Addiction treatment
A Nutritional Plan to Kick Addictions

Addictions have a root cause a disturbance in the chemistry of the brain and body-that makes some people more likely to become dependent on alcohol, drugs, gambling, workaholism, or some other addictive substance or behavior. Some alternative practitioners believe that one thing can be dangerous to these people: It acts like a drug and triggers the addictive response that they want to suppress. That one thing IS sugar.

"I believe that people with addictive personalities are sugar sensitive," says Kathleen DesMaisons, Ph.D., president and CEO of Radiant Recovery, a treatment program for alcoholism, drug addiction, and other types of compulsive behavior, in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
For them, too much sugar in any form-in sweets, refined carbohydrates, or alcohol-can affect their biochemistry in two key ways.

First, it initially raises levels of serotonin, a brain chemical, or neurotransmitter, that helps control your mood and emotions, but the effect is short-lived. When this serotonin boost wears off, they feel even worse, experiencing depression and low self-esteem.

Second, it boosts levels of the "pleasure" neurotransmitters called beta-endorphins, triggering impulsive behavior and cravings for more sugar.

In other words, sugar helps to create the ideal biochemical environment for a lifetime of addiction. By changing your diet, you can begin the process of true recovery and start repairing your life.

FOOD: Free Yourself from the Sugar Trap

Dr. DesMaisons' dietary recommendations can help addictive types normalize their levels of blood sugar, serotonin, and beta-endorphins. You can implement them step by step, mastering one and then moving onto the next. And as you can see, they're very simple.

1. Eat breakfast every day. If you don't have food first thing in the morning your levels of blood sugar, beta-endorphins, and serotonin are disordered.

2. Eat lunch and dinner. "When you eat regular meals and don't snack, you teach your addictive body the new behavior of starting and stopping," says Dr. DesMaisons.

3. Make the change from white foods to brown. This is a major step in switching from addiction-creating sweet foods to healthy eating. Make the adjustment gradually, Dr. DesMaisons suggests. White foods include bread, cakes, cereals, and pasta made from white flour. Brown foods include the whole-grain versions of bread, cereals, pasta, flour, and so on, as well as amaranth, black beans, brown rice, lentils, soybeans, potatoes with skin, sunflower seeds, polenta, sweet potatoes, and popcorn.

4. Reduce or eliminate sugar. Once you've eliminated many obvious sources of sugar, it's time to eliminate hidden sources by reading food labels. Besides looking for the word sugar, check labels for these terms: barley malt, brown rice syrup, cane juice, fruit juice concentrate, galactose, glucose, high-fructose corn syrup, honey, lactose, corn sweetener, corn syrup, malted barley, maltodextrin, maltose, mannitol, sorbitol, xylitol, maltitol, microcrystalline cellulose, molasses, polydextrose, dextrin, dextrose, fructose, fructo-oligosaccharides, raisin juice, raisin syrup, Sucanat, and sucrose.

"Don't scare yourself about never having sugar again," Dr. DesMaisons says. "Just start with one choice at a time."



Flower Essences to Help Reclaim Your Will
Flower essences are specially prepared tinctures that can help with your addiction by making you aware of patterns of thinking and feeling that are blocking your soul's natural expression of creativity, strength, and love, says Patricia Kaminski, cofounder and codirector of the Flower Essence Society, based in Nevada City, California. For the following remedies, take four drops four times a day for several months or until you resolve your addiction.

BLACK-EYED SUSAN: For Addicts in Denial For the addicted person who refuses to admit to a problem, this flower essence can help reveal the reality of the addiction, says Kaminski.

RESCUE REMEDY: Help for Detox
Rescue Remedy (also known as Five-Flower Formula) can help a person through the difficult period of detoxifying from an alcohol or drug addiction. During the initial detoxification period, take four drops once an hour rather than four times a day to help you feel calm and stable.

CALIFORNIA WILD ROSE: A New Commitment to Life
An addict is often disconnected from a commitment to life, says Kaminski-U the feeling that life is here to be lived and that he has something to say about how his life will progress. This essence helps bring a new commitment to life and new life to the will.

NICOTIANA: If You're Trying to Quit Smoking.
When you quit smoking, you feel tired, tense, and negative, and you have to face the emotions that you've been trying to avoid. (No wonder you reach for a cigarette!) The essence called nicotiana can help you be aware of your own life energy and accept your feelings, says Kaminski, which helps you to avoid lighting up.

MORNING GLORY: For Caffeine Addiction
This flower essence helps people overcome erratic rhythms and disturbed sleep patterns, such as staying up late at night and feeling extremely sluggish in the morning, thereby reducing the need for caffeine in the morning, says Kaminski.