astronomical cost of health care associated with its addiction.
Companies that make cereals, candies, cookies and sugar itself would
be sued, much like the tobacco class-action lawsuits of recent history.
I can imagine the secret after-school cookie deals, sugar at $650 a
pound, or by prescription only, and the growth of sugar addiction
clinics where the treatment of choice would be artificial sweeteners.
Well, things may be heading that way.
With some countries banning sugar food ads on children’s TV,
banning of soda in schools, restaurants being required to post calories
in their meals, and other restrictions, the war has begun. Science is
catching up too. But let’s not rely on the government, science or any-
thing or anyone else to get us to act. Like other addictions we are the
responsible parties. There is help if we need it, but after a long time in
clinical practice it’s clear to me that each of us holds the key to control
or eliminate (depending on the definitions) addiction despite the
ongoing propaganda from big corporations who continue to peddle
their deadly foods.
Not only can carbohydrates be addictive, but CI is a prevalent
problem in persons addicted to alcohol, caffeine, cigarettes or other
drugs. Often, the drug is the secondary problem, with CI being the
primary one. Treating this primary problem should obviously be a
major focus of any addiction therapy, which can make recovering
from other drugs more successful.
Other groups of people are very vulnerable to CI, including those
who are inactive, under stress, taking estrogen, dark skinned and
those with a family history of diabetes and other diseases of the meta-
bolic syndrome. In addition, aging is frequently accompanied by
increased carbohydrate intolerance.
The Metabolic Syndrome
If CI is not corrected in the early stages, your signs and symptoms,
and your overall health can easily worsen and even lead to disease.
There is a whole complex of related diseases that include some of the
biggest killers of today: heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and oth-
ers. These diseases kill more people in the United States each year
than died in all of our wars combined. This disease complex is
38 • IN FITNESS AND IN HEALTH