Hello, my name is Bettina, and I have a problem with chocolate and highly refined sugars.
Seriously.
I don't mean to make light of this. It's a serious problem, and I'm trying to break it.
If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I had an abnormal mammogram back in November. I was put on a 6 month call back. As a matter of fact, each one of the girls has well over 100 cysts. It's a nightmare.
As a result of that appointment, I've been attempting to cut out everything that the doctor told me to cut out.
Caffeine went first. I don't drink coffee, but I was addicted to Caffeinated Fountain drinks. (Coke and Pepsi). A very long, cranky 6 weeks ensued.
It was about this same time that I found out I can't tolerate gluten. (Good lord, that explains my intestinal issues for the past many years!) Once I got rid of the caffeine, my favorite pastries, breads, etc. were next on the chopping block.
Meanwhile, I've been doing some research on how to stop cancer cell growth, and what to do that is best for my body.
I've discovered that pretty much all refined grains are treated by your body as pure sugar. Metabolized quickly, they lead to a pretty quick sugar rush in your body. Actually, the sugar rush is just the same as what you get from a carbonated beverage.
Cancer cells feed on sugars. Turn off the sugar nozzle, and cancer cells have less to feed on.
And then came the last challenge. Cutting out the sugars in the processed foods, and chocolate.
For weeks now, I've been working on cutting sugars and processed foods. Things have not gone as well as I'd like. I cook from scratch most nights, but on occasion I still have gluten free muffins from a box mix or gluten free pancakes drenched in syrup. (Maple Syrup, since most OTC syrup has caramel coloring, which is made from GLUTEN, as well as high fructose corn syrup.)
However, I have to have chocolate in some form or another every day. A candy bar, cookie, something. I find something that gives me that sugar rush.
I need to cut that out somehow.
So, Wednesday, I decided I was going to go cold turkey. No chocolate. No sugar.
I made it through the morning, no problem. Around lunch time, the headache began behind my eyes. By dinner time, I had a raging migraine that just wasn't going away. 2 Motrin later, and my head was still pounding. I finally gave in and had some ice cream with chocolate syrup. Hey, presto, zingo, headache gone.
Thursday, I made the decision to give it another shot. Again, around lunch time the headache began behind my eyes. And then, I went to the dentist. Ick. I always have a headache after a cleaning, and it was worse yesterday. My dentist has a new dentist in his office, and she poked and prodded at me after my cleaning was done to the point that I was getting ready to scream and run out. But that's a story for another day. Anyway, I walked out of the dentist office and the migraine was so bad, I wanted to throw up. I stopped on the way home, picked up a Dove chocolate bar, downed it in the car, and began to feel immediately better.
Today, I made it through lunch without the headache. The migraine didn't begin until 4. This evening, I drove my son up to the Boy Scout Camp where he works during the summer. We left the house at 5, and when I dropped him off at 7, the headache was bad, but not as horrid as it's been in the past.
I stopped on the way home and picked up a Snickers bar. Once again, the headache began to immediately improve.
I need a plan.
I really need to cut out the sugar from my life somehow.
I've got to cut out this sugar addiction.
The very fact that it controls so much of my chemistry is disturbing. I'm wondering what kind of effect it has on my overall blood sugar, and what effect it has on my overall blood chemistry. I'm thinking that it's not good.
I know that it's too late for this to have any big effect on my call back mammogram next month. Whatever will be will be.
Nonetheless, I'd still like to cut the sugar addiction for my overall long term health.
This is going to be a difficult cord to cut.
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