High Fructose Corn Syrup Was The Bump in My Road

It's almost like a switch gets flipped in my mind and all of the sudden I'm off the wagon with eating. I'm doing great but then a thought comes up in my mind about eating bad food and I give in without a fight. It's funny. Sometimes just talking about a type of food will set off some burning need to have it.

I'm coming to realize that high fructose corn syrup is the devil. I've heard it from many different people and I've seen plenty of specials on TV, but I'm really starting to see the connection between high fructose corn syrup and the times when I really fall off the wagon. It's like giving a recovering coke addict a pinch of cocaine, and watching their whole world spin out of control.

The last TV special I saw about high fructose corn syrup was that it contains a chemical that targets a specific part of your brain that controls hunger. Our brain keeps saying that we want food even when we're not hungry. Does this sound familiar to anyone?

Here's my most recent experience with this. For the last two days, I've been doing great with preparing meals. Both days, I brought a very balanced lunch. I packed plenty of fruits, veggies, protein, and good quality carbs. Each day, I also packed a "dessert" which was a 100 calorie. The first day, I brought mini-chocolate chip cookies, which did not contain corn syrup. At the end of my meal, I ate the cookies and felt great. They met my craving for something crunchy and sweet and left me feeling great. On the second day, I brought the rice crispy treat, which the 2nd or 3rd ingredient is high fructose corn syrup. That's when the switch went off in my mind. I could almost instantly feel a rush going through my body and I wanted MORE!! I went into a tail spin with eating... I had to get more junk food, and I did.

Now, I'm fully aware that there most likely were more variables in my day than just a rice krispy treat. The tail spin that unfolded was nothing I'm proud of. I gave in to each temptation that my mind could think of. I went to Tom Whals and got a large milkshake. After work, I went to taco bell. When I rented a movie, I bought 2 candy bars, and after I ate all of that I ate 3 of the mini rice krispy treats.

I'll have to review the day as it unfolded. It might help to have what was going through my mind at each "cave in of willpower" written down on paper. I'll have to get on that.