Kills cravings for sweets. American biologists have long proposed equating sweet poison to alcohol and tobacco

The first post in the “Weight loss supplements” series is dedicated to products that reduce cravings for sweets, starchy foods, and overeating. This happens very often, you stay on cottage cheese and salads all day, and in the evening an unbearable itch begins to chew something sweet and starchy. I'll talk about three supplements: chromium picolinate, 5-htp (tryptophan) and glutamine.

Let's start with the most popular supplement, which everyone who has once tried to lose weight or is already accustomed to living in a state of permanent weight loss knows, this is, of course, the famous chromium picolinate!

Chromium ranks first among all supplements in its ability to normalize blood sugar levels. More than 90% of people suffer from chromium deficiency in the body! (just think about this number).

Chromium deficiency is a vicious cycle: when there is little chromium in the body, sugar cravings increase, but the more sugar you consume, the more chromium in the body is depleted.

That's why regular intake Almost all people need chromium, even those who are not losing weight, because it is chronic deficiency chromium very often leads to disruption of insulin metabolism and most chronic diseases (strokes, hypertension, gastritis, migraines, etc.).

Chromium picolinate reduces sugar cravings

I will not be distracted and will return to losing weight. The best way getting rid of excess fat, in addition to a low-carb diet is taking chromium picolinate. Research shows that chromium picolinate hits weight loss on several fronts:

reducing cravings for sweets, chromium makes it easier to follow a diet without failure
even without a diet, chromium helps increase lean body mass, which speeds up metabolism (the more muscle in the body, the faster the metabolism)
chromium prevents muscle loss during caloric restriction
chromium increases calorie expenditure when physical exercise. By the way, sports and fitness accelerate the removal of chromium from the body, so it should be taken by everyone who plays sports!

Chrome has one more thing important property: It fights cell glycation, one of the main factors in skin aging. This is the process of cell damage and dying due to high amounts of sugar in the blood, gluing of collagen fibers (which is why all fast food and sweets lead to early aging skin!).

How to choose the right chrome

The most effective chromium compounds is chromium picolinate and polynicotinate, but chromium picolinate has more pronounced effect. To reduce cravings for sweets, the daily dosage of chromium is 200-600 mcg per day, and for obesity or diabetes it is already 600-1000 mcg per day.

Chromium Picolinate Solgar – $9.58

Tryptophan controls increased appetite and improves mood

I call tryptophan ″vitamins of happiness″, and I drink it as a mild and safe means to relieve symptoms of anxiety and stress, as well as in situations when you want to eat a lot of something harmful! Not because of hunger, but only because Bad mood or bored. This is familiar to everyone!))

Tryptophan is ideal with constant breakdowns in diet and when leaving them. They also successfully treat eating disorders (gluttony, bulimia), this is what we need so as not to break down and not eat everything indiscriminately! And finally forget about night food and attacks of terrible hunger!

How to choose the right tryptophan

The most effective form This amino acid is like this, with the number 5 in the name 5-htp. Just look for it on the label! Effective dosage This tryptophan is 300-400 mg per day, and you can take it in doses of 100 mg or more.

Sometimes tryptophan is combined with magnesium and vitamin B6, which prolongs the action of tryptophan so that it acts more long time. I chose exactly this Solgar complex, here it is:

Tryptophan Solgar - $23.92

I drink tryptophan 1-2 capsules, shortly before dinner, It is advisable to drink it on an empty stomach, and not during meals, like most vitamins. If this complex is not on sale (and it is quickly sold out!), then read about others

Glutamine treats alcohol and sugar addiction

Glutamine is one of the most important amino acids in the human body, it accelerates tissue healing and is used for treatment inflammatory diseases intestines and cancer prevention.

But she has one more important action, glutamine helps with addictions! Nutritionist Roger Williams has successfully used glutamine to treat alcohol addiction, and about 75% of patients were actually able to get rid of cravings for alcohol!

After this experiment, researchers successfully began using glutamine to overcome uncontrollable sugar cravings. And very successfully, because glutamine helped most people get rid of sugar addiction test subjects!

Moreover, glutamine is good because it acts immediately - when a craving for sweets appears, you need to take 1-2 grams of l-glutamine, preferably with a spoonful of heavy cream, and the unbearable desire to indulge in sweets will go away.

In addition to treating sugar and alcohol addiction, glutamine may also be useful to us:

glutamine restores muscle tissue after training, causing the body to burn more fat
glutamine cleanses the liver of by-products fat metabolism
and is also an accessible non-carbohydrate source of energy in a low-calorie diet.

