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Sugar addiction

The Anxiety Summit: Comfort food or sweet misery? How sugar controls your mood

By Trudy Scott 2 Comments

margaret floyd 1

[REPLAY on Saturday 6/21 – ENJOY!]

This is day 5 of the Anxiety Summit. Margaret Floyd, nutritional therapist, writer, real food advocate and author of Eat Naked, is interviewed by host of the Anxiety Summit, Trudy Scott, Food Mood Expert and Nutritionist, author of The Antianxiety Food Solution.

Comfort food or sweet misery? How sugar controls your mood and how to get it out of your diet 

  • why sugar is so harmful to our mood, where it hides in the diet and how to get it out
  • why protein is so important and why we shouldn’t be afraid of fat
  • the challenges of gluten, soy, and other food toxins
  • other important aspects of real whole food eating

Here is some great gems from my interview with Margaret

a little sugary treat puts your body into an emergency

historically sugar was very scarce in our diets, and so our bodies are not adapted to having lots of it

a blood sugar crash is actually as much of a state of emergency for your body as running from that wooly mammoth

I highly recommend Margaret’s books:

Eat Naked: Unprocessed, Unpolluted, and Undressed Eating for a Healthier, Sexier You published by New Harbinger Publications in 2011. Here is my book review of Eat Naked.

She is also the coauthor with Chef James Barry of the follow-up cookbook, The Naked Foods Cookbook: The Whole-Foods, Healthy-Fats, Gluten-Free Guide to Losing Weight and Feeling Great

Get your free gift from Margaret: Get Naked with the 10 week Dietary Program

If you are not already registered for the Anxiety Summit you can get live access to the speakers of the day here www.theAnxietySummit.com

UPDATE: the summit concluded on Tues 6/24 – season 2 of The Anxiety Summit will be in November 2014. If you’d like to be on the notification list just sign up here www.theAnxietySummit.com

Missed this interview or can’t listen live? Or want this and the other great interviews for your learning library? Purchase the MP3s or MP3s + transcripts + interview highlights and listen when it suits you

The Anxiety Summit: amazing aminos acids client success with Meme Grant

By Trudy Scott 14 Comments

 meme grant client success story2

This is day 14 of the Anxiety Summit. Meme Grant is interviewed by host of the Anxiety Summit, Trudy Scott, Food Mood Expert and Nutritionist, author of The Antianxiety Food Solution.

Meme had anxiety, had panic attacks, didn’t enjoy speaking in public, had insomnia and was an emotional eater. She found answers with the amazing aminos acids and the pyroluria protocol.  Hear how:

  • glutamine allowed her to walk past the gluten and dairy free junk foods
  • tyrosine helped her flutterby mind, gave her energy, focus and a desire to do things again
  • DPA stopped her comfort eating for too much of the “healthy” sweeteners
  • Tryptophan stopped her mind talk, got her sleeping through the night for the first time in 11 years and helped reduce the frequency of her panic attacks
  • GABA was the best amino acid and how the panic attacks disappeared
  • zinc, vitamin B6 and evening primrose oil helped her pyroluria symptoms.  Here is the pyroluria questionnaire we discussed.

Here is a great gem from my interview with Meme:

No matter how bad you feel, know that there is a natural solution out there

Natural solutions come naturally so keep looking

Meme is a GAPS Practitioner, Nutritional Therapist, FNTP, and fellow African.

You can find out more about Meme at www.givennewlife.info

If you are not already registered for the Anxiety Summit you can get live access to the speakers of the day here www.theAnxietySummit.com

UPDATE: the summit concluded on Tues 6/24 – season 2 of The Anxiety Summit will be in November 2014. If you’d like to be on the notification list just sign up here www.theAnxietySummit.com

Missed this interview or can’t listen live? Or want this and the other great interviews for your learning library? Purchase the MP3s or MP3s + transcripts + interview highlights and listen when it suits you

Neurotransmitters in food addiction: dopamine, endorphins, GABA and serotonin

By Trudy Scott 22 Comments

chocolate-cake-icecream

Food can be as addicting as drugs and we often see mood changes when someone has addictions or out of control cravings.

In this blog post Why do you crave and how do you self-medicate? I covered a simple way for you to figure out why you crave something or why you’re drawn to a particular food, substance, or behavior. I also said that it can be challenging to determine which part of your brain chemistry it’s affecting, and you may not associate cravings with mood issues.

