I know the value of ridding the body of excess sugar. For more than forty years, I have incorporated sugar detox into treatments for countless patients suffering from chronic health problems. I have also seen thousands of people whose chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia were aggravated by their sugar addiction.

I also understand the problem firsthand. A former sugar addict myself, I came down with chronic fatigue syndrome in 1975. Eliminating my sugar addiction was an important part of my recovery.

Sugar addiction is the canary in the coal mine. It usually points to a larger problem that is also dragging you down. We don’t have anything against sugar. We simply don’t want you feeling poorly and getting sick because of it. In fact, we want you to feel great! And most of you will when you treat the problems accompanying your sugar addiction. Ready to get off the “sugar roller coaster?” We’re happy to guide the way.

The basics of sugar detox are, of course, diet related (stop eating sugar), and diet alteration is the standard method used to overcome sugar addiction. But an even deeper level of treatment is necessary to produce wellness. If you have tried the “cold turkey” approach to sugar addiction without nutritional strategies, treatment guidelines, and support, you probably found success elusive. That’s because getting rid of the sugar is but one step in an overall comprehensive approach that must address the mind, body, and spirit.

The most successful way to treat sugar addition includes a process called medical triage. This means addressing the relative severity of each problem and then organizing treatment in order of priority. The problem with many medical self-help books is that they pick off a little corner of the problem and miss the big picture, so often you get frustrated and stop your program without getting well. My goal in writing The Complete Guide to Beating Sugar Addiction Now! is to give you an organized and easy approach, so you can effectively kick sugar addiction––along with the hidden problems driving your addiction.

The Complete Guide to Beating Sugar Addiction Now! gives you a step-by-step approach for each type of sugar addiction that encourages you to change from a sugar-laden to a low-sugar diet without sacrificing the pleasures of food and eating. Although I will offer suggestions, I believe in personalized medicine; therefore, this book takes a flexible, real-life approach to becoming sugar healthy. Although we will offer guidelines for healthy eating, sugar substitution, and treatments to aid withdrawal and heal the body, we encourage you most of all to trust your intuition and listen to your body as you recover and see what makes you feel the best. To this end, we’ll present up-to-date information and valuable resources in an easy-to-understand and -use format, so you can boost your health and improve how you feel quickly.

The Four Types of Sugar Addiction

To beat sugar addiction, first you’ll need to figure out which type of sugar addict you are. Think of it like a road trip. The initial step is to decide the best way to get to where you want to be: free of sugar addiction and feeling great. Consider this book as your road map to wellness. We include directions for your inner journey, a journey that will heal not only your body but also your mind and spirit. A journey that will change your life!

Different kinds of sugar addiction have different underlying causes and require different treatments. Here are the four key types of sugar addiction:

Type 1: The Energy Loan Shark

Chronically exhausted and hooked on quick hits of caffeine and sugar

When daily fatigue causes sugar (and caffeine) cravings, sometimes all you need is to improve nutrition, sleep, and exercise. When your energy increases, you won’t need sugar and as much caffeine for an energy boost. New research shows that coffee can be beneficial when used in moderation, and we’ll show you how. You’ll find out how to turbocharge your energy in an easy and healthy way starting in chapter 1.

Type 2: Feed Me Now or I’ll Kill You

When life’s stress has exhausted your adrenal glands

For those of you who get irritable when you’re hungry and crash under stress, it is important to treat your adrenal exhaustion. You’ll learn how to nourish your adrenals and beat this type of sugar addiction, for good, beginning in chapter 2.

Type 3: The Happy Ho-Ho Hunter

Sugar cravings caused by yeast/candida overgrowth

For those of you with chronic nasal congestion, sinusitis, spastic colon, or irritable bowel syndrome, treating yeast overgrowth is critical. Learn all about probiotics, healing sugar addiction, and begin to take steps to wellness in chapter 3.

Type 4: Depressed and Craving Carbs

Sugar cravings caused by your period, menopause, or andropause

For women who feel worse around their menstrual cycle, or whose problems increased when they entered perimenopause in their forties, and during menopause, estrogen and progesterone deficiency may be driving your sugar craving. In a woman’s earlier years, this is likely to reflect as premenstrual syndrome (PMS, with associated progesterone deficiency), with severe irritability around your periods. In your mid-forties, as estrogen deficiency begins, estrogen or progesterone deficiency often produces increased sugar cravings, fatigue, moodiness, and insomnia around your periods, as well as decreased vaginal lubrication.

