sugar cravings at night helllllp!

[wendy28]

why is it even though i can have a very satisfying dinner that i am craving something sweet shortly after?

[Sherrie]

What did you have for dinner?

[wendy28]

well it doesnt usually matter what i have for dinner, the craving comes about 10 mins after i have eaten.
tonight i had a salad and a some roast chicken and one slice of grain bread.
is that bad?
i didnt think it was...

[Sherrie]

Well it depends, there might not be enough fibre or fat to slow absorption of your meal down plus when you eat carbs (bread) it tend to make you hungry quickly afterwards. Or if you're not eating enough during the day that could cause problems at night.

[wendy28]

ok that makes sense,
so should i stay away from breads all together?
i thought the multi grain breads were good for you.

[Sherrie]

They still have lots of crap in them Wendy, particularly if bought from a supermarket.

[wendy28]

oh bugger, i cant seem to do a thing right lol!

[Sherrie]

Nah don't worry about it. There's a recipe in the recipe section called oopsie rolls, you might want to give them a try and see if you like them.

[Sapphy]

I get this too. All I can think about is SUUUUUGGGGGGAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

I'm only on the 2nd day of (serious) induction though so I'm hoping this will pass. It's only for 2 weeks, I'm sure I can hack it.

I miss my brazil nuts :(

[Shez]

It'll pass Sapphy :) After 2-3 days you lose your sugar addiction if you have kept your carbs low enough.

[foodcraver4ever]

Hi, I just wanted to let you know that it is probably the bread that does that and it is not aloud on induction at all.
For that something sweet, try this and take your time licking it off the spoon.

For my other creation, My sweet tooth...I weigh out two oz philly cream cheese, micrwave for 50 sec, add 1 tsp pure cocoa,orange extract, mix and eat ssslllooowww. mmmm
I am only on week two and I have started this eating plan so many times and never made it to the first week. I have to make it to the two weeks this time!
Good luck to you.

[Chrysalis]

It's the bread, no doubt about it. The only way I can stop sugar cravings is by having no simple carbs or sugar, otherwise - WAAATCH out!

[heal]

Ah I think the bread might be the possible reason. My Dad after eating his meal (carb-rich), he needs something sweet real badly.

So now I understood the reason :)

[kagiesen]

Have a look at something called "night Eating Syndrome" (not "nocturnal eating syndrome"), or NES, which comes in various forms. I have it, and maybe it fits you as well.

Katrin

[AlaskaLinda]

gosh, Katrin, i had never heard of NES......i always just figured it was a personal flaw i needed to 'get over'....there seems to be alot of info out there...am off to read all about it. Thank you, and welcome! :)
Linda

[AlaskaLinda]

Night eaters most commonly have little or no appetite upon awakening in the morning, and may not feel hungry for the first time of the day until afternoon. They then would tend to overeat from dinnertime onward throughout the night, frequently consuming an excess of calories after dinner. This pattern of pattern of deprivation during the day, and over consumption of calories at night leads to weight gain and eventually obesity.

Night eating syndrome is now recognized as a specific type of eating disorder. Not only is this syndrome an eating disorder, but one of mood and sleep as well.

the above is from a site called UltraPrevention.com. This is me, the way i have been all my life! it sounds like melatonin and/or Leptin might help.

any input, Sherrie?

[kagiesen]

Hi Linda

(just posted a long post which disappeared, bummer. So here the short version:)

I can totally understand how you feel. I always felt like a big undisciplined pig. I was never really overweight, cos I exercised and also was quite controlled during the day. But it really got me psychologically, made me feel bad about myself!

there is a book called 'Overcoming Night eating Syndrome', really good, by the researchers who found out about the NES, in plain English, tho. Dr. Kelly C Allison, Dr. Albert Stunkard. It recommends a number of ways to tackle it, from 5HTP to behavioral therapy to anti-depressants. It also describes 4 different types. It seems to be partly genetic, partly learned behavior. My mum has it. One of my sisters has it, both not as bad as me, tho. One of the types is the 'compelled evening and nighttime overeater', who does not get up in the middle of the might as well (which is what I used to do), but stays up late, continues to eat after their dinner well into the night before they are ready to fall asleep. If you tell me a bit more about you, I can help you better, if you think this is you.