In a series of connected articles I’m going to share some of the research supporting this. If you’ve read my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution, or have been reading my blog posts, you know I like to share research-based evidence. Unfortunately there are not many double blind studies on intervention and symptom management when it comes to amino acids, but I’ll be sharing the research that has been done – focusing on each neurotransmitter and amino acid individually.

Let’s start with this 2013 review titled Pharmacotherapies for Overeating and Obesity. Although the focus of the review is drug-based interventions for finding solutions to food addictions, the mechanisms of food addiction is nicely spelled out: neurotransmitter or brain chemical imbalances. I’d like to add that all of this can be in play even if you are not obese – you just have to love sugar/carbs, wine, coffee etc and eat or drink them to self-medicate.

  • “Research has shown that obesity can and does cause changes in behavior and in the brain itself that are very similar to changes caused by drugs of abuse”
  • “While food addiction is not the causal agent of all obesity, it is clear that many people no longer eat to survive, but instead survive to eat.”
  • “This review considers the importance of the brain’s reward system in food intake.”
  • “…research has recently demonstrated that each of these nutrient elements affects specific neurotransmitter systems in the brain providing the potential for targeted pharmacologic treatments” [instead of targeted drug treatments, we can use targeted amino acid supplements]
  • “The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) now recognizes addictions as a brain disorder, and as such, treatments aimed at addressing food addiction must address the dysfunctions at the level of the brain”
  • “There are a number of such therapies under investigation targeting neuropathways and neurotransmitters implicated in addiction, including: dopaminergic [i.e. low or high dopamine, a catecholamine], opioid [i.e. low endorphins], GABAnergic [i.e. low GABA or a need for glutamine], cannabinoid, serotonergic [i.e. low serotonin], and other novel treatment options.”

If this scientific information is of interest to you, I encourage you to read the whole paper here.

In this 2014 study looking at food addiction, in 233 participants, they did find a relationship between food addiction and negative mood i.e. there was: “an inclination toward behaving irrationally while experiencing negative mood states (Negative Urgency) and low levels of task persistence (lack of Perseverance)”

As a reminder here is the table again:

How you feel before

How you feel after

Brain chemistry imbalance

Amino acid to supplement

Anxious or stressed

Calm or relaxed

Low GABA

GABA

Depressed or anxious

Happy or content

Low serotonin

Tryptophan or 5-HTP

Tired or unfocused

Energetic, alert, or focused

Low catecholamines

Tyrosine

Wanting a reward or sad

Rewarded or comforted

Low endorphins

DPA (d-phenylalanine)

Irritable and shaky

Grounded or stable

Low blood sugar

Glutamine

 

As I said, the research is important, but more important are the incredible results my clients get when they have brain chemical deficiencies and use the amino acids in a targeted manner addressing each area of deficiency.

Meme Grant, GAPS Practitioner, Nutritional Therapist, FNTP, givennewlife.info participated my Amazing Aminos for Ending Emotional Eating program and this is what she said afterwards:

“I still am amazed at how quickly the panic attacks, binge eating, and mood swings disappeared. Tyrosine enabled me to focus and gave me energy to do things again, glutamine allowed me to walk past the gluten and dairy free junk foods, d-phenylalanine [DPA] stopped my comfort eating, tryptophan enabled me to stop my negative thoughts and helped me sleep but the best was when GABA was introduced, the panic attacks disappeared.”

This is why I call them the amazing amino acids. And this why addressing neurotransmitter deficiencies can end food addiction and out-of-control sugar cravings (and at the same time they help to eliminate or reduce anxiety, mood issues and insomnia).

Update June 24, 2016:

Research is now further highlighting the connection between food addiction and depression and anxiety.

In this May 2016 paper, Food addiction associations with psychological distress among people with type 2 diabetes  they looked at the relationship between food addiction and psychological distress among 334 patients with type 2 diabetes and found that those:

meeting the FA [food addiction] criterion had significantly higher depression, anxiety, and stress scores as compared to participants who did not meet the FA [food addiction] criterion.

This applies whether or not you have type 2 diabetes and whether or not you are overweight.