For men, testosterone deficiency associated with andropause can also cause sugar craving, along with other severe problems. Depression, decreased libido, decreased erectile function, high blood pressure, weight gain, diabetes, or high cholesterol can suggest testosterone deficiency. Interestingly, supplementing with bio-identical natural testosterone (by prescription) has been shown to help all of these problems.

Standard blood testing for hormonal deficiencies will not reveal the problems until they are very severe, sometimes leaving people deficient for decades. Find out why eliminating sugar addiction and other problems caused by low estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone is essential, starting in chapter 4.

Four quick quizzes will tell you which type of sugar addiction you have. From there, easy fixes will not only make your sugar addiction go away, but will also leave you feeling dramatically better!

How to Fix a Sugar Addiction

• Eat regularly. Eat three meals and two snacks or five small meals a day. For many people, if they don’t eat regularly, their blood sugar levels drop, they feel hungry, and are more likely to crave sweet sugary snacks.
• Choose whole foods. The closer a food is to its original form, the less processed sugar it will contain. Food in its natural form, including fruits and vegetables, usually presents no metabolic problems for a normal body, especially when consumed in variety.
• Have a breakfast of protein, fat and phytonutrients to start your day off right. Breakfast smoothies are ideal for this. The typical breakfast full of carbs and sugary or starchy foods is the worst option since you’ll have cravings all day. Eating a good breakfast is essential to prevent sugar cravings.
• Try to incorporate protein and/or fat with each meal. This helps control blood sugar levels. Make sure they are healthy sources of each.
• Add spices. Coriander, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and cardamom will naturally sweeten your foods and reduce cravings.
• Take a good quality multivitamin and mineral supplement, Vitamin D3 and omega 3 fatty acids. Nutrient deficiencies can make cravings worse and the fewer nutrient deficiencies, the fewer cravings. Certain nutrients seem to improve blood sugar control including chromium, Vitamin B3 and magnesium.
• Move your body. Exercise, dance or do some yoga. Whatever movement you enjoy will help reduce tension, boost your energy and decrease your need for a sugar lift.
• Get enough sleep. When we are tired we often use sugar for energy to counteract the exhaustion.
• Do a detox. My experience has been that when people do a detox, not only does it reset their appetites but it often decreases their sugar cravings. After the initial sugar cravings, which can be overwhelming, our bodies adjust and we won’t even want the sugar anymore and the desire will disappear.
• Be open to explore the emotional issues around your sugar addiction. Many times our craving for sugar is more for an emotional need that isn’t being met.
• Keep sugary snacks out of your house and office. It’s difficult to snack on things that aren’t there!
• Don’t substitute artificial sweeteners for sugar.
• Learn to read labels. Although I would encourage you to eat as few foods as possible that have labels, educate yourself about what you’re putting into your body. The longer the list of ingredients, the more likely sugar is going to be included on that list. So check the grams of sugar, and choose products with the least sugar per serving.
• Become familiar with sugar terminology. Recognize that all of these are sweeteners: Corn syrup, corn sugar, high fructose corn syrup, sucrose, dextrose, honey, molasses, turbinado sugar and brown sugar.
• Sugar in disguise. Remember that most of the “complex” carbohydrates we consume like bread, bagels and pasta aren’t really complex at all. They are usually highly refined and act just like sugars in the body and are to be avoided.

How to Deal with a Sugar Craving

• Take L-Glutamine, 1000-2000mg, every couple of hours as necessary. It often relieves sugar cravings as the brain uses it for fuel.
• Take a “breathing break”. Find a quiet spot, get comfortable and sit for a few minutes and focus on your breath. After a few minutes of this, the craving will pass.
• Distract yourself. Go for a walk, if possible, in nature. Cravings usually last for 10-20 minutes maximum. If you can distract yourself with something else, it often passes. The more you do this, the easier it gets and the cravings get easier to deal with.
• Drink lots of water. Sometimes drinking water or seltzer water can help with the sugar cravings. Also sometimes what we perceive as a food craving is really thirst.
• Have a piece of fruit. If you give in to your cravings, have a piece of fruit, it should satisfy a sweet craving and is much healthier.