OMG! Sugar Withdrawal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay now that I am 52 days clean I went to the doctor and he said my blood work shows I need to CUT OUT SUGAR. Since I have been using this time I started, "what the h*** eat whatever" and was really bingeing on sugar, coca-cola, chocolate, candy etc.Well now day 4 of no sugar and I started feeling WD symptoms again. Couldn't sleep, restlessness, shakes, etc etc. I wondered? Sugar withdrawal? Same receptors? Searched the internet and this is what I found:


There has been reference to the idea of sugar addiction in the popular literature for a number of years. In 1998, Kathleen DesMaisons[2] outlined the concept of sugar addiction as a measurable physiological state caused by activation of mu opioid receptors in the brain. Her work extracted data from studies done by Blass[3] showing that sugar acted as an analgesic drug whose effects could be blocked by a morphine blocker. Acting on years of anecdotal evidence from her work in the field of addiction, DesMaisons noted that dependence on sugar followed the same track outlined in the DSM IV for other drugs of abuse.

Since that time, a growing body of laboratory evidence has confirmed DesMaisons' hypothesis. Bart Hoebel at Princeton began showing the neurochemical effects of sugar, noting that sugar might serve as a gate drug for other drugs.

In 2008, Nicole Avena published data[4] stating that sugar affects opioids and dopamine in the brain, and thus might be expected to have addictive potential. She references "Bingeing," "withdrawal," "craving" and "cross-sensitization" are each given operational definitions and demonstrated behaviorally with sugar bingeing as the reinforcer. These behaviors are then related to neurochemical changes in the brain that also occur with addictive drugs. Neural adaptations include changes in dopamine and opioid receptor binding, enkephalin mRNA expression and dopamine and acetylcholine release in the nucleus accumbens.

    "Recent behavioral tests in rats further back the idea of an overlap between sweets and drugs. Drug addiction often includes three steps. A person will increase his intake of the drug, experience withdrawal symptoms when access to the drug is cut off and then face an urge to relapse back into drug use. Rats on sugar have similar experiences. Researchers withheld food for 12 hours and then gave rats food plus sugar water. This created a cycle of binging where the animals increased their daily sugar intake until it doubled. When researchers either stopped the diet or administered an opioid blocker the rats showed signs common to drug withdrawal, such as teeth-chattering and the shakes. Early findings also indicate signs of relapse. Rats weaned off sugar repeatedly pressed a lever that previously dispensed the sweet solution." (Leah Ariniello, Brain Briefings, October 2003) "

Interesting, however it works.

[SophieShine]

I feel for you! I was diagnosed with hypo thyroid in 2006 since then no more sugar for me either, no carbs and no fat! Don't ask me what I eat it's a puzzle!
I have my weak moments, I'm not a saint !!!
Good luck to you!
sophie.