Ive been contemplating this question all day long. As a die hard food lover who thinks dessert is just as good as lunch or breakfast, i have been wondering if dessert is really necessary. We all know that food has a serious social element involved. Who came up with this concept of dessert after all? Ever notice your more inclined to eat dessert, if someone is eating it with you? But take away the people and maybe you dont want it as badly.
Im a die hard carb addict in the process of trying to kill every inclination for sweets and bready things. When i think dessert, i instantly see the word chocolate pop up in my head and i want to raid that candy isle for the best chocolate possible or for the next best thing, which is of course pastries. In fact right now as i write, im craving a glazed donut..
In my personal opinion, i think that if someone were to hand me a mock dessert such as "fake cheesecake" or 3 minute chocolate cake...i would be all in..and unfortunately, that means i would be all out too. I would have little to no restraint on eating dessert and i would want it every day at the same time every day. It would be the "i have to have this " meal. I couldnt say no..For some strange reason, i find that if i ignore the idea of desserts and sweets in my diet altogether, diet or not diet..i dont want it anymore..it doesnt bother me..But give me a taste of dessert and im off in another world. It will ruin me..
What are your thoughts? Do you like the idea of having dessert in your diet? Can you handle it?
I have something dessert-like most days, and have throughout my weight loss. A piece of chocolate, some low fat or low sugar ice cream or frozen yogurt, a chocolate vitatop with raspberries, etc., just something sweet that feels like a treat. I like sweets, and I didn't want to give them up, so I just eat them in moderation and make room for them in my daily calories and balance of macros.
That last bit came over time; I don't eat a low-carb diet, but my carbs are a lot lower and protein much higher than it used to be. Most days I'd rather have room for a sweet than have a starch with dinner, so I've just made those adjustments to my diet over time.
I'm lucky—I don't really have issues with food. I just didn't have a concept of what a proper portion was. I can have a small piece of something and be satisfied.
During my weight loss I still had dessert and other "fun" things. Even now I enjoy myself at parties and events, I just limit how much I have, enjoy it, and move on.
Desserts do have a place in a diet—depending on the person.
At my house, we have just made a habit of eating fruit for dessert. Other sort of desserts (cakes, pies, ice cream) tend to be things we just eat in special events or when we go out (though my dad buys a lot of ice cream during the summer, as it's very hot in here and there is an awesome Italian ice cream parlour nearby)
I am a calorie counter that did not eliminate anything from my diet, just reduced portions. For some, I think those taboo things keep success within range. Guilt or cravings over having dessert may make you feel like the overall changes are impossible to stick with, not to mention that when you get to maintenance weight it would be nice to already feel comfortable putting those things into the mix without dreading the immediate backslide of partaking in taboo foods during the diet.
Yeah we usually have dessert after one of our meals. Like another poster said, I don't eliminate types of food - I have less of it. (I just do calorie counting with no special requirements)
It's probably more of a habit then anything else and isn't required, but makes the meal feel "complete" if that makes sense.
I'm one of those weirdos who would rather have "real" food and leave the dessert sitting.
My hubby, on the other hand, can't live (or so he says) without sweets so he brings home Reese's Cups and such. It's a good thing I don't really like that kind of food.
When I was growing up, desserts were mostly for special occasions. If we had a dessert after a no-special-occasion dinner it was usually fruit, pudding, or jello (often sugar free). As a result, I'm used to passing on dessert.
I had to laugh when a doctor once told me that I could lose a lot of weight just by giving up dessert. I have dessert about once a month or less, so that's really not a very helpful suggestion.
There are some foods that I find easier to avoid entirely than to try to eat in moderation (most being very high carb foods, though not necessarily junk foods. One of my favorite hard-to-stop-eating foods is mashed potatoes topped with green beans and onions cooked in tomato sauce).
For me, savory carbs are much harder to resist than sweet desserts. Cheese and whole grain crackers, meats in sweet sauces like barbecue or general tso's chicken, fried rice, spaghetti in a tangy or spicy slightly sweet sauce, crusty italian or french bread with butter or garlic infused olive oil (Gosh do I miss bread, but I'm allergic or intolerant to wheat and gluten-free breads suck).
That being said, I can incorporate desserts and the other foods I love into my diet as long as I can make them fit into a relatively low-glycemic, low-carb profile.
Yesterday I had dessert (or an evening snack) about an hour after dinner. I had a scoop of no-sugar addes vanilla ice cream with a serving of splenda-sweetened strawberries, and low-carb homemade "magic shell."
The homemade "magic shell" chocolate coating was made from coconut oil, cocoa powder, splenda, and chocolate flavoring (LorAnn gourmet oils).
I will also will make instant oatmeal (in the lowest sugar content I can find - though I recently found an instant oatmeal with no added sugars or ingredients, so I now buy that and flavor it myself) and top it with a scoop of no-sugar-added vanilla ice cream.
Another favorite is a cheesecake like dessert made by stirring sugar free pudding mix into greek yogurt. This is high enough in protein (about 12g) that I can actually eat it as a meal rather than as a dessert.
I use an exchange plan, so as long as the dessert fits into my exchange plan, and isn't so high-carb that it triggers out-of-control hunger/cravings, I'm fine with desserts, though I do try to make sure the desserts aren't nutritionally empty or at the very least aren't replacing nutritious foods.
Does it have a place in a "diet"? Probably not. I'm not a fan of the word diet when it means a special way to eat to lose weight and is typically associated with deprivation.
Does it have a place in a sensible lifestyle? Absolutely!!!