This means that on a strict diet or detox you can forget about the constant feeling of fatigue and apathy when the body just lacks energy!

How to choose the right glutamine

Choose the most accessible form in the form of l-glutamine. It is available both in powder and in capsules; capsules are more convenient. Capsules are needed with a dosage of 1000 mg. To overcome cravings for alcohol and sugar, it is enough to take 1-3 grams of glutamine at the same time, it should be taken immediately after the desire to drink alcohol or eat something sweet.

Glutamine Solgar – $10.38

To stimulate the immune system, dosages of 5-20 grams of glutamine are usually prescribed per day, so a dosage of 3 grams is not at all scary))

Glutamine goes well with chromium picolinate, it’s just that glutamine provides an immediate effect against cravings for sweets, while chromium picolinate provides a balanced and gradual effect throughout the day.

Where can I get these supplements to treat our gluttony))

I order all the vitamins from my favorite American store iherb, you can also find them in Russian pharmacies, just be prepared for the fact that quality supplements prices will be several times higher. Ordering them on iHerb is much easier and cheaper!

And how to get a discount on your first order, I wrote in detail here, everything is super easy there!

Solgar, Chromium Picolinate, 500 mcg, 120 Veggie Caps
Solgar, 5-HTP, 100 mg, 90 Veggie Caps - $23.92
Solgar, L-Glutamine, 1000 mg, 60 Tablets — $10.38

Well, now tell me, do you still empty the refrigerator at night, are you going to put a lock in the kitchen? Then I'm coming to you!))

Each of us has our little weaknesses, but sometimes there comes a time when they develop into big problem. There is nothing criminal about eating 1-2 candies or drinking tea with a spoon of honey, but when you really go overboard with sweets on a regular basis and you begin to feel dependent on candies and cakes, you need to take action. Sweets are not something that our body cannot do without, so you can say goodbye to bad habit using these 10 practical tips.

Never skip breakfast

It has been observed that those of us who start our day with a balanced meal crave less sweets throughout the day. This is explained by the fact that skipping breakfast reduces the level of glucose in the blood, which we try to bring into order by snacking on sweets. Include in your morning list eggs, vegetables, nuts, lean meats, whole grains, legumes and other foods that support even insulin levels.

Find the chrome

This mineral actually helps stabilize blood sugar levels, helping curb uncontrollable sugar cravings. Therefore, if you constantly want to snack on cookies, chocolate or some other sweet snack, you may have a lack of chromium in your body. To fix this, add more broccoli, mushrooms, whole grains and cereals to your diet, naturally grape juice, asparagus and other chromium-rich foods.

Take probiotics daily

One of the reasons uncontrolled cravings To sweets can become dysbacteriosis. Colonies of pathogenic microflora of bacteria and yeast fungi literally “feed” on sugar. Consuming probiotic-rich foods beneficial bacteria, helps normalize the balance of intestinal microflora, so include it in your daily diet natural yogurt and kefir.

Get over yourself

If you're ready for radical measures, try this trick: completely stop eating sweets for a week or two and watch what happens. Usually, the first 2-3 days are the most difficult, and the body will persistently demand its portion of the sweet “drug”. However, if you overcome these urges, after a while you will find that the cravings become more manageable - which is what you wanted to achieve.

Cut down on caffeine

Caffeine can do a disservice by causing sharp drop blood sugar levels. Therefore, after your morning coffee and donut, most likely within an hour you will have the desire to eat a whole box of these donuts. Replace coffee herbal tea, fruit juice or smoothie - fructose does not cause sharp rises and falls in blood sugar, and healthy fiber will help prolong the feeling of fullness by filling your stomach.

Switch to natural sugars

If the desire to eat something sweet persists, try snacking not on candy or ice cream, but on a portion of dried fruit or a juicy fruit such as an apple or orange. The natural sweetness of these foods will satisfy the psychological urge, while the fiber will help stabilize blood sugar levels. This is the main difference from refined carbohydrates, which cause sudden fluctuations in blood sugar levels.

Drink more water

A simple healthy habit of starting your morning with a glass of water will not only help you achieve the required level of moisture in the body, but will also gently prepare your digestive organs for work. As a result, even after the heaviest breakfast, the stomach will quickly cope with its task, and cravings for sweets will be under control. Do not forget that the required minimum is 8 glasses of water. Herbal tea is also a good choice.

If your diet contains a balanced amount of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, then very soon you will forget about the uncontrollable urge to eat sweets. The right decision is to include more beans, lentils, yogurt, lean meat, celery, cabbage, whole grains, hummus, leafy greens, grapes and nuts.

