn, cotton (oil), canola (oil), sugar from sugar beets, zucchini, yellow squash, Hawaiian papaya, and alfalfa. Notice that wheat is not one of these. Although wheat has been hybridized through natural breeding techniques over the years, it is not in fact a GMO.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Location: East Coast USA
Posts: 120,859
I partially credit copious amounts of frozen M&Ms to my early sobriety. Eventually the sugar cravings eased to a more socially acceptable level.
I love coffee; I can't say that coffee was a trigger or contributor to my drinking; drank it before, during and after my drinking career but usually only in the morning (and I never drank in the morning).
As to this doctor's theory, I think that LBrain hit the nail on the head.
I love coffee; I can't say that coffee was a trigger or contributor to my drinking; drank it before, during and after my drinking career but usually only in the morning (and I never drank in the morning).
As to this doctor's theory, I think that LBrain hit the nail on the head.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 143
So strange how there are so many extremes. I don't deal with sugar cravings at all, I don't vomit through withdrawls or get headaches. Anxiety and Insomnia are my 2 hot buttons. I even read that some people can go through alcohol withdrawl for a year. I cant imagine that.
Peace, Love, Sobriety
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Wilmington, DE
Posts: 1,549
Originally Posted by Kaneda8888 
Hey all
I was surfing youtube the other night and watched this short video by a doctor who was criticising AA. She was saying that AA causes folks to relapse as it promoted caffeine and sweets (i.e., sugar) as substitutes for alcohol. However, all those products did was to act as placebos and sets up a person for relapse.
According to her AA and the Big Book promoted caffeine and sugar as substitutes. Now, I have been to hundreds of AA rooms and have never heard of such items being promoted as substitutes. Also, I do have the Big Book but I dont remember reading about this either.
The doctor went on to say that alcoholism was a physiological disorder and that the proper diet would help overcome the addiction. Guess whose book she was promoting
I switched off mentally in relation to 90% of what she said as I know otherwise.
However, I am curious to know about caffeine and sugar being potential aids to relapse ? I do drink a lot of coffee in the morning and do enjoy sweets (though that has tapered off lately).
I would be interested to hear any insights on this !
Have a brilliant day and much love to all !
K
I was surfing youtube the other night and watched this short video by a doctor who was criticising AA. She was saying that AA causes folks to relapse as it promoted caffeine and sweets (i.e., sugar) as substitutes for alcohol. However, all those products did was to act as placebos and sets up a person for relapse.
According to her AA and the Big Book promoted caffeine and sugar as substitutes. Now, I have been to hundreds of AA rooms and have never heard of such items being promoted as substitutes. Also, I do have the Big Book but I dont remember reading about this either.
The doctor went on to say that alcoholism was a physiological disorder and that the proper diet would help overcome the addiction. Guess whose book she was promoting
I switched off mentally in relation to 90% of what she said as I know otherwise.
However, I am curious to know about caffeine and sugar being potential aids to relapse ? I do drink a lot of coffee in the morning and do enjoy sweets (though that has tapered off lately).
I would be interested to hear any insights on this !
Have a brilliant day and much love to all !
K
Besides, I have never heard of anyone dying from candy or coffee, so that woman needs to find a new hobby.
Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 5,439
The first few weeks I was sober, I found I had sugar cravings. But I'd eat a healthy snack and drink a couple of glasses of water and the sugar craving would disappear. Turned out I just had low blood sugar and wasn't used to eating regular, healthy meals. I read that low blood sugar levels can cause PAWS symptoms to flare up. So I tried to eat regular meals and have healthy snacks in between to keep my blood sugar level. My sugar cravings disappeared completely in 2 weeks or so.
I also noticed in the early days that I didn't get to feeling 'hungry' really, but would notice my moods going wonky- I'd become easily stressed and emotional. If I had a snack then, I'd feel much better. Again, I really just had low blood sugar but wasn't used to interpretting that as being 'hungry'.
Alcohol not only lacks nutrients but also makes our bodies less effecient at processing the nutrients we do get. So, most of us are malnourished when we first quit. Eating as much healthy food as possible helps our brains and bodies to heal more quickly.
If ice cream or other sweets help, then I certainly think that's better than drinking. But I personally would recommend eating a healthy snack and having a glass of water when a sugar craving hits and then eating something sweet if the snack doesn't 'cure' it.
I also noticed in the early days that I didn't get to feeling 'hungry' really, but would notice my moods going wonky- I'd become easily stressed and emotional. If I had a snack then, I'd feel much better. Again, I really just had low blood sugar but wasn't used to interpretting that as being 'hungry'.
Alcohol not only lacks nutrients but also makes our bodies less effecient at processing the nutrients we do get. So, most of us are malnourished when we first quit. Eating as much healthy food as possible helps our brains and bodies to heal more quickly.
If ice cream or other sweets help, then I certainly think that's better than drinking. But I personally would recommend eating a healthy snack and having a glass of water when a sugar craving hits and then eating something sweet if the snack doesn't 'cure' it.
Left the bottle behind 4/16/2015
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: NC
Posts: 1,416
Once when I quit drinking - it was in October so there was lots of Halloween candy available in the stores - I devoured an entire bag of candy corn! Now, that stuff is nasty, really, but I love the taste and could not stop eating it! I can get just as out of control with sweets as I do with booze. Makes sense, since booze is derived from sugar. I get cravings for sugar and start shaking, just as I would if I craved a drink.
Behold the power of NO
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: WA
Posts: 7,764
A lot of alcoholics have issues with hypoglycemia and I think the key is balance.
As far as that lady doctor goes, if she is the same one who says she can cure mental illness through nutrition, her and her clinic have quite a few scam reports filed on them and from reading them she sounds more like a money hungry quack than a physician.
I drank a lot of coffee and ate a lot of cheese in early sobriety (my cravings were for cheese not for sugar) but now I have stabilized. Caffeine did not trigger me.
As far as that lady doctor goes, if she is the same one who says she can cure mental illness through nutrition, her and her clinic have quite a few scam reports filed on them and from reading them she sounds more like a money hungry quack than a physician.
I drank a lot of coffee and ate a lot of cheese in early sobriety (my cravings were for cheese not for sugar) but now I have stabilized. Caffeine did not trigger me.
Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Posts: 49
When I hear or read any of the the Promises in AA literature, I think of coffee. Even decaf coffee makes me happy.
I'm also a huge fan of chocolate frosting.
I could never enjoy simple things like that while drinking.
I have not taken a punch or passed out in all my years of sobriety, which involves a fair amount of indulging in coffee and chocolate frosting.
I'm also a huge fan of chocolate frosting.
I could never enjoy simple things like that while drinking.
I have not taken a punch or passed out in all my years of sobriety, which involves a fair amount of indulging in coffee and chocolate frosting.
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