If you have a daily craving for sugar and can’t pass a single day without indulging in sugary treats, you might just be in a toxic relationship. Sugar often has a similar effect on one’s brain as an addictive drug, and removing it from your diet all of a sudden can give you withdrawal symptoms like fatigue, headaches, low moods, or cramps.
As serious as it may sound, there are ways to reduce these cravings to a healthy level with the help of a few kitchen spices that have an anti-inflammatory effect and insulin managing properties. Cravings for sugar can be reduced by focusing on a diet abundant in earth-grown nutrients and doing at least a short-term complete elimination of refined sugar. This can be done by “creating an abundance of delicious real whole food. There is a natural crowding out of unhealthy foods without a sense of deprivation.
Refined sugar increases one's risk for inflammation, cancer, microbiome, and gut dysregulation, obesity, and diabetes. Refined sugar also acts on the same circuits in the brain typically hit by drugs.
The anti-inflammatory properties of earth-grown foods can help restore insulin sensitivity and allow the brain’s biochemistry to shift so that satiety hormones like leptin work well. Real food does not spike dopamine the way refined foods do so our dopamine receptors can come back into balance. Strictly eliminating refined sugar and processed foods even for a few weeks can help rewire those addiction circuits in the brain.
So, what are the spices that could help curb sugar cravings?
Black pepper: Has anti-inflammatory piperine.
Coriander: Improves insulin secretion and reduces free-radical damage in insulin producing cells.
Cardamom: Reduces the need for added sugar.
Sumac: Blocks inflammation in multiple ways.
Turmeric: Curbs inflammation and supports the integrity of the gut lining.
