Does anyone here avoid both flour and sugar? I was browsing books at B&N the other day about overeating and two books suggested this. I am having trouble finding anything that will help me avoid binging, I am dying for something that works!! I'm hoping that maybe this will help control cravings and binges-has anyone else had success doing this? Thanks!!

Many people have problems with those things. Including me. Namely, for controlling binges and unending cravings, I have found that low GI foods are what work for me. I wish I would have known about that when I first began.

As an Atkins adherant, I do avoid both sugar and flour. The day I started, my desire to nosh constantly went away, I get hungry at appropriate times and am completely satisfied on 3 meals a day. I eat eggs, turkey, tuna, chicken, natural cheese and gobs of salad, broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes and green beans. I look at bread and potatoes now and think "There is nothing my body needs in there." As far as sweets, there are few I have not tried in my 37 years so I am not missing out on a darn thing.

I find that only large amounts of refined sugar and white starches cause my binging to get worse. I can handle a little rice, whole grains, honey, and even the occasional potato (JUST ONE, and NEVER fried) and even a glass of tea with just enough sugar to taste it, but candy, ice-cream, or LOTS of potatoes or rice or stuffing will send me off the wagon for days.

Also, if I HAVE been binging lately, sometimes the only thing that stops it is to drop those foods entirely for a few days. If I have any more binges this week, I am going to have to try...

I stay away from both of them as much as I can. When I need a sweet fix though I usually grab my low carb yogurt with walnuts. I have also heard that a good chocolate fix is to add pure coco powder to plain yogurt.

If you do a search for food addicts anonymous you'll probably be able to find their food plan. The main concept is no sugar, wheat or flour as they are all triggers for over eating. I did this plan a while back and while it did work for the cravings, it was not something I could sustain because it was so restrictive.
What has worked for me is calorie counting. I honestly can't tell you how long I've been binge free, but I'd say at least 6 weeks and it's all credited to counting. My overeating was an issue of control and emotions. Once I found something else to control/obsess about (i.e. exercise and counting calories) I no longer have cravings, and if I do I can eat a small amount and be satisfied. Obviously everyone is different, but no matter what it is that works for you it has to be something that you can do for life or you won't stick to it.

I will eat nothing that is white, it did help me lose the weight and i was never hungry between meals, but when I tried to maintain my weight I began binging anyway. I binge on healthy whole foods, nothing white,you still gain weight and you do still crave your favorites. So It might work for a while, but not forever.

I think it depends entirely on the person. I have found that too much sugar has interfered with my digestive track, so my diet involves cutting that out. I avoid simple carbs where I can replace with whole grain, but I'm not vigilant about it. So far, cutting out just the big, sugary foods has helped A LOT. OMG, you wouldn't believe how many foods have sugar in them! ALL OF THEM. It's not natural. I don't see white bread or white rice as being as harmful as gobs of sugar placed indiscriminately in our foods.

But for others, more sensitive to their blood sugar levels, keeping to a strict low glycemic index is the way to go, which is essentially no sugar, no white flour. Whole grain flour (not just wheat flour) and whole grain foods do not spike the blood sugar like white, processed foods, so they are considered safe. But I would definitely follow the glycemic index and not just cut all carbs and sugars. I see no good reason in that, unless it makes it easier to stick to.

I think the best way to fight the cravings for wheat flour and sugar is to find good substitutes. For instance:
Chop cauliflower finely, microwave for 4-5 minutes (don't add water) and you have a tasty rice substitute
For flour, start baking with something else, coconut flour has loads of fiber and few carbs
If you do your homework there are a lot of good alternatives that will help you feel like you are getting what you crave.

Steaming cauliflower till it mushes easily and adding adding a bit of milk (and a bit of cheese if your diet allows) can also kick mashed potatoes cravings. It's definitely not the same, but similar.

I'm also a devoted Atkins gal.

For me...my addiction does not seem to be food...it seems to be carbs.
And like an alcoholic or any sort of substance abuser...it's all or none for me. And all the simple carbs had to go.....the only carbs I eat are the net carbs in veggies and limited dairy. The protein and liberal fat keep me full and satisfied.

Of course, if the addiction is food....it's extremely tricky because one cannot just stop eating....and the triggering is always an issue.
But if one can narrow down what food groups one is addicted to....one way to eliminate (or almost eliminate) craving and bingeing behavior is to simply eliminate them altogether. I've not had any sort of flour or sugar since early last summer and don't miss them at all. AND....they ARE here (for my son) and have never tempted me...even once.

For me....simple carbs = constant hunger, craving and binge behavior. But no simple carbs = all that behavior is literally gone. And like an alcoholic, I have totally accepted this and recognize the huge benefit of this literally minor sacrifice.....which is that I NO longer have to fight this constant battle.