I have tried a lot of things, and about 6 months ago started on prozac. That helped straight away, and since then I have probably had about max 10 episodes of night chocolate binges (or other carbs). Much better!

Any question, feel free to ask me.

I am not very active on this forum, as you can see, as i am also on a forum called 'Cohens', an eating plan which I lost 15 kilos with (and managed to mostly keep off for a year now). It's also very low carbs.

Cheers

Katrin

[kagiesen]

And yeah, try the melatonin. Also, try the tryptophan and 5HTP. If you're in the US, that should not be a problem. Then, if that doesn't help, try the sertraline (prozac). Took me a while to get my head around it, as I am surely not depressed. I could not believe the effect it had.

And I am glad you have now got a name for it, as when I first found out, I nearly wanted to cry cos I was so relieved that 'it wasn't my fault'.
Katrin

[AlaskaLinda]

Hi Linda

(just posted a long post which disappeared, bummer. So here the short version:)

I can totally understand how you feel. I always felt like a big undisciplined pig. I was never really overweight, cos I exercised and also was quite controlled during the day. But it really got me psychologically, made me feel bad about myself!

this is ME!!!


there is a book called 'Overcoming Night eating Syndrome',

i will look for this book immediately


It seems to be partly genetic, partly learned behavior. My mum has it.
i never thought about it before, but now that you mention it, my Dad had this problem, too. he died at age 59 of pancreatic cancer. hmmm


One of the types is the 'compelled evening and nighttime overeater', who does not get up in the middle of the might as well (which is what I used to do), but stays up late, continues to eat after their dinner well into the night before they are ready to fall asleep. If you tell me a bit more about you, I can help you better, if you think this is you.

this is exactly what i do. i can go all day, eating only a single egg, or a small bit of meat....but once i start eating dinner, i am like a bottomless pit. since beginning Atkins, i've worked hard to eat breakfast and lunch....but too often, i save those calories and carbs for dinnertime, and after. ever since my husband died, it's been even worse. i *never* want to go to sleep at night. i eat a big dinner, then munch, thru the evening. then i don't want to go to sleep on a full stomach, so i stay up late. and then feel 'hungry' again.....so i eat, and stay up later......over and over, til i just collapse. i never get up to eat, after going to bed (at least there's that!):rolleyes:


I have tried a lot of things, and about 6 months ago started on prozac. That helped straight away, and since then I have probably had about max 10 episodes of night chocolate binges (or other carbs). Much better!

Any question, feel free to ask me.

thank you so very much!!! i took prozac for a short time, when hubby first became ill. but i didn't like how it made me kinda jittery. i don't have objections to it in general, so it's good to know there are levels of options to try first. truly, i never thought this problem was solve-able. i really did think it was a part of my personal character flaws. this gives me such an optimisitic feeling!!


I am not very active on this forum, as you can see, as i am also on a forum called 'Cohens', an eating plan which I lost 15 kilos with (and managed to mostly keep off for a year now). It's also very low carbs.

i'm so glad that you happened to share your info on this topic, on a day when i was going thru all new posts! serendipity! Congratulations on your excellent weight loss.....i look so forward to learning more about this. thank you again, Katrin! :)

Linda

(better post this quick before i lose it....i hate it when that happens! ;) )

[janal]

This all sounds a bit familiar !
I know a lot of times for me it is thirst. So make sure you have a good drink of water with your dinner but if that doesn't do it - try this, it works for me.
As soon as I get that sugar/sweet crave I make myself a big glass of diet softdrink (diet rite) and I add a dash of cream, (it doesn't need to be much).
I like to drink it through a straw.
Just really satisfies me, and I don't think it has stopped me from losing although I am a slow loser.

Then there's always the good old diet jelly to help you through these cravings as well. Serve with a little cream.

[AlaskaLinda]

those suggestions are good ones. thanks, Janal!

my nighttime cravings are not just sweet-cravings....now i just want to eat SOMETHING. it's like....at nighttime, i never feel full.....not that i'm hungry per se; just obsessed ....it's gotta be that emotional component.....or maybe i am missing chemicals/minerals ? I'm gonna try to find that book tomorrow, before i leave, so i can read it on my 8-hour :( flight.