Add fat

Feel free to add to your main course small portion oils rich in saturated fatty acids - cocoa butter, cream and pumpkin seed oil will be a healthy choice. Contrary to popular belief, such ingredients contain substances that nourish the entire body and help naturally suppress cravings for sweets.

Move more

Physical exercise helps produce the hormone of happiness - endorphin. Remember how you feel after finishing a good workout: you are full of energy and experiencing an emotional uplift. A short walk after lunch will have a similar effect. It has also been observed that exercise encourages you to eat healthier, so there are many more benefits to exercise than you might think.

Greetings, friends! I have great news for you, I have started active work above my YOUTUBE channel and today I suggest you watch the video.

I will talk about addiction to sweets, the reasons for cravings for sweets, how to overcome it and how to get rid of it. For those who have slow Internet speeds, I am posting a transcript of the recording and you can read about what we're talking about in the video.

Enjoy watching! subscribe to my channel http://www.youtube.com/c/SakharvNormeTV

These days there is a real pandemic of excess weight and carbohydrate disorders. Health systems in many countries are seriously concerned about the rising number of cases diabetes mellitus and obesity, especially among children. Russia's position in this problem is by no means last place. In our country, the number of adults and children with overweight increases every year.

Behind last decades Russia has moved from 19th to 4th place in terms of the number of obesity in women and by 2030 it is predicted to approach the indicators of the USA and Great Britain. By the way, about 50% of their residents already have overweight and obesity.

There are quite a few reasons for weight gain, but one of the most common is excessive consumption of sweets and desserts, which is very strong, pathological cravings to these products.

And today we will talk about some of the reasons for craving for sweets and how to overcome this bad habit.

Good dream

Healthy sleep is the main condition for maintaining normal weight or weight loss issues. You can work out in the gym as much as you want, but if you sleep little, go to bed late or the quality of your sleep suffers, then you can forget about a beautiful figure.

Surely, you have noticed that after a sleepless night or a late bedtime, the entire next day is accompanied by a low level of energy and you always want something tasty. In fact, this has long been a proven fact.

A study was conducted that when various violations sleep, a person begins to eat more and at the same time unconsciously choose foods with a high glycemic index.

This is easy to explain. Sleep is a time for complete relaxation and restoration of strength, especially for our nervous system. During sleep, the brain accumulates energy for the next day. Not only the number of hours is very important, but also the time of going to bed and the quality of the sleep itself, i.e. absence extraneous sounds and light. Pituitary hormones (ACTH, STH and others) and melatonin (pineal hormone) are involved in restoring strength. They have their own hours of greatest activity associated with sleep and its phases.

Naturally, when you went to bed very late, the brain did not have time to recover, and therefore the whole body, since it is the brain that sets the tone for the entire body. When energy levels are low, a person is simply forced to replenish it throughout the day. What is a fast source of energy? That's right, carbohydrates! And the sweeter the better!

That's why perfect time going to bed no later than 22:00, sleep duration is at least 7 hours and you need to sleep in complete silence, with tightly curtained windows, removing the slightest light sources in the room. The use of earplugs and blindfolds is encouraged.

How to reduce and overcome sugar cravings after poor sleep

What to do if there was bad night, and no one canceled daily activities? In this case, I can give some advice. Usually bad feeling begins serving after lunch from 2 to 4 p.m. It is the adrenal glands that have used up their entire reserve in a day.

Hearty breakfast. Food should contain a lot of protein, fat and a minimum of carbohydrates. It is better to use fruits, dried fruits or nuts as carbohydrates. Avoid coffee in the morning because coffee will give you a morning boost of energy that will quickly be used up and become worse. It’s better to save this drink for an after-dinner snack when you start to feel sleepy.
Alternate sedentary work with warm-ups. After sitting for a long time or when you feel that your eyelids are sticking together, you need to get up and stretch. You can simply walk along the corridor, go up and down the stairs several times, do squats or push-ups. Short-term physical activity will disperse lethargy and drowsiness.
Don't skip lunch. Be sure to have lunch to replenish your energy, but avoid desserts and sweets, which will further deplete your tired adrenal glands. Carbohydrates include vegetables, fruits, seeds and nuts.
Daytime sleep. Find 20-30 minutes for nap. Believe that in in this case You especially need a midday nap. During lunch, you will be able to get some sleep and regain some strength.
After sleep, you can drink a cup of natural coffee with a spoon of coconut oil. Caffeine will tone you up nervous system. Coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acid, which are instantly absorbed and converted into pure energy. This should be enough for you for the rest of the working day.
Don't skip dinner, even if you're really sleepy. The lightest dinner is better than no dinner at all. For example, grilled vegetables with a piece of fish. You can also indulge in a piece of dark chocolate with herbal tea, fruit or nuts.
Go to bed earlier than usual. As a rule, on such days, by the evening the body is mobilized, it gets a second wind, and drowsiness disappears without a trace. Don't be fooled by the illusion. It’s just that the adrenal glands are starting to work overtime, and if you don’t put yourself to bed now, then tomorrow you will be as bad as today. If this is repeated often and regularly, then you can develop adrenal fatigue, which is very difficult and takes a long time to treat.

