Is sugar withdrawal real?

[goclarke2]

Trying to moderate my 2 large Chick Fila sweet tea habit since each one has 57 grams of sugar and I believe that is not great for me. I have cut back to just one a day starting 6 days ago and I began to feel like crap at about the 3 day mark. No energy, headache, slightly dizzy. Doctor google is mixed on whether sugar withdrawal is real so I thought I would ask a real physician. I’m 55 years old, 5’10”, 169 lbs at approximately 25% body fat. My last blood work was about 3 weeks ago and my fasting glucose was 94 mg/dL (range for test was 65-99). I’m open to the possibility thst all the “withdrawal” symptoms are in my head because of everything I have read and I half expect to feel this way. Many thanks for the info you provide!

[Jordan Feigenbaum]

Hey GoClarke2,

Thanks for the message. So, your blood sugar was 100% normal. That said, sugar withdrawal - if we limit withdrawal types of symptoms to those seen in medications/drugs- is not real. The psychology is different as well. Reading stuff telling you that sugar withdrawal is gonna be bad- here are the symptoms are likely to increase your risk of having those symptoms as well.

[goclarke2]

Thanks for the reply Dr Feigenbaum. Given that my glucose is normal, is there any reason not to consume 100 to 120 grams of sugar a day, from a health perspective, especially if it fits within my carb goals?

[Jordan Feigenbaum]

Thanks for the reply Dr Feigenbaum. Given that my glucose is normal, is there any reason not to consume 100 to 120 grams of sugar a day, from a health perspective, especially if it fits within my carb goals?

It depends on other facets of your current health status, e.g. are you obese, is your cholesterol in range, do you have any risk factors for cardiometabolic disease, what's your waist?

I'm not sure I'd recommend aiming for 100-120g of sugar a day and . in the context of a diet that's high in fiber and single ingredient foods, it'd be very difficult to do that anyway.

So, I guess what I'm saying is let's try and not eat a bunch of added sugar if we can avoid it unless you're eating 700g of carbs a day.

[goclarke2]

Thanks. I will cut back on the sugar laced tea!