The KInd Life Community Forum
Use this space to share stories, exchange ideas, ask questions, and contribute to our growing community!
Chocolate addiction anyone?
Started
by Jenny Goldner
on December 21, 2009
Hi guys! So I have been vegan for about 2 weeks now.....except for chocolate. It's my achilles heel! The addiction is so bad that my husband always brings chocolate when we travel because I tend to get cranky if I don't have chocolate over long periods of time. Has anyone found a good vegan substitute to milk chocolate?
I completely understand! I also love chocolate. There's a lot of dark chocolates that are vegan and delicious.
It's unlikely to be addicted to chocolate. Real chocolate comes from the cacao (pronounced 'ca-cow) bean. However, confectionary - which we get told is chocolate but is really a mixture of sugar and vegetable fat, far from real chocolate can be addictive. I expect it's the sugar that is calling you. Try going for high coco chocolate 85% etc Then try vegan chocolate, there is lots around; most health food shops will have some.
It's hard giving up/ kicking sugar. It takes a good 10 days and side effects/mood swings are likely but once you break through you'll find your cravings will diminish.
I used to be a bit of a chocolate - addict but when i weened my self off the so-called-chocolate (confectionary) and got a taste for real high cocoa chocolate, i would never go back to the high sugar and milk stuff. You'll eventually find it unpalatable! So i'm speaking from having been in the same boat. Just ween yourself off gently and you'll be fine! good luck.
I loved... LOVED... chocolate. Until I decided to transition to a vegan plan... about a month ago. And now, I don't even crave that chocolate. The high sugar and dairy chocolate... what Helly calls confectionary. Even when someone is eating a chocolate bar in front of me, I don't want any. It's weird how that's happened. My body just switched and stopped craving it.
There are other things too, such as my mom's Christmas cookies. She's been baking up a storm, all cookies loaded with sugar, butter, milk... all the things that would have me swooning over the cookie table. And nothing. Not even the desire for a little nibble. Instead I'm making my own Christmas deserts and don't feel left out or like I'm missing anything.
Honestly, I'm not saying it's easy, but once I started paying attention to what my body wanted, and I guess since I took out white processed sugar out of my diet, the craving for THAT chocolate has disappeared.
I have some dark vegan chocolate that hits the spot when I want something sweet, but it's a whole different taste... it's better. And I don't need to gobble it down, it lasts in the house! It's the wierdest thing.
Jenny, I definitely hear what you are saying about loving chocolate! I used to have all kinds of chocolate sweets around and ate them in bigger quantities than I should have. Since changing my habits with TKD in October, I've noticed a huge difference in my cravings. I don't have them anymore! I've never been into the milk chocolate but love dark. The darker the better. I still have some every now and again but the intense feeling I used to get after meals for dessert has subsided. I think it's due to the extra nutrients I'm getting now. I eat more balanced meals and have a lot more leafy greens and whole grains than ever before. I have to agree with Helly, I think it's the sugar that has you feeling addicted. Good luck!
5 Comments