Candidiasis

Our bodies are home to billions of different bacteria, viruses and fungi. The yeast fungus Candida is opportunistic flora. In other words, it does not cause unpleasant manifestations, until there are suitable conditions for excessive reproduction.

Uncontrolled use of antibiotics, decreased immunity and excessive love of sweets create fertile soil for the development of fungal pathology. At the same time, it is not limited to damage to the genital area, as is commonly believed. Candida begins to spread throughout the body and affects many organs and tissues, especially the intestinal tract.

As you know, yeast grows by consuming glucose. Candida also requires glucose for development and the fungus will secrete special substances that will magically act on eating behavior and cause cravings for sweets. As a result, a person, without realizing it, feeds the insolent candida, thinking that this is his decision.

What to do in this case? To reduce cravings for flour and sweets, you must first prove the presence of a high concentration of this fungus. A stool analysis according to Osipov is recommended, which will show you not only the fungus, but also other pathogenic and opportunistic microorganisms.

When the diagnosis is clear and there is candidiasis, then another question arises. How to treat? In this case, the first step would be to switch to an anti-candida diet. You may need to prescribe antimycotics and dietary supplements. I’ll tell you about this some other time, subscribe to the channel so you don’t miss it.

Stress and fatigued adrenal glands

There are two types of stress: physiological stress and distress, i.e. pathological. Physiological stress hardens the body and makes it stronger. In this case, a short-term release of adrenal hormones occurs, which are used to solve a specific problem. For example, running away from a bear is a healthy stress that saves a person’s life or resisting viral infection– this is also healthy stress, which also contributes to a person’s recovery.

Distress is a long-term and moderate exposure to irritants that do not threaten a person’s life, but significantly spoil a happy life. For example, a nasty boss who bullies an employee every day. As a result, a person’s dissatisfaction accumulates, since he cannot talk it out, because he will lose his job. Or eternal time pressure, when you need to complete many tasks in a day, and there are only 24 hours in a day. Or a young mother who is trying to manage to look after her child, go to work, cook food and do a lot of things around the house, while not having personal time to relax.

Together with poor nutrition, physical inactivity, pollution environment, low level spirituality, drinking alcohol and smoking, distress gradually and surely destroys the body due to stimulation of the adrenal glands, namely the hormone cortisol. At first, a lot of cortisol is produced, and this is worth noting as a “hormone of destruction.” In such quantities it pathologically affects all types of metabolism.

But the adrenal glands are not able to work every day at such a frantic pace without recharging. Over time, the function begins to fade and the opposite situation develops when there is not enough cortisol. When there is not enough cortisol, it’s not like running away from a bear; it’s even very difficult to get out of bed. General tone and performance begin to suffer.

In both cases, a craving for sweets appears and in order to remove it, you need to deal with the adrenal glands. In the first case, carbohydrates intoxicate the brain, causing illusory well-being and relaxation. It's comparable to alcohol, it's just that carbohydrates are a legal drug.

In the second case, carbohydrates become vitally necessary, since they at least somehow provide energy, because the internal reserve, alas, has been exhausted. Moreover, the more sweets you eat, the worse your adrenal glands work.

How to support your adrenal glands?

First of all, work with distress. And there are no universal solutions here, because everyone life situations different. Very often the problem sits in our head and sometimes it helps to change our attitude towards the problem, even if the problem remains unresolved.

For example, you have a nasty boss who constantly shouts and expresses dissatisfaction. You cannot leave for another job, but you can change your attitude towards this situation. Develop healthy indifference, learn not to react to comments, not to take everything to heart. This is quite difficult to do when you are already deeply stressed. I see a way out in working together with a psychologist or psychotherapist. And of course, personal development, reading books on psychology, distraction in the form of sports or walks in the forest, and engaging in your favorite hobby.

The main thing is to be able to remove accumulated negativity and not accumulate it in yourself. Eat different techniques and techniques that you can search on the Internet. Try to relax more, but not in front of the TV with a can of beer, but in the form of active recreation or meeting with your favorite friends, but without alcohol.