I know everyone is not me.....but if I can offer any suggestion....IMO, thinking you are addicted to all foods can make you feel pretty hopeless...as one cannot simply stop eating altogether. But if you can try to identify which foods or food groups are the problem and seem to kick-in addictive behavior, then perhaps the focus can be narrowed and one can be in a more hopeful frame of mind that one can have some control over this.

deena

These are all really good ideas, I've been trying to really identify what causes me to binge. When I binge, I just want carbs carbs carbs. They dont' even have to be bad carbs, yesterday I just wanted Nutella and banana sandwiches on whole grain bread (Nutella isn't the healthiest thing ever lol but it's definitely not the worst thing I've ever eaten). I'm a runner and I would never eat a high protein/high fat diet like the Atkins diet (no offense to anyone who's chosen to do it, I just personally would not do it). I really think bread is a trigger for me - I love the texture and taste of it. I love baked goods in general, but the only tempting baked stuff that I keep around the house (and I don't live alone so I can't control this) is bread.

For this week, I think I'm going to cut out bread and see what happens. I'll still eat grains like bulgur, wild rice, and other starches that I eat reasonably. Maybe I will get some whole wheat pita and see if that helps - I like pita sandwiches, but it's got a very diff. texture than bread and I think it's something I could eat reasonably. Has anyone else given up bread? Any other thoughts on what to replace it with? I should be more conscious about how much sugar I'm eating, too... But I think I'll try axing the bread and see what happens.

Hi Lizzie.

On Atkins, I actually eat moderate protein and moderate (to high) fat. What I do mainly eat are low-carb veggies...but with butter and a bit of cheese so very filling. Lots and lots of low-carb veggies...but no more protein than I'd normally eat. Now, I don't eat sticks of butter or anything .....but I do add butter and sprinkle cheese on my veggies, omelets, etc....eat dark meat chicken and turkey. I'm not even sure it's high fat, to be honest...it just is NOT low-fat, that's for sure. And I MUST get adequate fat in to maintain the consistent weight loss and consistent satiation/lack of hunger.

For you....I'm thinking that the 2 key factors for the crave/binge issues might be 1) sugar and 2) processed grains. While the nutella may be healthy...how much sugar is in it? You seem to already be on top of the "eating the complex grains" thing....so I'm thinking you might want to look at the sugar?

On Atkins, we must constantly monitor items for hidden sugars...my point being that it's amazing to learn how much hidden sugar there is in items in the grocery store......seriously increased high-fructose corn syrup added to "low-fat" items in order to make them more palatable, hidden sugars used to make cold cuts and processed meats, there is EVEN sugar in all the packets of artificial sweeteners...but only half a gm. per packet so they are allowed to round it off to 0...but they can add up.

Carbs cause glucose to be released into the bloodstream....the simpler the carb, the faster it hits the bloodstream. This causes release of insulin....which drops the blood sugar and can cause ravenous hunger a short time later. Cutting down on sugar in all its forms AND eating carbs that are very high in fiber....cause a much slower release of glucose into the bloodstream, thereby seriously decreasing these big insulin surges. The less processed the carb, the more fiber it generally has.....particularly regarding grains.

There ARE nut butters that have no added sugar (nuts are healthy). There is peanut butter with sugar and peanut butter without added sugar. I'm venturing a guess that nutella (with hazelnuts, right?) has some added sugar?

You are clearly already addressing the unprocessed, complex grains issue. Perhaps looking at sugar/hidden sugars might help?

deena

Lately I have been cutting most of the white sugar out of my diet. I feel like I have more energy and more "clean" inside my body. 2 days ago I had a piece of chocolate cake (naughty, I know!) and got totally zapped of my energy afterwards. Eating some thing that I thought would make me feel good, made me feel terrible afterwards. I think that my body was just NOT used to having sugar in its system. I will remember that sugar crash feeling next time I want something w/white sugar in it. . .

SpicySiren- I just did that today, too. For about two weeks now I cut out sugar. No granola bar for breakfast, no rice krispie treat (only 100 calories, come on!) at lunch, and no dessert after dinner. Ok, I would have a very small piece of chocolate (5g of sugar) and stop. Because I CAN stop, chocolate isn't a craving. Anyway, yesterday and today my office had a "reward" breakfast for our United Way campaign a couple months ago and everyone brought SUGAR. Coffee cake, donuts, honey buns... you get the idea. So I had a donut. I can't even begin to tell you how bad an idea this was! I craved more sugar all day. And today was worse. I had another one, and man, I'm struggling to get through the day!

I'm with you, that sugar crash is so not worth it!