How to Stop Sugar Cravings (and What Causes Them!)

You've just eaten dinner. You're not hungry. And yet, somehow, you're standing in front of the pantry hunting for something sweet. Sound familiar? Here's the truth: that's not a willpower problem. It's physiology. Sugar cravings are signals from your body on a cellular level, often tied to blood sugar and hormones—not a sign you've failed at eating well. Here's what's actually going on, and exactly how to stop sugar cravings.

A sugar craving is usually one of three things talking to you: blood sugar, hormones, or a nutrient gap. The key is to understand which one is impacting you, so you can practically approach your cravings. 

Often, the biggest culprit is a blood sugar rollercoaster. Here’s an example: Eat a muffin on its own (no protein, healthy fats, or fibre) and your blood sugar will spike quickly. As a result, your body releases insulin to bring it back down, and it often overcorrects, sending you into a dip (a.k.a. sugar crash). 

That dip is what triggers your next craving, typically within 1 to 2 hours (even if you’re not necessarily feeling hungry). Do this meal after meal, and your cells can start ignoring insulin's signals altogether, leading to insulin resistance. This is also a hallmark of PMOS (polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, formerly known as PCOS or polycystic ovary syndrome), which is why sugar cravings and PMOS so often go hand in hand.

Your cycle and fluctuating hormones play a role here, too. A 2023 study tracking women's hormones found that progesterone, the hormone that rises after ovulation, was linked to premenstrual food cravings: the lower it dipped before your period, the stronger the craving. Another study comparing women across cycle phases found a spike in cravings for sugar, salt, and fat (hello, chocolate and chips) in the days before menstruation. Falling estrogen in that same window can lower serotonin, your "feel-good" neurotransmitter, which research shows leads to increased consumption of carb-rich foods, especially simple sugars.

Stress and poor sleep also worsen key drivers of sugar cravings. Cortisol, the body’s main stress hormone, drives spikes in glucose and insulin, leading you toward sugary, high-calorie foods (the function: to provide the body with resources to get it out of its fight-or-flight state). Poor sleep quality causes the body to crave more calorie-dense and carbohydrate-rich foods the next day, making it nearly impossible to stop sugar cravings. 

• An unbalanced diet leading to sugar crashes

• Insulin resistance

• Fluctuating hormones (even in a “normal” cycle)

• Stress

• Poor sleep

• Vitamin deficiencies (more on that below)

Right now, we need more research to show a direct relationship between vitamin deficiencies and sugar cravings. What we do know is that some nutrients, when deficient, can worsen insulin resistance (which is often a trigger for individuals’ sugar cravings). 

Vitamin D plays a major role in blood sugar control. It’s required for proper insulin release by the pancreas, helps to lower inflammation that can drive insulin resistance, and increases the number of insulin receptors in the muscles and liver (making the body more responsive to glucose). Ensuring you don’t have a deficiency is one way to manage insulin and potentially stop sugar cravings. 

Many of us know about the numerous benefits of magnesium, but did you know that it’s also involved in vitamin D absorption? These two nutrients work together, so it’s no surprise that magnesium, too, is another key nutrient involved in blood sugar management. Like vitamin D, it helps the pancreas release insulin appropriately, lowers inflammation, and helps the cell better respond to glucose (aka sugar). (FYI: it takes about 4+ months of magnesium supplementation to improve insulin resistance.) For those of us unable to stop sugar cravings, consider this: the more sugar we consume, the more magnesium we lose, which means supplementing with this mineral may be one way to help to nip the sugar craving in the bud once and for all.

If cravings are frequent, a simple blood panel checking these markers can help guide your doctor’s recommendation for these supplements.

The upside of knowing what's driving a craving is that it can usually be addressed and improved, and you don't need to overhaul your whole life! Instead, here are a few tips to help stop sugar cravings: 

1. Diet: When it comes to curbing sugar cravings, dietary changes don’t have to be extreme. Instead, keep it simple. Pair carbohydrates with nutrients like protein, healthy fats, and fibre. This slows down the glucose spike and subsequent crash that fuels that next craving. And, unless otherwise advised by a medical provider, don’t skip meals: eating enough calories at regular intervals (think: every 3 to 5 hours) typically helps to keep blood sugar levels stable throughout the day. 
   
   
2. Lifestyle: Research continues to find the sweet spot for sleep is 7 to 8 hours for metabolic control. Sleep directly regulates your hunger hormones, and since cortisol, the stress hormone, can be a major craving trigger, managing stress is important. (A 10-minute walk in nature, 5 minutes of breathwork, or phoning a friend are some simple suggestions to keep stress low.) Lastly, if you track your cycle, expect cravings the week or two before your period (a.k.a. the luteal phase) and stock your kitchen accordingly (think: high protein, healthy fat-rich foods), instead of getting caught off guard.
   
   
3. Supplements: If your cravings are tied to insulin resistance or PMOS, inositol may help. Inositol helps cells better respond to insulin, which allows glucose to do the job it needs to do: give us energy. (Find the doctor-recommended ratio of Inositol in our Inositol Cycle Support, a daily powder pack that works fast to get your cycle back on track.) Adding a Vitamin D or Magnesium supplement (especially if you’re deficient) may also help, since both nutrients are linked to underlying insulin resistance which can trigger sugar cravings. 
   
   
4. Medical interventions: If cravings are accompanied by irregular periods, sudden weight changes, exhaustion, or a family history of diabetes, talk to your family or naturopathic doctor. These can be signs of insulin resistance, PMOS, or an underlying thyroid issue. For diagnosed insulin resistance, pharmaceuticals like metformin can address the root cause, not just the craving.

Honour your craving for something sweet by pairing an unprocessed carbohydrate source with protein, healthy fats, and fibre. Here are some of our favourites: 

• Plain Greek yogurt with berries, topped with nuts or seeds, and a drizzle of honey or maple syrup. 

• Apple slices with unsweetened almond or peanut butter.

• A smoothie that includes a protein source (think: chocolate protein powder), fibre source (think: chia seeds), healthy fat (think: peanut butter), and something flavourful (think: banana)

• Roasted chickpeas or trail mix with dark chocolate chips.

A sugar craving is rarely just a craving. It's your blood sugar, your hormones, and your body asking for support. When we pay attention to the root of our cravings, we learn what our body needs, making it easier to address and correct.