In addition, sometimes it is necessary special food, additional additives and even medications. But this is a topic for another video.

Chromium shortage

There is a lot of information on the Internet on the topic of “sweet cravings” and this microelement is constantly mentioned. I will break this tradition and will not talk about it at all, since girls and women often shift responsibility to this mineral, and to all sorts of appetite-reducing drugs, while the above reasons have not been eliminated.

Yes, chromium is involved in glucose absorption, insulin production and improving tissue sensitivity to glucose. But true chromium deficiency is so rare that we still need to look for patients with such deficiency. So little of this microelement is needed that with adequate nutrition, its need is safely covered by food.

If you are still in doubt, you can get your blood tested to confirm or refute chromium deficiency. If confirmed, you can take pills to reduce your craving for sweets. In case of deficiency, it is easily replenished with the help of tablets and dietary supplements.

Distortion in nutrition

And the last reason for today. No matter how trivial it may sound, addiction to sweets is caused by the consumption of these same sweets. In other words, the more you eat, the more you want. If you reduce your consumption of sweet foods, the addiction may go away on its own.

Imagine that you ate a lot delicious dessert– cheesecake or esterhazy. These desserts contain unrealistic a large number of fast sugars, which are very quickly absorbed into the blood and raise blood glucose levels. The pancreas immediately reacts to this and produces disproportionately large quantity insulin to transport incoming glucose into cells

As a result, insulin lowers glucose levels very quickly and reaches normal values does not stop, but continues to decline. The person begins to experience terrible hunger, and some of the very real signs of hypoglycemia. Having waited for the next meal, a person unconsciously chooses carbohydrate-rich dishes and something tasty for dessert... again... or again...

Some people don’t wait and eat candy straight on an empty stomach, repeating the situation with insulin. Such swings can occur many times during the day. A real physiological need for sweets develops and it is quite difficult to overcome this, but it is possible.

Another extreme is irregular and poor nutrition. When a person has not eaten anything during the day, he creates an energy deficit, which he will fill generous intake food with obligatory tasty treats late in the evening.

What to do in such a situation? Firstly, eat regularly and fully throughout the day so as not to feel hungry at the end of the day. Secondly, you need to eliminate the carbohydrate swing by complete failure from sweets. Over the course of several days, you may experience real withdrawal, which passes quite quickly, and along with it an irresistible urge to indulge in some pie.

There are also psychological problems, which can cause addiction to sweets, but I’ll tell you about that next time.

And that's all for me. I hope the video was useful to you. Then you can watch other videos of our channel, links to them will appear on the screen. Subscribe to the channel, click thumb up and see you again!

With warmth and care, endocrinologist Lebedeva Dilyara Ilgizovna

Each of us has experienced periods of irresistible craving for sweets. What to do if the constant desire to eat something sweet has dragged on, and not only changes in your figure are noticeable, but also health problems?

First of all, you need to understand what “sweet” is and what it is needed for.

IN explanatory dictionary Ozhegova "sweet"– having pleasant taste characteristic of sugar or honey. Another meaning is pleasant, giving pleasure. Indeed, if you eat candy or cake, your mood immediately improves, life begins to play with bright colors, and you feel a surge of strength and energy. Unfortunately, this effect is very short-lived, and the craving for sweets increases.

In scientific language, the entire collection of cakes, chocolates, sweets, etc. called “easily digestible (fast) carbohydrates.” Carbohydrates perform a variety of functions in the human body. The very first of them is energy. When oxidizing 1 g. carbohydrates release 4.1 kcal of energy. The main source is free glucose, easily released from fast carbohydrates, and glycogen - carbohydrates stored in the body. The ability of easily digestible carbohydrates to quickly break down into glucose is necessary for a person to stressful situation for immediate energy saturation. Therefore, you can eat sweets without consequences after a sleepless night, or while preparing for an exam. In this case fast carbohydrates– remedy emergency assistance body, and the craving for sweets is easily explained.

The stressful situation passed, but the craving for sweets remained. What to do?

First of all, it is necessary pay attention to your health status. No matter how strange it may sound, a craving for sweets can be a consequence of a concussion, osteochondrosis, and even hypotension. In all three cases, the essence is the same - the brain does not have enough glucose due to impaired blood supply. Therefore, he begins to demand it, which manifests itself in the form of a headache that goes away if he eats, for example, candy.

These problems can be resolved by consulting therapist And neurologist. Specialists will help eliminate the cause, and the craving for sweets will weaken.