As you can see in this blog post: GABA for ending sugar cravings (and anxiety and insomnia), Melissa started taking Source Naturals GABA Calm in anticipation of stressful holiday travel and holiday gatherings.  She felt much calmer when she used GABA Calm and discovered that a wonderful side-benefit (we like side-benefits vs side-effects!) was reduced cravings (as well as improved sleep):

An unexpected result was that I stopped craving sweets after about a week of taking it! I didn’t even realize this until I was grocery shopping and out of habit walked towards the ice cream – I stopped and realized I didn’t want ice cream. So I walked toward the chocolate – same reaction. For once in my life, I was not craving sweets. I made truffles for a NYE party and only ate two. But what is really shocking is that the leftovers are still in my refrigerator two days later and I haven’t touched them. I don’t understand what is going on! Can this be the GABA Calm?

She was pleasantly surprised as many of my clients are – she felt more calm, she had better sleep and saw an end to her cravings!

If this is new to you this is what I do with my clients:  

  • Have them do the Amino Acid questionnaire  so they can figure out if they may have low brain chemicals that are affecting both mood and playing a role in food addiction or cravings.   
  • Review the Amino Acid Precautions
  • Have them do a trial  of the relevant amino acids, one at a time and monitor how they feel in terms of reduced cravings, less anxiety, improved mood and sleep

Let us know if this resonates with you and if you have tried the amino acids for food addiction or sugar/carb cravings? And what results you have seen?

 

 

 

Why do you crave and how do you self-medicate?

By Trudy Scott 23 Comments

Sometimes it’s difficult to figure out why you crave something or why you’re drawn to a particular food, substance, or behavior. It can be challenging to determine which part of your brain chemistry it’s affecting, and you may not associate cravings with mood issues. Here is a way to figure out why you may crave certain things.

Your drug-of-choice is something you self-medicate with and it is something that makes you feel good or “normal.” It could be candy, chocolate, starchy foods like bread or pasta, cookies, ice-cream, coffee, sodas or wine/beer. It could also be cigarettes, marijuana, a prescription medication like Prozac, street drugs, or even shopping or exercise.

Cravings for these substances (or behaviors) typically indicate a brain chemistry imbalance, so it’s very helpful to identify how the substances you crave affect you. This will help you determine which amino acids you might supplement to address the imbalance.

For example, a glass of wine may be calming for one person but energizing for another, or chocolate may be calming for some people and comforting for others. Certain prescription medications also offer clues. If you have many symptoms of low serotonin and have found that prescription SSRIs help, it’s possible that low serotonin is an issue.

Taking chocolate as an example, here’s what I suggest: Before you eat some chocolate, think about why you want it. Is it because you’re sad or tired or anxious? Or do you feel like you deserve a reward or feel irritable and shaky? Then, once you’ve eaten it, think about how it made you feel.

Use your drug-of-choice (candy, chocolate, starchy foods like bread or pasta, cookies, ice-cream, coffee, sodas or wine/beer etc) and the chart below to help you determine what brain chemistry imbalance may be affecting you and which amino acid you may benefit from.

How you feel before How you feel after Brain chemistry imbalance Amino acid to supplement
Anxious or stressed Calm or relaxed Low GABA GABA
Depressed or anxious Happy or content Low serotonin Tryptophan or 5-HTP
Tired or unfocused Energetic, alert, or focused Low catecholamines Tyrosine
Wanting a reward or sad Rewarded or comforted Low endorphins DPA (d-phenylalanine)
Irritable and shaky Grounded or stable Low blood sugar Glutamine

Feel free to share in the comments section: your drug-of-choice and how it makes you feel before you indulge and how you feel afterwards. If you’ve used any of the amino acid supplements to end the craving or addiction, I’d love to hear your feedback too.

No sugar or sugar in moderation? I say NO sugar!

By Trudy Scott 23 Comments

Delicious Chocolate Cake

More and more research is supporting the fact that sugar and carbs are as addicting as drugs and as difficult to quit for some people. I came across this quote the other day: “Stressed spelled backwards is desserts. Coincidence? I think not!” and it’s perfect. We crave sugar because we are stressed, sad, looking for pleasure and for energy and motivation. And we self-medicate with it in the same way as drugs, caffeine and tobacco.

This paper called Obesity: The emerging neurobiology of calorie addiction was published just a few days ago:

“The increased availability and consumption of highly palatable foods is the major factor behind the rise of obesity and type 2 diabetes in developed countries.”

“Progress has been made in recent years in understanding the neurobiological underpinnings for this preference” for sucrose: “sucrose activates dopamine neurons in a region of the brain called the striatum, and the resulting release of dopamine is associated with pleasure.”

