I’m discussing binge eating and how to recover from a sugar hangover.
We have all been there. Been subject to a bit of a binge eating episode, and let’s be honest – it wasn’t on celery. We had leftover cake in the fridge and a box of cookies in the cupboard. Because they were on sale, we brought home a few pints of Ben & Jerry’s.
Sometimes binge eating happens when we’re happy. Sometimes it happens when we’re sad. But whenever it happens, it doesn’t feel so good the next day. I recently wrote a post about my top tips for stopping a snack attack binge in front of the TV (you can read it here), and now I’m back with some of my top tips for nursing the sugar hangover.
Binge Eating – How & Why
In my experience, binge eating episodes usually don’t happen just because food tastes good. They happen because food tastes really good when we’re otherwise deprived of food. In other word, they happen because we diet. Our bodies and minds don’t like to feel deprived, so we fight against that with all our might. It’s part of a vicious diet cycle where we diet, we feel deprived, we binge when our willpower dies, we regret the binge because it doesn’t physically feel great, and then we feel super guilty about it. Through the power of the guilt trip, the cycle repeats itself. It’s really tough to get out.
What Happens When You OD on Sweets
When you eat a lot of sugar, you get a surge of the feel-good hormone dopamine, which tells you to have more. As the sugar hits your bloodstream, the pancreas then releases the hormone insulin to help manage the blood sugar levels. Insulin is like an UBER car and blood sugar (aka. energy) are like the passengers. The insulin UBER car takes the sugar to the different parts of your body that needs some energy like your different muscles. This is why it’s important to have carbs before you work-out!
Assuming everything is working properly in the body (i.e. the person doesn’t have diabetes), the insulin UBER drops off most of the sugar in your liver which converts the glucose sugar to a storage form called glycogen to use at a later time. But once the glycogen stores are maxed out, and you aren’t immediately using the sugar in some sort of incredible post-meal sprint, the insulin UBER drops off the rest of the energy in fat cells. Yes, folks, this is actually what is happening when you’re binge eating pie and cake.
Leptin
The arrival of glucose passengers in the fat cells activates a hormone called leptin which is your satiety hormone. It sends a little message to your brain that tells you you’ve had enough to eat and also tells your pancreas that it can stop sending out insulin UBERs because hey, you don’t need to eat anymore, right? Well, when we’re binge eating sweets, we often eat beyond those signals.
Unfortunately, the we elevate our fat cells (called triglycerides) in the blood, the harder it is for leptin to send signals to your brain. Think of it like a traffic jam on the DVP. You’re not going anywhere. This is called leptin resistance. With leptin resistance, you stop being able to hear those signals that it’s time to stop eating, making it even easier to engage in binge eating behaviours.
Even if it’s just a one off, the feeling is not fun. Sugar gets digested so quickly that very soon after, your dopamine high plummets, and your blood sugar follows. If you have ever binged on candy before bed and woke up in starving shakes, you’ve experienced the not-so-sexy sugar hangover.
How to “Detox” After Binge Eating Sweets
The good news is, there are easy ways to stop and reverse the damage before it becomes a chronic health problem. Here are some of my top tips.
Don’t Diet
The most important thing to do after a binge eating session is to NOT let yourself go into diet deprival mode. Don’t punish yourself for a bad binge eating episode by starving yourself the next day or going on a stupid juice cleanse. Depriving yourself of food you enjoy will only push you back into binge eating behaviours.
Don’t Weigh Yourself
If you do, and you see a bit of a jump, keep in mind that you would have to have eaten an extra 3500 calories or so more than you normally consume to gain even just one pound. Any extra weight you may see is likely just bloating and water weight. So save yourself the panic attack and just throw that scale away.
Eat When You’re Hungry
After binge eating, it’s really important to nourish your body to help restabilize that blood sugar, and get you back on track towards a healthy relationship with food. When you feel hungry, feed yourself a normal size meal or snack with foods you actually enjoy. In other words, don’t buy one of those bogus green juices that no one in their right mind likes.
Reach for Protein and Fibre
Protein and fibre are digested much slower that simple carbs so they will help stabilize your blood sugar and keep you satiated longer. I love eggs with avocado and a piece of whole grain toast, or Greek yogurt with almond butter mixed in. One of my favourite yummy recipes is for Avocado Cottage Cheese Toast.