Another reason for craving sweets is lack of chromium in the body

The main function of chromium is to maintain normal blood glucose levels. It is involved in carbohydrate metabolism, increasing the permeability of cell walls to glucose. This microelement also increases the sensitivity of cell receptors to insulin, the pancreatic hormone responsible for carbohydrate metabolism. Therefore, sufficient chromium content in the body helps reduce cravings for sweets and speed up metabolism.

Chromium deficiency is most often caused by the abuse of sweets and sugar. The more sweets you eat, the more chromium is removed from the body, and, closing the vicious circle, you want something tasty even more.

In addition to strong cravings for sweets, symptoms of chromium deficiency include:

Persistent feeling of hunger
Profuse sweating
Feeling tired after a night's rest,
Dizziness.

Undoubtedly, chromium is best absorbed from food. The most great content trace element in tuna (90 µg per 100 g). Different kinds fish (carp, pollock, crucian carp, catfish, capelin, cod, etc.) contain a smaller amount - 55 mcg per 100 g. The next highest amount of chromium is liver (32 mcg per 100 g), duck (15 mcg), chicken (10 mcg). Some vegetables are also quite rich in chromium. So broccoli contains 22 mcg of microelement per 100 g, and beets 20 mcg.

Another source of chromium is brewer's yeast. They are used as a food additive.

Among other things, you can use pharmaceutical drugs to normalize chromium levels. These can be either various vitamin-mineral complexes or biological active additives. But do not forget that all medications can be taken only after consultation with a doctor, since not only a deficiency, but also an excess of chromium are harmful.

The daily requirement varies depending on age and gender:

For children

1-3 years – 11 mcg
3-11 years – 15 mg
11-14 years – 25 mcg
14-18 years old – 35 mcg

For women

Over 18 years old – 50 mcg
Pregnant women – 100-120 mcg

For men

Over 18 years old – 60-70 mcg
Athletes – 120-200 mcg

The next reason for craving for sweets is hormonal disorders

The very first hormone that comes to mind when you mention sweets is insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas and is responsible for regulating blood sugar levels. If there is too much glucose in the blood, insulin begins to be produced, which helps distribute it among tissue cells. The body works and uses glucose from the cells. But this is ideal. A disorder that causes excessive cravings for sweets is insulin resistance. This is the resistance of cells to insulin. That is, when blood sugar levels increase, the hormone is produced, but glucose cannot penetrate the tissues. In response, the pancreas releases even more hormone to balance blood sugar levels. And the body begins to experience energy hunger. This manifests itself in the form of a strong, even “wolfish” feeling of hunger. Moreover, there is a desire to eat something that can quickly provide the necessary energy - fast carbohydrates, sweets.

Failure in work thyroid gland may also be the culprit behind the desire to eat something that is not healthy. The hormones it produces are responsible for regulating metabolism. If their production is disrupted, it appears severe hunger, which many satisfy with chocolates, cakes, and so on.

These problems can be resolved in consultation with endocrinologist.

Psychological addiction to sweets

All of the above are physiological causes of cravings for sweets, reasons at the body level. But don't forget about psychological factor, and also about the action of passion in us. In this case, they talk about addiction to sweets.

Like any addiction, cravings for sweets begin with habit. The habit of drinking tea with a candy or two, the habit of eating a piece of cake after a working day, the habit of rewarding yourself with something tasty. It is the latter habit that is instilled in us early childhood when parents buy sweets for good behavior or an excellent grade. This is a kind of tradition that is sometimes difficult to argue with. Yes and modern rhythm Life is so rich in stress that there is nothing surprising in eating them with sweets. After all, sweets are something that brings pleasure. Over and over again, the habit becomes more and more ingrained. And at one “wonderful” moment it becomes an addiction. It’s already difficult to imagine a meal without dessert and not just dessert, but more. Sweet snacks appear between meals. Now you have to buy clothes in the next size... What to do?

First, you need to know what exactly excess carbohydrates in the human body turn into fat. Moreover, 90% of adipose tissue is formed from carbohydrates unspent for energy needs. How does this happen?

Glucose released from carbohydrates enters the liver. Then she has 3 ways:

be used up as a source of energy,
be stored as glycogen for muscle work,
be stored as fat.

If neither energy expenditure is required for mental labor nor intensive muscular work, then an excess of glucose is obtained. Therefore, the liver directs it along the third path.

Secondly, unlimited consumption of foods with high content sugar negatively affects the immune system, intestinal microflora. Sweet environment promotes growth pathogenic microorganisms, yeast-like fungi. Also, due to the abundance of sweets, the skin suffers.

Thirdly, it is important to remember the quality of modern confectionery. The vast majority of them are saturated with dangerous trans fats ( Palm oil, vegetable fat, confectionery fat, margarine, etc.). The influence of trans fats on the development of tumor processes in the body has been established.

