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The Struggles of Having a Sweet Tooth

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at U Mass Amherst chapter.

For some people, you can occasionally treat yourself to a cookie, but for people with a sweet tooth, it’s a whole different story. Those of you with this 24/7 sugar craving know that sweets are never off limits. Whether it’s warm chocolate chip cookies, brownies, cake, a candy bar, or even a nice sugary cereal, you can’t go a day without fulfilling your addiction. This constant craving isn’t always sweet though, there are some real struggles that go with it.

1. Not enjoying the actual meal

Those who suffer from a sweet tooth always have their eye on the prize. When eating a big family dinner, you’re daydreaming of the dessert after the meal. As a result, you end up not fully enjoying the actual meal because it’s really just an appetizer for the main event: cake and pie.

2. Overeating

Maybe on the other hand you still enjoy the actual meal and fill your plate with savory dishes, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have room for dessert. You will continue to eat several different desserts, stuffing your stomach full. Although your sweet tooth will be satisfied, your stomach might not be happy.

3. Your Skin

Anyone with a major sweet tooth knows your skin doesn’t like the sugar as much as you do. After a plethora of sweets, your skin will get angry. The revenge will be the crazy breakout right before going out Friday night. You’ll immediately decide you should cut back your sugar intake, however, when midnight rolls around and you see that chocolate, it’s hard to stop yourself.

4. Holidays

The majority of the holidays involve some type of sweet. Whether it’s Halloween candy, a chocolate box on Valentine’s Day or Thanksgiving with the bounty of pie, your addiction is at an all time high. Of course, your friends know you love your sweets, so they give you some and you’re left with obscene amounts of mini chocolates. When you’re surrounded by this much, the temptation is real. You will quickly turn to your fellow sweet tooth friends and give some away so you don’t inhale it all.

5. Coffee

Sometimes you need a caffeine pick me up in the morning. If that’s the case, you might decide to go to Starbucks for a coffee. Of course, this coffee isn’t just taken black; you also need your dose of sugar. So you choose to get the caramel latte or white chocolate espresso: coffee that barely tastes like coffee. Chances are you have created a concoction of coffee and sugar to get you through your day, but this “coffee” isn’t always easily accessible, you simply can’t recreate it in the break room of your office or at the dining hall.

6. Curbing the Craving

You’ve probably found yourself on Pinterest searching for healthier options to suffice your sweet tooth. You’ll try anything to curb your craving without the extra calories and sugar. However, these alternatives to your usual treat aren’t the same. They say the low sugar recipes will taste like the real thing, but you can tell the difference and so can your relentless sweet tooth. The only real solution is to go into your emergency candy stash.

7. Quitting

Like quitting any addiction, it isn’t easy. Your daily sugar intake is a habit that is hard to break. You are never satisfied with your meals since you aren’t ending with a dessert, and the temptations that surround you make it difficult to say no.

8. Energy

Sugar is supposed to give you energy, right? But sometimes, as those of you with a sweet tooth know, it makes you sluggish and tired. You find yourself lying in bed indulging in a brownie with no motivation to get up and do homework. Throughout the day that crash hits you and you have more sugar because you think it will help, but really you just want to get to bed.

9. Feelings

Most people only eat a full pint of Ben & Jerry’s after a terrible day, but for a sweet tooth, that could happen whenever. Which means after a terrible day, you eat everything sweet in sight. There is no limit. On an average day, you consume more than the norm, so on a bad day, you reach new heights. No one wants to eat a bag of carrots after a break up.

A sweet tooth isn’t always the greatest, but it isn’t the absolute worst thing. There are some serious struggles that come with the unyielding desire for sugar. Regardless, we are in the same boat, a chocolate boat filled with candy. It’s a hard path to recovering from your sweet tooth, but you can do it!

Photos: Header123456

An accounting major at the Univeristy of Massachusetts Amherst, Isenberg School of Management who loves mac n' cheese, dancing, and making people smile.
Contributors from the University of Massachusetts Amherst