Why You Have Sugar Cravings and How To Stop Them

Most of us have done it. When life hands you lemons, you don't bother making lemonade, you eat an entire lemon meringue pie. The good news is, we now know why. A study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism discovered that beverages containing sugar were helpful in combating the onset stress. The scientists rustled up 19 women to participate in a 12 day study. 8 of the women were given drinks that were artificially sweetened with Aspartame and the rest had drinks containing table sugar. The researchers took pre- and post-drink saliva cortisol samples, as well as functional MRI scans while the women performed mathematical tests that were high in difficulty. In the pre-drink tests, the cortisol levels were shown to be the same. Not so of the post-drink test. Post-drink MRI results showed lower cortisol levels in the sugar drinkers and high ones with the Aspartame. But don't use any of this as an excuse, use it as a tool. Next time you find yourself reaching for a second piece of cake, check in with yourself to see if you are under stress or just really wanting something sweet. Sugar is the enemy when trying to build muscle or get lean. If you are stressed, take some time to unwind. Go for a workout, go blast your favourite tune. Hug someone. Get your stress release in a natural way.