Ways to get rid of sugar cravings

Awareness of the “enemy” is the first step on the path to health, lightness and freedom from sweets.

1. If you have an addiction, you should not immediately and radically prohibit yourself from eating sweets. This path is fraught with failures and does not bear fruit. However, from the experience of those struggling with sweet cravings, we can advise you to completely give up those sweets that make you lose your mind and self-control. For example, if a slice of milk chocolate affects you in such a way that you “lose your head” and come to your senses only when you have completely finished the unfortunate bar, you should try to avoid chocolate completely.

2. Replace chocolate, cakes and pastries with less harmful and even healthy sweets: bread with jam or honey, cottage cheese with sweet fruits, etc.

3. Without going to extremes, outside of established fasts, allow yourself to eat sweets in moderation until such time as it does not harm your spiritual life. The realization that you allow yourself dessert, but only a little in the morning, will greatly facilitate the path to freedom from addiction at the initial stage.

4. An interesting principle is to share everything. Another trick of the psyche is that the brain counts not the grams eaten, but the individual quantity. That is why the chocolate bar is divided into slices. You can break off a whole strip. Or you can eat 5 small slices. The coloring will be the same, but the feeling of satisfaction will be greater. This principle applies to all sweets: cut candies, gingerbreads and even cookies into small pieces. Then, as in the fight against any other addiction, gradually reduce the amount of sweets.

5. An important psychological technique in the fight against sugar cravings - distract yourself and increase endorphin levels in a way that doesn’t addictive . Think about what else could personally distract you from the habit of eating sweets and make you happy? Perhaps this is a walk or playing with children, or maybe singing your favorite songs with a guitar, etc. This list will be individual for everyone. But the essence is the same - the production of endorphin - the hormone of joy, as well as distracting yourself so much that you don’t think about sweets. Joy will be as complete as possible when we engage ourselves in something useful.

6. Increases the amount of happiness hormones physical exercise. Choose the type of physical activity that best suits your needs. It could just be walking at a brisk pace, running, or maybe physical work in the country. The main thing is that there will be less desire to cheer yourself up with sweets.

7. Important rule - get enough sleep. Lack of sleep leads to constant fatigue, which some people mistake for hunger. As stated above, the easiest way to drown it out is with something sweet. Among other things, as a result of lack of sleep, hormonal disorders, leading to increased appetite. Yes, and a sufficient amount good sleep reduces stress in the body, and you don’t want to eat it.

Spiritual aspects of sweet eating as a type of passion of gluttony

“We have a need for nutrition, or consumption of food and drink. He who labors under sin is subjected to overeating, sweet eating, feasting, drunkenness, and the like. Being enslaved to the truth, we must love abstinence in order to eat food and drink in moderation - and according to the charter of the Church.” ()

It is very convenient to start weaning yourself from cravings for your favorite sweets during the period of fasting. On fasting days, you can fortify yourself with honey or jam, but remember in moderation and do not abuse the formal permission of these products.

“...Eat bread, sweets, think about the true bread, which gives eternal life souls - about the Body and Blood of Christ and hunger for this bread, that is, desire to partake of it more often; drink water or tea, or honey, sweets, or other drink, think about the true drink that quenches souls scorched by passions - about the most pure and life-giving Blood of the Savior...” holy righteous John of Kronstadt “How to achieve holiness”

It must be remembered that struggle with passions(in this case, with the passion of gluttony) is always accompanied by opposition from the enemy. Therefore, it is important to strengthen your spiritual strength with fervent prayer, confession of this sin, frequent communion, and taking holy water.

“We cannot force a person who has just come to church to live on bread and water. But the ascetics would hardly eat the cake. To each his own. As he grows spiritually.”prot. Dimitry Moiseev, teacher at Kaluga Theological Seminary

How wonderful it is to feel free from cravings for sweets, when the sight of a cake does not make you want to eat it. When, out of fear of ruining our most desired relationship with Christ, we give up the craving to eat more and more sweet things. If these moments are the motivators to stand your ground with God’s help in an effort to eradicate addiction, then everything will definitely work out. Rest assured.

Many of those who want to lose weight have heard more than once about beneficial effects on the body of such an element as Chromium. There is very widespread information that chromium preparations can help burn excess fat, reduce cravings for sweets, and in general, people who are losing weight cannot do without them. So which of this is true, and which is the invention of competent PR people who are not averse to cashing in on the eternal desire of people to reset excess weight? What is chromium as a medicine, and what do such drugs affect? We will give answers to such questions in this article.