Get Moving
You already have a lot of carbs circulating in your system, so use that energy in doing some light exercise. You don’t want to push yourself too hard when you’re maybe already feeling a bit nauseous, or force yourself into activity as a way to “undo the damage” you feel you have done. Just move your body in a pleasurable, comfortable way. Exercise is key to stabilizing blood sugar levels, speed digestion and boost your confidence.
Drink Water, Not Coffee
You may also notice that your pee is super yellow and cloudy after binge eating the night before. Take a clue from your body- you’re clearly super dehydrated and need some H2O. You may be tempted to lure yourself out of your sugar coma with a strong cup of Joe, but this definitely won’t help your digestion or dehydration woes after binge eating. They key is upping the water (or tea) to help speed digestion, reduce bloating from all those carbs, and prevent sugar-induced constipation. We all know that’s never so fun.
Choose Probiotic Rich Foods
Research suggests that a high sugar diet can alter our healthy microflora (or gut bacteria environment) and we have only just begun to understand how important that gut bacteria is. After a binge eating episode, I suggest trying to replenish your healthy gut bacteria. Eat probiotic rich fermented foods like keffir, sauerkraut, pickles and yogurt. I’ve got a whole post on probiotics and fermented food here!
Toss the Sweets
If you’re worried about being tempted to fall into another binge eating episode, it may just be best to get rid of the culprit. I know it can be hard to throw food away. Consider giving it to loved ones or co-workers to help get it out of your house.
See, you’ve got this. So what, you had one super sweet end to a night- think of how many other meals you have in your life to balance that out! The key is to brush it off, get back on track, and remember that tomorrow is another delicious day.
Do you have any great tips for helping you “detox” after binge eating sugar? Leave me a comment below with some of your discoveries and stories!
Updated on October 4th, 2021
Abbey Sharp is a Registered Dietitian (RD), regulated by the Ontario College of Dietitians. She is a mom, YouTuber, Blogger, award winning cookbook author, media coach specializing in food and nutrition influencers, and a frequent contributor to national publications like Healthline and on national broadcast TV shows.
Leslie says
thank you for the encouragement! I have been a sweet (cakes, donuts and candy bars) binge eater. it’s embarrassing to say but it’s true. I am 53 now and able to name it but more importantly admit it and trying to deal with it. Had a complete hysterectomy last year and have been in menopause for about 5 years and my hormones are all over the place and I don’t sleep well, I have been doing pretty good for the past 2-3 months but about one day every 2-3 weeks (just happened yesterday) I bought a cake and binged ate 3 pieces of it! I am kicking myself because I have been doing pretty good, slowly losing a little bit of weight and then I do something so stupid. I do allow myself to have some little chocolate snack each day because when I don’t I binge more. My husband is total opposite, doesn’t crave sweets, sleeps well and just tells me “don’t do it”, which I know is true but so hard. I know my sleep is affecting a lot of the binges as well.
Today will be protein and fiber again and lots of water. Just found your website and will look around. Thank you for your perspective and encouragement and helping me refocus.
Pharmacy RXS says
It often is a sign of depression and/or severe anxiety, and it is so addictive considering it can cause temporary satisfaction, and prepare the person crave it for the temporary rush of “good” hormones that are inevitably crashed to the grouns afterwards, resulting in a nasty vicious circle considering it seems to feed on itself. It is additionally often marked by obesity, and hard to treat considering those that practice binge eating are often not willing to talk about it or get treatment.
TJ says
Really great article. Definitely the information I was searching for to help me get back on track after I had a binge fest on doughnuts. I was pleased to discover that a couple of the tips you suggested I had actually just done minutes before finding this article.
Please continue posting because your articles and information is continually helpful to people no matter how long ago an article was posted.
Abbey Sharp says
Im so glad it was helpful!