That said, you have to know yourself. If you have trigger foods that will send you into a binging tailspin, it's best to stay away.
Depending on my mood, sometimes I'd rather have the lighter version so I can eat MORE. Sometimes I'd rather have the real thing in a small portion.
I went back to calorie counting for this exact reason; I eat pretty darn well, but I can indulge and still be in a calorie deficit for the day. This way I never feel deprived or send strangers in a restaurant death glares for having the double chocolate lava cake, because I can have some too if I feel so inclined.
Not in my diet. I don't feel satisfied if I limit the amount of dessert I eat based on calories so I just don't eat any at all.
I actually have this problem with all foods. I can't stand just eating a LITTLE bit of something I like; I want a large portion of that something or I won't be happy. There just isn't enough of that flavor in a small portion for me. To compensate for that, I eat mono-flavor, single dish meals. Dessert just doesn't fit into that plan!
I do have sweet cravings though, so I'll often have lunches of fruit and an occasional ginger candy.
I love desserts and my husband claims I have a separate dessert stomach that can still take cake when I'm full! However, day-to-day, our dessert after dinner was usually a piece of fruit when I was growing up. So I don't feel like I need dessert after every meal to feel satisfied.
Now, I only have dessert once a week on my cheat/refeed days since I work better on generally being on a low carb diet (less sugar cravings). But on that day I might have 3 scoops of peanut butter ice cream and a slice of cake spread throughtout the day
On holiday I had dessert every other day but I still ended up losing weight with lots of walking and I watched my portion sizes. I'd have half a slice of cheesecake or share a brownie with my husband and have 3-4 bites. Stopping was the hardest part!
Honestly, I think I'd rather weigh a bit more and be able to occasionally have the things I love (cake! ice-cream! not chips because that always spirals into more...) rather than not have them at all. The problems only start when I don't limit myself.
I have to watch it with desserts, sometimes I have control and sometimes I don't. Making no-sugar, no-grain versions helps some, but I don't bother unless it is an unusual treat.
My diet right now is highly ketogenic and that almost completely obliterates the sweets cravings. When I do desire something sweet I go for some berries with stevia-sweetend heavy whipping cream (absolutely delightful and satiating, too), a piece of VERY dark chocolate (85%, doesn't give me any cravings for more), and once or twice a day I make myself a coffee drink with SF syrup in it. Chocolate or those coffee drinks with cream and the syrup are literally the only food I eat each day that is in any way refined or manufactured, it's my splurge and satisfies any small sweets craving I have with little to no impact on my cravings or insulin.
Transitioning away from a starchy, sugary, inflammatory diet has been the absolute best thing I have done for my health and energy. Ketosis helps control my appetite and burn fat, which is what I need in maintenance, and living in a lower carb manner means I have to fill up on more vegetables, meat, and healthy fats, with a little fruit, cheese, and chocolate as a lovely accent (yay Perfect Health Diet!). This has literally nixed my cravings entirely, I have no candida overgrowth or systemic bacterial issues. Heck, when I wake up in the morning I don't even have a film on my teeth, because there is literally next to nothing in my mouth or bloodstream that can feed that sort of bacterial overgrowth. It is simply excellent, and I don't really miss dessert a bit, because I found some substitutes that satisfy that urge without causing problems for me.
That doesn't mean I never eat cake or a brownie ever again, my whole life. I have allowed myself a day or two a year to do this sort of special food, namely Christmas and my birthday. A treat every few months on a date night is also no big deal. But I have learned the hard way I cannot eat like that every day and remain slimmer, or in good health. So I limit my daily diet to healthful, nourishing fare so that I can guiltlessly enjoy the occasional social eating. It's a tradeoff that is really no burden, but finding that balance requires time, experimentation, and a fair measure of self discipline. If I can do it, anyone can, though!
For me I want my eating habits to be the same when I'm at goal as they are now, and I am not willing to give up the occasional dessert. I do find it tricky though, when I eat dessert the next week is tough with cravings but if I stick with it it's easier again. This only applies to stuff like cake and icecream.. y'know sugar explosions. Yum. I think it's ok for me now that I know that it does get easier after a few days. It's different for everyone though. Part of the reason I gained so much weight in the past year was because I ate dessert every day (or just chocolate bars whatever) when I never did before. Most days I have a cup of black Irish tea with 1 sugar and some milk at some point in the evening and I find this satisfying.
I had to cut out bread because it triggers something in me. I FEEL something turned on. I figure, hey I have friends who feel a certain way after smoking cigs (like "I need another one") and I never have. I used to get upset when people offered me dessert, esp because I told them I was trying to stay away. Then I realized that their "desire" for dessert was not the same as mine, they could say no if they wanted to and thats how they saw my desire - but my desire was to clean the plate, and get 2nds and 3rds. Even if it was something I didn't like-maybe it was because I grew up having to stay at the table till I was finished, not sure.
I grew up with fruit after dinner, and desserts were something grazed on throughout the day. I don't feel like I am depriving myself if I cut it out, I mean I am choosing not to have it, so if I "let go" of one thing (cake every day), I gain another (not having the annoying sugar high I always get). Plus people have lived and died without ever having cookies, so I got my taste and I too can live a full life without one.
Last edited by pixelllate; 05-20-2012 at 08:01 PM.
I think it depends on what program your following, some low carb, protein diets have one day a week where you can eat anything, but not binge. So following that you could treat yourself to a dessert on that day.
I have been having Atkins chocolate bars as a snack, which are low in carbs and have protein and taste good too.
Do you think dessert has its place in a diet?
It's a good thing I don't really like that kind of food. 