The benefits of chromium-containing drugs

Chromium is an important microelement for the body that affects metabolism, normalizing glucose levels in human blood. Sometimes chromium-containing drugs are prescribed to diabetics, of course, as part of a comprehensive treatment. Chromium is found in our body in amounts from 6 to 13 mg, and its deficiency can have an extremely negative impact on health.

With a lack of chromium, various changes can occur in the body: the functioning of the central nervous system is disrupted, excess weight appears, severe fatigue, and the risk of diabetes mellitus greatly increases. All these symptoms do not necessarily indicate a lack of chromium, but may well arise against the background of its deficiency in the human body. The trace element is contained in some types of foods, but the problem is that no more than 10% of the substance is absorbed with food, the main part is quickly eliminated from the body.

Therefore, preparations containing chromium have become widespread. They will replenish the level of the substance in the body if the nutrition is not of sufficient quality. However, this does not mean that it is enough to just take chromium supplements and not review your diet. The diet should include.

Effect of dietary supplements with chromium on the body

If there is not enough chromium in the body, blood sugar levels increase. On the contrary, if the body receives enough of this substance, carbohydrate metabolism will be normalized. For this reason, drugs with chromium have been used for quite a long time to combat sugar cravings. This has found wide application in dietetics.

There is an opinion: many people who are partial to sweets are actually deficient in chromium. The lack of this substance, as we have already said, leads to a decrease carbohydrate metabolism. Moreover, the more sweets you consume, the more chromium is removed from the body. And the less from general norm microelement in the body, the greater the passion for sweets. Vicious circle, which some experts advise breaking by using preparations with chromium.

Another potential effect of the substance on the body is a powerful incentive to purchase it. It is claimed that chromium can help burn subcutaneous fat, increases muscle mass. It is often used by workout enthusiasts and beautiful body. In fact, there are no reliable sources confirming that this substance will actually help build muscle mass. But it is also true that people who are actively involved in sports often experience a deficiency of chromium; the microelement is excreted in “athletes” much faster than in less active citizens. Therefore, many trainers actually advise their students to take nutritional supplements with chrome.

The most popular drugs

There are several types of drugs, all of them belong to the variety of dietary supplements. The release form varies: from tablets and capsules to drops. The maximum daily dose of chromium is from 40 to 200 mcg. The exact need depends on a number of factors: gender, age, field of activity, health status. It is worth remembering that pregnant and lactating women should not take dietary supplements with chromium, although during this period their level of the microelement is greatly reduced.

Perhaps the most popular drug is chromium picolinate. The dietary supplement is available in the form of drops, slightly sweet in taste, or drops. The drug is considered safe, even if the use exceeds daily dose. Chromium picolinate can reduce appetite, reduce the desire to eat sweets, and speed up metabolism. Like all chromium preparations, it is taken during meals.

Chromium-containing preparations are often produced in special vitamin complexes, which are especially popular among fitness club regulars. Carnitine Plus Chrome belongs to this type. Its effect is similar to the above dietary supplement: it reduces cravings for sweets and suppresses appetite. In addition to chromium itself, the drug contains carnitine and a number of vitamins.

Century 2000 is also vitamins with chromium and various other microelements. Regulates metabolism, helps reduce carbohydrate consumption, balances hormonal levels.

The dietary supplement Chromium active is also in good demand among those who have decided to limit their consumption of sweets. The drug is popular, people are looking for it good feedback. This chromium is available in tablets that are taken with food. It is praised for reducing cravings for sweets and regulating appetite.

With numerous advantages, some types of these dietary supplements can boast a low price. On average, the cost of chromium-containing preparations starts from 300 rubles.

There are more expensive options with a price tag of 700 rubles. As a rule, these are vitamin-mineral complexes that also contain chromium. For example, Carnitine Plus Chrome can cost more than a thousand rubles.

Are chromium preparations enough?

Whatever chromium-containing dietary supplement you choose, you need to understand the main thing: without adjusting your diet, the drug will not work. It can only be effective in combination with diet and exercise.

There is an opinion that after completing a course of taking chromium preparations, the craving for sweets increases. When taking such medications, an important task is not only to provide the body required quantity chromium, but accustom yourself to proper, healthy food, reducing the amount of sweets and fatty foods you consume.

Therefore, the medication should be taken with caution, despite the fact that it is quite difficult to get an overdose. At the same time, of course, you cannot take dietary supplements with chromium for more than long term than indicated in the annotation. And before use, you need to consult with a specialist; perhaps your body does not need an additional portion of this substance at all. Uncontrolled use of any chemicals can lead to severe consequences, especially if there are contraindications.