[Sherrie]

Hmmm without reading a lot on the night eating syndrome (wanna mention that upfront) my thoughts are if you're not eating very much at all during the day then this could be a big reason why and personally I would imagine a very low calorie diet wouldn't help things. Another thing is hormones, different hormones are at their highest at different times of the day so this could play a part also. One thing I have been learning is that by not eating enough, skipping breakfast, lack of sleep, stress etc can effect our hormone levels which in turn brings on unbearable cravings, weight gain, depression, fatigue, body aches, you name it.

[coralc]

I thought it was the Coralc syndrome !!
Me to a T !! ALWAYS been a late (2.30-3.30a.m.) sleeper, my mouth and tastebuds (as opposed to my stomach) crave yummy food, and continue to crave it from dinner time on ! Seems to be a lot of research now re lack of sleep affecting weight loss, I have to get up at 6am to get ready for work Mon.-Fri, and often 6.30a.m Sat., as my daughter works Saturdays , and my son-in -law doesn't always keep to the Saturday access he originally asked for, so I often have an early start with the kids. I'll definitely try to get the book, as it certainly sounds like me. too, Linda, wouldn't it be wonderful if their was a solution ! Maybe there is a late night job out there for a circular stripper, I could easily sleep lots in the day time ! Th audience would certainly be getting a lot for their money ! Coralc

[kagiesen]

Hmmm without reading a lot on the night eating syndrome (wanna mention that upfront) my thoughts are if you're not eating very much at all during the day then this could be a big reason why and personally I would imagine a very low calorie diet wouldn't help things. Another thing is hormones, different hormones are at their highest at different times of the day so this could play a part also. One thing I have been learning is that by not eating enough, skipping breakfast, lack of sleep, stress etc can effect our hormone levels which in turn brings on unbearable cravings, weight gain, depression, fatigue, body aches, you name it.

The thing is, Sherrie, that with NES, your circadian (sleep) and your food rhythm are out of whack. So you're right about that. 'Normal' people wind down towards bedtime, and then can go without food for 10 to 12 hours or so. NES people have that phase at a different time than their sleeping phase, ie it starts around 4 am and goes until say 2 to 4 pm, and in that time their body just doesn't want to eat. Imagine you were woken up at say 3 am and had to eat a 3 course meal.

That's why for some people, melatonin helps. I had a hormone saliva test, where I had to take samples all through the night, and the result was that my stress hormones and wake hormones were very high (more like during the day), and the serotonin addresses that. Some people think that the eating is some kind of self-medication, where the patient eats to produce serotonin and get to sleep (at least initially). Then it becomes 'learned behavior' in the sense that 'well, that worked fine last week, so I must eat in order to fall asleep'.

You're right in that one of the steps to tackle it is trying to shift your eating rhythm, so have a solid breakfast within 1 hour of getting up etc. However, there is a risk (and that happened to me) that despite that, you have the same cravings after dinner, and end up eating way more than your intake for the day (if you can't resist it, and believe me, the urge is very very strong). At least if you don't eat lots during the day, you kind of 'save' your calories for later. But that will perpetuate the problem.

Just my experience with it.

Cheers

Katrin

[Chrysalis]

Very, very interesting. I never knew there was something like this. I think I might know some people with the problem though....

If you don't want to take Prozac or something like that, how about reading up about and discussing taking 5HTP (5 Hydroxy Tryptophan) with your doctor? My family has a tendency towards seasonal depression which can really shoot you in the foot when you get that hybernation-feeling and you're trying to lose weight, and both my sister in the UK and me have used this with much success. It cannot be used together with regular SRI's like Prozac as that will lead to serotonin overdose, but taken by itself it's a natural serotonin precursor made from the Griffonia Bean. I know of several people who have taken it for mild to deep depression, with good results, so it might work for you also, instead of the heavy stuff.

[Chrysalis]

PS: Just realised someone else already suggested it. But 5HTP really does work, and not just for depression. Anytime your seretonin levels go down your body will try to fix it.

[kagiesen]

PS: Just realised someone else already suggested it. But 5HTP really does work, and not just for depression. Anytime your seretonin levels go down your body will try to fix it.

Yep, I suggested it. I tried it, too. With me, it didn't work, but according to the research, it does work with some. I'd try it out before I'd go on Zoloft (it's not Prozac, BTW, it has to have sertraline in it, which I think Prozac doesn't have).

Katrin