Dr. Mark Hyman: 8 Ways to Kick Your Sugar Addiction

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Fake foods we’ve been introduced to in the 20th century—many of which contain high-fructose corn syrup and other added sugars—have hijacked our brains, our hormones and our metabolism. These Frankenfoods have literally created a vicious cycle of hunger and cravings.

There is no such thing as junk food. There’s just junk and there’s food.

I have a simple yet radical proposal: Let’s send the trillion-dollar junk food industry a message and eat real food. That means foods nature created, which don’t come with barcodes, fake ingredients or an ingredient list at all. 

To do that, we need to rewire our brains. A researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) told me the real regulator of our weight and metabolism isn’t our stomach, but our brain chemistry. The right foods send a message to your brain to shut down hunger and cravings so you burn fat and feel great. Sugary, processed foods send the opposite message.

The Right Mind Shift to Fight Cravings 

Making the right choices to opt for real, whole, unprocessed foods becomes crucial to ditch the junk food habit, but so do your emotional triggers and emotional health.

Whenever you get a strong desire for a chocolate chip cookie or other junk food, ask yourself two questions:

1. What am I feeling?
2. What do I need? What we need does not involve stuffing your face, I can assure you of that. 

We have a chance today to stop and detox, not only from junk food, but also from junk thoughts. We must de-clutter our bodies and our minds.

Breaking these addictions and rewiring your brain is easier than you might think. It doesn’t take weeks or months. These eight strategies can help: 

1. Eat real food. You need to eat fat and protein for each of your meals. Whole foods carbohydrates like veggies, legumes, nuts and seeds are perfectly healthy. Broccoli is broccoli. Processed, sugary junk foods are not real foods. They set the stage for sugar addiction and all its ugly consequences.
2. Steady blood sugar levels. Eat a nutritious breakfast with some protein like eggs, protein shakes or nut butters. Studies repeatedly show that eating a healthy high-protein breakfast helps people maintain weight loss. Also, have smaller meals throughout the day. Eat every three to four hours and have some protein with each snack or meal (lean animal protein, nuts, seeds, beans). Avoid eating three hours before bedtime.
3. Ditch sugar. Go cold turkey. If you are addicted to narcotics or alcohol you can’t simply just cut down. You have to stop for your brain to reset. You must eliminate refined sugars, sodas, fruit juices and artificial sweeteners from your diet. These are all drugs that fuel sugar addiction.
4. Reduce stress. Stress eating and junk food go together. When you’re feeling stressed, you’re more likely to reach for that bag of chocolate chip cookies or whatever your vice might be. Learn to address the root cause of your stress and address it with something like yoga, meditation or deep breathing. My UltraCalm CD becomes a great way to melt away stress and anxiety and beat your junk food addiction.
5. Exercise smartly. The next time you get a hankering for something sweet, walk it off, literally. Besides creating a healthy distraction to avoid nose diving into a pint of butter pecan ice cream, exercise tapers cravings and raises feel-good endorphin levels. Whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned athlete, you can find an easy-to-implement exercise plan here.
6. Determine whether food sensitivities could be causing your cravings. We often crave the very foods that we have a hidden allergy to, including gluten, dairy and sugar.
7. Sleep well. Ever notice you’re hungrier for something sugary after a terrible night’s sleep? Studies show lack of sleep increases cravings. To get eight hours of solid sleep every night, check out these 19 tips here.
8. Implement crave-cutting supplements. These include vitamin D and omega-3s. Also consider taking natural supplements for cravings control. Glutamine, tyrosine and 5-HTP are amino acids that help reduce cravings. Stress-reducing herbs such as Rhodiola rosea can also help. Chromium balances blood sugar and can help take the edge off cravings. Glucomannan fiber is very helpful to reduce the spikes in sugar and insulin that drive cravings and hunger. You can find all of these and other crave-busting supplements in my store.

To permanently bust sugar cravings, I highly recommend you read and implement The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet. I’ve specifically designed this book to help you conquer your addiction in, yes, just 10 days.

Simply following the exact instructions in The Blood Sugar Solution 10-Day Detox Diet will help you quickly reset your brain chemistry and gain back control over your eating behavior. You don’t have to struggle to let go of your cravings; your cravings will naturally let go of you.

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