Natasha says
I have been in treatment for an eating disorder but as soon as I left I got back into bingeing and purging. every time is the last time. I don’t binge on a bag of chocolates, or have 3 puddings for an evening and feel guilty- this is hours of bags of chocolate and any pudding I can find, cans of old rice puddings, frozen croissants, stale thrown away chocolates, anything in the cupboads- I can’t not have food in my mouth, I can’t sit, watch anything, focus. its all about chewing and then finding the next thing even though I don’t want it like frozen bread. Sometimes no time to defrost. I can’t turn to anyone at that time, I try to pray, but when I am in the moment I am shaking and I don’t want help, I need to binge and convince myself it won’t be the same as last time. Ive just woken from a two day binge, of constant food every minute of the day until I was so dizzy and couldn’t sleep with the pain and reflux. now everything is swollen, I can’t leave the house and still all I can think of it what am I going to eat? Rationalising just doesn’t help me. and I’m not obese, I’m underweight. I see this info and understand it as I’ve heard it so often but all I feel is more guilt that im fucking up my body so much
Abbey Sharp says
Hi Natasha. I am so sorry you are going through this. I know its not easy! Thinking of you and hoping you receive the help & support to aid in your recovery.
Laurie says
Thank you this was very helpful
Abbey Sharp says
🙂
Debbie says
Thx for the awesome tips. I constantly struggle with cravings for sweet treats and have trouble with enjoying just small amounts. I lost 15 pounds earlier this year only to find my clothes tight again after Christmas indulgences. If I see my husband or friends having cakes, cookies, donuts, I have trouble resisting and eat too much of these foods. I love exercising so triglycerides are low but bad cholesterol very high. It is great to know it is possible to overcome! Congrats to those of you who have won the battle already. Love your recipe ideas!
Abbey Sharp says
Thanks Debbie! Glad you found it helpful. Happy holidays!
Anonymous says
Hi Abbey, great article. Im curious as to your thoughts on taking vyvanse for Binge eating disorder? My dr prescribed it to me when it really got out of hand…i find that when it wears off, all i crave is carbs and sugar… Is this maybe bc vyvanse increases your blood sugar? Im worried about the risks of leptin and insulin resistance… Thanks!
Abbey Sharp says
withdrawal symptoms from vyvanse usually include increased appetite (not sure if its carb specific, but if carbs/sugar are a common binge food that may be why you are experiencing this craving). Im not aware of any research associating the craving to blood sugar levels. Any effect on leptin and insulin resistance may have more to do with the resulting binge itself than the vyvanse, specifically, but your doctor would know more about this.
Liz says
Ugh. I eat healthy all the time but put all my “bad items” in a bag in my closet to try to keep them out of sight. Sure enough ended up in my closet tonight surrounded by chocolates and cookie bags. Almost fell asleep in there surrounded by the wrappers. So sad, feels like there is something wrong with me but this article was a great reminder of why this happens and helped inspire to get back on track tomorrow.
Abbey Sharp says
glad to hear it! good luck!
Emma says
Thank you for sharing this research and for helping me realize I’m not alone after a binge! I have not come to a complete healing, but I do believe it is possible to be completely healed from emotional/compulsive eating. One thing I’ve found to be super helpful in rewiring my brain is to go to other people and God instead of food. I learn to receive comfort from other people and God which is what I’m made for!
Abbey Sharp says
So glad you were able to find what works for you!
Agness of Run Agness Run says
I know many people who suffer from binge eating, Abbey! Your tips are very practical!
Abbey Sharp says
thank you so glad you like
Carmy says
Great post Abbey! I hate the feeling of a sugar crash and always regret eating all the sugar at once. Definitely will be reaching for protein more often.
Abbey Sharp says
i hear you
Emily @Sinful Nutrition says
Such a great post Abbey! I find that I need a heck of a lot less sugar now that I eat primarily fruit for a sweet treat most of the time.
Abbey Sharp says
for sure
Shannon @ KISS in the Kitchen says
Such a helpful and insightful post, Abbey. Thank you!
Abbey Sharp says
my pleasure
Mandy Enright says
Awesome tips Abbey! Rule #1 is to definitely ditch those wacky diets!
Abbey Sharp says
tots!
Ginger Hultin says
Great tips here; my clients have such a hard time recovering from going off-track. Thanks for sharing this post!
Abbey Sharp says
my pleasure
Kimberly says
I love to see the diet cycle in an infographic- it really makes sense! We’ve all had to break that cycle at least once.
Abbey Sharp says
for sure.