Seniors may crave sweets if they don't consume enough carbohydrates to meet the body's energy needs. Prevent this type of craving by not allowing seniors to skip meals, encouraging them to eat a snack even if they don't feel hungry, and including complex carbs such as whole grains, protein, and fats in meals.
Nutrient Deficiencies
Deficiencies in certain minerals such as zinc, chromium, iron, calcium, and magnesium may lead to sugar cravings as well, Elia says. Magnesium deficiency is specifically worth paying attention to.
The simplest explanation that sugar cravings increase with age is the gradual loss of our original average of 10,000 taste buds that starts around the age of 50. More than 250 medications can affect the senses of taste and smell as well.
Many sugar cravings stem from a blood sugar imbalance. When your body ingests sugar, your blood sugar spikes and your body releases insulin to lower it to a safer level. If the insulin brings your blood sugar level a bit too low, as often happens, your body craves foods that will raise it and increase your energy.
Sugar cravings are often caused by imbalances in blood glucose levels. Low blood sugar levels might cause you to crave something sweet in order to bring up these levels. Other factors that can play a role include psychological stress, medications, hormone imbalances, and health conditions.
— There's a good chance you or someone you know frequently craves sugar. While some of that is normal, if you're always wanting something sweet, it could signal hyperglycemia, or high blood sugar. Having the condition can cause weight gain, which many of us have dealt with throughout the pandemic.
A 2016 study suggests that changes in levels of hormones estrogen and progesterone cause cravings for high-carb and sweet foods before your period.
At blame is a natural process that's known as glycation, in which the sugar in your bloodstream attaches to proteins to form harmful new molecules called advanced glycation end products (or, appropriately, AGEs for short). The more sugar you eat, the more AGEs you develop.
Eating foods that are high in sugar throughout childhood can lead to preventable diseases, such as heart disease, obesity and high blood pressure. That's why the American Heart Association made the recommendation to avoid added sugar before age 2.
Abnormal sweet-food craving may occur in subjects with Alzheimer's disease. This behavior may be due to abnormalities in the brain serotonin system. Fenfluramine stimulates the brain serotonin neurosystem, producing an increase in systemic prolactin.
B vitamins are effective in curbing sugar cravings because they provide a boost to the adrenal system. When the adrenal system is not functioning well, cravings for sugar increase. Take a daily zinc supplement. Zinc can reduce sugar cravings.
B Vitamins
B vitamins curb sugar cravings significantly through the essential support they provide to the metabolism and nervous system.
Magnesium. As one of the supplements for sugar cravings, magnesium helps with insulin, glucose, and dopamine regulation. Dopamine is a hormone that acts as a neurotransmitter in your brain. A magnesium deficiency often results in chocolate cravings because chocolate has a high magnesium content.
The Mayo Clinic recommends taking a two-week break from sugar to reset your body. This doesn't have to be an outright cleanse, but try to limit yourself to foods with little to no added sugars or sweeteners — shoot for less than 5 grams of added sugars per serving. Start by cutting out sugary drinks.
After 14 days of quitting added sugars, you will notice that your skin is firmer, more elastic, is incredibly radiant and wrinkles are reduced considerably. At the same time, your weight is slowly decreasing and your body is also much healthier.
The drop in estrogen and progesterone causes deficiency of the hormones in the body and this causes increased craving for sugar.
Fatigue and stress caused by oestrogen and serotonin fluctuations during the menopause can leave us craving 'quick-fix' refined carbs and sugar. Cutting back on healthier foods can also create blood sugar lows, which exacerbates the hankering for a sugary treat.
Supplements of magnesium can reduce sugar craving and help stabilise blood sugar levels[1]. If you have Type 2 diabetes or Pre-diabetes you are more likely to have low magnesium levels[2, 3].
Without enough insulin, your brain cannot make use of that sugar. Since the brain relies on a second-by-second delivery of sugar for fuel—and your brain doesn't know you have diabetes—it's going to cue cravings and hunger to encourage you to eat.
Too Much Sugar Causes Cognitive Declination
Besides killing the brain cells, too much sugar in the brain can also cause slowed cognitive function and even memory and attention problems for seniors. Furthermore, it weakens and damages the blood vessels, which again leads to a declining mental capacity.