Sugar is considered by many diet experts to be an addiction as dangerous as nicotine or even heroin. There is nothing that gives us a bigger lift than a shot of sugar. However sugar exhausts the pancreas, is often followed by a crash in blood sugar levels and can lead to diabetes and other serious disorders.
An addiction for sugar usually has its roots in issues to do with stress and emotions. Many individuals find sweet foods, and particularly chocolate to be extremely comforting. The only problem is that the root cause of the stress or emotional problem that is causing you to "turn to sugar" to solve your problems is not addressed then you will probably always be addicted to it.
If you crave sugar there are some foods that are not sweets and cakes that can help you circumvent the body's addiction to it.
For instance the Jerusalem artichoke is a vegetable that is thought to regulate the body's blood sugar balance. Vegetables such as sweet potatoes and yams can help satisfy the craving for creamy or milky sweets. However if you do crave sugar the best thing to do is reach for a piece of fruit, which will definitely have fewer calories than a slab of cake.
Some people who crave ice cream or rich products actually have a calcium deficiency. The same thing goes for people who crave a great deal of cheese, which of course can add pounds to a body in no time. To make sure that your cravings for ice cream or cheese are not based on a calcium deficiency it is a great idea to take calcium supplements, eat plenty of broccoli or Swiss chard and drink low fat skim milk.
If you are craving fat, you probably have a bit of an oral fixation. The craving for fatty foods is quite primal and has more to do with a phenomenon called "mouth feel." Foods that are warm and fatty take us back to the cavemen days when biting into freshly killed meat and drinking the blood was common.
Cravings for fatty foods are commonly found in emotionally insecure individuals who need to express their anger by biting into something warm and fatty in texture. Psychologists call this "eating your anger."
If you are craving sodium then you may need to eat a more balanced diet that includes more vegetables. Vegetables are a natural form of salt. A good substitute for high sodium dishes is sushi as the seaweed that wraps the raw fish is filled with healthy amounts of sea salt.
Drinking too much coffee or alcohol can also cause cravings for sodium. This can cause a shortage of sodium in the blood.
Many cravings have no biological basis at all and are "all in the head." The trick is to realize that a positive association with a food is not necessarily a reason to continually binge on it whenever you feel blue.
"Psychological causes of impotence usually develop as a result of some specific anxiety-producing event, as, for example, a recent heart attack, the fear of contracting a sexually transmitted disease, loss of interest in one's long time sexual partner, depression, overwork, fatigue, business worries whatever. In these circumstances, counseling, reassurance, and review of sexual techniques and expectations may be helpful," revealed Dr. Isadore Rosenfeld of the New York Hospital - Sloane-Kettering Cancer Center in The Best Treatment.
"The important thing is not to assume that an episode of impotence means that you have a permanent problem and should expect it to happen again during the next sexual encounter. Because thought processes are so important in erection, such a negative assumption can, in some cases, bring the problem about. The best thing to do if you experience an episode of impotence is to forget it and expect a more successful experience at another time. Such an episode is not a lasting comment on a man's virility or masculinity," added Dr. David E. Larson, editor-in-chief of the Mayo Clinic Family Health Book.
It's also important to remember that not all bouts of impotence are psychological in origin. Physical problems account for a great number of cases. These include diabetes and vascular disease (the most common causes), surgery of the prostate gland for cancer or any major abdominal operation in which the blood supply or nerves in the area are damaged.
Impotence can also follow nerve injury associated with multiple sclerosis or a stroke, hormonal disorders, prostate infection, smoking, alcohol and drug abuse. Other possible causes are structural abnormalities of the penis and circulatory problems that can interfere with blood flow to the penis.
"Previously, it was said that it was all psychological. But as diagnostic tests were developed, more often a physical cause was found such as nerve damage, arterial blockage, or fibrous tissue in the penis itself," revealed Dr. Edward John Keogh, medical director of the Reproductive Research Institute at Queen Elizabeth II Medical Center in Nedlands, Western Australia.
Sometimes, impotence can be a side effect of certain medicines. Over 2OO medications are known to cause impotence. These include antihypertensives, tranquilizers, sleeping pills, and narcotics.
"Most medications which are used to control high blood pressure interfere with erectile function. But when as person has hypertension, how can he stop using the drug? When he stops the drug, he could have a stroke. If he changes his medication, who can tell whether or not it will produce impotence? How do you know the second drug isn't as harmful as the first? That's the dilemma of drug users," Keogh said.
"Medication is high on the list (of impotence). - My cardinal rule holds as true for impotence as it does for virtually every other symptom: When you wonder what's causing it, look into your medicine cabinet first. Except for antibiotics, almost any drug can render a man impotent," Rosenfeld said.
How is impotence treated? Find out in the third part of this series. If your partner has a diminished sex drive, help her recover with Fematril, a safe and natural female sexual enhancer that can stimulate your mind and body. For details, go to http://www.fematril.com/.
Both Patricia Zelkovsky & Sharon Bell are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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