“Moreover, the repeated consumption of high levels of sucrose can create a cycle of continued overconsumption—even compulsive eating—in order to recapture the initial feelings of pleasure. This is similar in many ways to drug abuse or addiction, and also involves some of the same signalling pathways within the body”

This dopamine/pleasure mechanism is just one way that leads to sugar addiction. This Oct 2013 paper in Nutrition, Neurobiologic basis of craving for carbohydrates says this:

“There is a relationship between emotional disorders, obesity, and craving for carbohydrates”

“Research on the basis of carbohydrate craving is varied, but may be grouped into five main areas: the serotonergic system, palatability and hedonic response [i.e. pleasure], the motivational system, stress response systems, and gene-environment interaction”

Last week I posed this question on my facebook page: “no sugar or sugar in moderation? what’s your vote? I say NO sugar! Do you think that’s too harsh and too unrealistic?” I was referring to ANY sweetener other than fresh fruit.

Here are some of the comments my tribe offered:

  • I’d say in moderation. However I’m trying to reduce my view of moderation over time.”
  • I was totally sweetener-free for a long time so I know how that feels for me. I’ve been experimenting with raw honey I seem to do fine with it “in moderation” (i.e. even a little bit each day is fine – although I don’t make baked goods so I’m not using large quantities.)
  • I seem at present to be incapable of moderation with sugar. So for me none at all might be the way I need to go. Humans developed over many thousands of years with just the sweetness of unprocessed fruits and maybe some honey now and then. Our culture’s idea of what “moderate” even means in regards to processed sugars is highly skewed.
  • Zero is way too hard for me but everyone is different
  • I say: a little bit of everything is just perfect!
  • Zero sugar is too rigid for me…I don’t think any of my clients say no to sugar 100%…I do avoid white and brown processed sugar ~95% of the time but will eat it when at someone’s home made with love. Every day, I use maple syrup to sweeten teas and in baked goods.
  • I don’t think a little bit of natural sugar is bad at all; but only just a little bit.
  • I’d say it’s ok for someone else [the zero sugar]! For me, I have to have a little here and there – just like bread. However, it’s a fraction of what it used to be. Maybe at some point I can whittle down from there.

Very few agreed with me about zero sugar. Here is what they said:

  • I’m with you! it is realistic as I have given up sugar and all artificial sweeteners.
  • NO sugar – Dr so astounded that I’ve brought my numbers down so much after wanting to give me meds for years. She said no meds would’ve brought my numbers down as much as I’ve done with diet and especially NO sugar or carbs.

Here are some of my thoughts: “Moderation” has quite a big range for some people and I see it going out of the window when it comes to baked goods. I see many recipes calling for pretty large amounts of maple syrup of honey. I recently heard Tana Amen, BSN, RN and author of The Omni Diet speak about sugar and crack cocaine in the same sentence and she said: “they are both addicting. We’d never do crack in moderation so why do sugar in moderation!?” I agree!

A friend and I were at a recent celiac function that had tons of gluten-free treats – all loaded with carbs and sugar and not healthy at all even though they were gluten-free. We had no desire to have any of the treats. That’s how we should feel! Zero sugar should be easy!

You won’t crave sugar or even feel the need for a little bit or an occasional treat if you have balanced biochemistry and are not stressed, no nutritional deficiencies (low zinc can be a factor) and are eating to control blood sugar.

You won’t be defensive when asked about it and you won’t feel deprived when you do go without it. You won’t feel that you need just a little. You also won’t have to white-knuckle it and use willpower.

Where do you stand? No sugar or sugar in moderation? And do you think that zero sugar is too harsh and too unrealistic? Do you think addiction plays a role? Are you white-knuckling it or can you take it or leave it?

Do you need help to get to zero sugar consumption? Here are some resources for you.

  1. Check out these chapters in my book “The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings”: eat real food, blood sugar balancing and the amazing amino acids.
  2. Stay tuned for the upcoming release of my homestudy program “Amazing Amino Acids for Emotional Eating.” Listen to me present on upcoming calls and tele-summits as I share some of the highlights of this wonderful 6 week program. 

Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution

By Trudy Scott 362 Comments

The targeted use of individual amino acid supplements will balance brain chemistry to alleviate anxiety, fear, worry, panic attacks, and feeling stressed or overwhelmed. They can also be helpful in addressing other problems that contribute to or exacerbate anxiety, such as sugar cravings and addictions. In addition, they can help with depression and insomnia, which often co-occur with anxiety. When you balance your brain chemistry, not only will you alleviate symptoms of anxiety, you’ll also have a great mood, eliminate cravings, sleep well, and have good energy and mental focus.

Worry and anxiety can be a result of low GABA and also low serotonin, so you may check off anxiety in both sections. Low GABA tends to result in a more physical anxiety, while low serotonin tends to result in more anxiety in the head, ruminating thoughts etc.

Low GABA

Low Serotonin

  • Anxiety
  • Panic attacks or phobias
  • Feeling worried or fearful
  • Obsessive thoughts or behaviors
  • Perfectionism or being overly controlling
  • Irritability
  • Anxiety that’s worse in winter
  • Winter blues or seasonal affective disorder
  • Negativity or depression
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Excessive self-criticism
  • Low self-esteem and poor self-confidence
  • PMS (premenstrual syndrome) or menopausal mood swings
  • Sensitivity to hot weather
  • Hyperactivity
  • Anger or rage
  • Digestive issues
  • Fibromyalgia, temporomandibular joint syndrome, or other pain syndromes
  • Difficulty getting to sleep
  • Insomnia or disturbed sleep
  • Afternoon or evening cravings for carbs, alcohol or drugs

Low Catecholamines

  • Depression and apathy
  • Easily bored
  • Lack of energy
  • Lack of focus
  • Lack of drive and low motivation
  • Attention deficit disorder
  • Procrastination and indecisiveness
  • Craving carbs, alcohol, caffeine, or drugs for energy

Low Endorphins

  • Heightened sensitivity to emotional pain
  • Heightened sensitivity to physical pain
  • Crying or tearing up easily
  • Eating to soothe your mood, or comfort eating
  • Really, really loving certain foods, behaviors, drugs, or alcohol
  • Craving a reward or numbing treat
  • PMS (premenstrual syndrome) or PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) * (Mar 2022: research published in 1989)

Low Blood Sugar

  • Crave sugar, starch or alcohol any time during the day
  • Irritable, shaky, headachey – especially if too long between meals
  • Intense cravings for sweets
  • Lightheaded if meals are missed
  • Eating relieves fatigue
  • Agitated, easily upset, nervous
  • Waking in the night or early hours with a jolt of anxiety/shakiness * (Feb 2024: case studies)
  • Binge eating and/or food addiction * (Feb 2024: research and a case study)

(* New additions that are not in my book. I’ve linked to some case studies above but there are many more on the blog so be sure to use the search feature)

Each of the above sections on specific neurotransmitter or brain chemical imbalances are found in The Antianxiety Food Solution: How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood and End Cravings. They were reprinted from The Mood Cure (2004) with permission from Julia Ross. They do contain some of my own modifications based on my experience with working with many clients, and the new additions as mentioned above.

Individual amino acids are used based on the above questionnaires and the results are profound and often felt within a few minutes:

Resources if you are new to using amino acids as supplements

If you suspect low levels of any of the neurotransmitters and do not yet have my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution – How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings, (as I mentioned above) I highly recommend getting it and reading it before jumping in and using amino acids on your own so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the practitioner/health team you or your loved one is working with.

There is an entire chapter on the amino acids and they are discussed throughout the book in the sections on gut health, gluten, blood sugar control, sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues.

The book doesn’t include product names (per the publisher’s request) so this blog, The Antianxiety Food Solution Amino Acid and Pyroluria Supplements, lists the amino acids that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs. You can find them all in my online store.

If, after reading this blog and my book, you don’t feel comfortable figuring things out on your own (i.e. doing the symptoms questionnaire and respective amino acids trials), a good place to get help is the GABA QuickStart Program (if you have low GABA symptoms too). This is a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance and community support.

If you are a practitioner, join us in The Balancing Neurotransmitters: the Fundamentals program. This is also a paid online/virtual program with an opportunity to interact with me and other practitioners who are also using the amino acids.

Do you resonate with symptoms in more than one area? This is not unusual.

Do you resonate with some of the more recent additions to the low GABA section?

Feel free to share how the amino acids have helped you and if you found this symptoms questionnaire helpful for figuring out where to start.

If you have questions and other feedback please share here too.