ADDICTED TO SWEETS? Sugar can be just as addicting as alcohol, nicotine or opiates – but there are alternatives to help people cut back or quit

America is definitely the home of the sweets, and land of the obese. Every third person is overweight and 50% of them are obese, and it’s not from eating too many vegetables. Eating sugar releases huge surges of the neurotransmitter dopamine (along with opioids) in our bodies as part of the “reward circuit” that scientists have associated with addictive behavior. This is not so different from what occurs when our brain reacts to hard core drugs like heroin or cocaine, and our mesolimbic (CNS) dopamine system gets activated.

The problem is that sweets are just a short-term boost, and then comes the dreaded crash. Motivation disappears. Headaches can become intolerable. Inability to concentrate is common. Depression and a feeling of hopelessness can set in. People get very moody. Do they continue the cycle, feeding the body sugar, like a drug, or should they seek natural remedies? Where to start?

First, figure out the root of the problem. Obesity may be responsible for reduced dopamine levels in the body, very similar to what happens to smokers and alcoholics. Other factors in chronically low dopamine levels are stress and sleep deprivation. Listening to music, exercising, and spending quality time in the sunshine can boost dopamine levels, but quitting sugar is key.

Sugar is the most consumed addictive substance in the world

Get this: sugar is harder to give up than cocaine. Sugar triggers dopamine “hits” that make your brain hardwired to crave more, while building up a tolerance. Feeling compelled to chomp down on some cake, pie, pastries, ice cream or cookies? Addicted to soda or fancy, jazzed-up drinks? You’ll need more and more of it over time just to reach the same state of satisfaction, worse than a cocaine addict.

The average American consumes three pounds of sugar weekly. One third of all of this sugar comes from soda and other sugar-laden beverages. Many people do it to combat boredom and/or stress. Certain nutrient deficiencies also contribute to sugar cravings, including magnesium (think chocolate), zinc, iron, calcium, and chromium.

Understanding the dopamine connection is vital to “fixing” your system and becoming un-addicted to the most consumed addictive substance in the world – sugar. It’s a vicious cycle of binge, withdrawal, crave, and repeat, but there’s a way out. Addressing the root of the problem with a natural remedy that boosts dopamine production, without sugar, is key.

Plant adaptogen boosts dopamine production without addiction, withdrawal, or “crash”

Well-known as the “velvet bean,” mucuna is a legume superfood that grows well in tropical climates, like Africa, India, the Caribbean Islands, the Pacific Islands, and Brazil. Most parts of the amazing herbal adaptogen mucuna can be used, besides the velvety-purple outer layer, including the beans, the seeds, and the roots. Inside the beans is a substance called levodopa that can be used to stimulate dopamine levels, energy levels, concentration levels, and libido. That’s because mucuna contains epinephrine for adrenaline and norepinephrine for energy and focus.

Mucuna is loaded with other health-boosting benefits too, including high content of vitamin B1, iron, and the vital mineral phosphorus, that helps keep the nervous system functioning on all cylinders. In-depth scientific research has been conducted using mucuna pruriens to successfully and safely boost dopamine levels for Parkinson’s patients, as documented by National Institutes of Health.

Many people are figuring out they can replace bad habits like consuming too much sugar by putting to work for them a new supplement beverage called Krave Kicker, that contains mucuna pruriens extract and vitamin B12 as methylcobalamin. The propriety blend is the ultimate boost for dopamine levels while helping to balance the central nervous system. It’s good to know there’s a natural remedy for everything under the sun, you just have to know what to look for and where.

yogaesoteric
January 31, 2023