The question
I have recently quit alcohol after 40 years of steady drinking - but my sugar cravings are intense. I've replaced booze with ice cream. I know the saturated fat and sugar content in the ice cream is not healthy so I need to change this eating habit. I have tried some of the frozen yogurts but the no fat ones are very expensive. Any suggestions?
The answer
Sounds like you need some strategies to help you curb your sugar cravings and find some healthier stand-ins when you do crave sweets. Here are a few tips that might help accomplish both goals. I hope they help:
• Eat every three to four hours – three meals plus snacks – to prevent your blood sugar from dropping too low. It's possible that your craving for sweets is your body's response to a low blood sugar and hunger; it's your body's way of telling you it needs fuel. The fact that you crave ice cream may have to do with what you're accustomed to eating or what's readily available.
For longer lasting energy, choose snacks that also provide carbohydrate plus protein such as vanilla yogurt, fruit and nuts, a soy milk smoothie, carrot sticks and hummus, or an energy bar.
• Reduce portion size. Try satisfying your food craving with a spoonful or two of ice cream, rather than a whole bowlful. If it's cookies you crave, portion out two or three instead of eating right out of the bag.
• Choose lower calorie substitutes. Try frozen yogurt, sherbet or sorbet instead of ice cream. Sherbet is usually less expensive than frozen yogurt. Another idea to curb a sweet tooth that has worked from my clients – frozen grapes! In the fall and winter you might try hot chocolate. It's calcium-rich, sweet tasting, filling and it takes longer to finish than a bowl of ice cream.
• Distract yourself. Understand that cravings pass. Remove yourself from the situation for 30 minutes to see if your sweet craving subsides. If you decide to indulge, eating will be a conscious rather than impulsive action.
Keep in mind that storing sweets in the house will only make it harder for you to resist temptation. Knowing you have a tub of ice cream in the freezer, it will be harder to let the craving pass.
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Leslie Beck