real candy or sf candy?

Hey all, I am kind of board today, my son is still away at Marine boot camp and I am feeling kind of down but I wanted to ask a questions to people who are further out. I THINK I dump. I have never had one of those curl up and die episodes but if I eat something with too much fat or sugar, I get really really sleepy and just have to go lay down. The other day on the main board someone was telling us she ate real M&M's! My first thought was WOW that is not too smart, and I would never do that BUT maybe I have done something simular. I have not had any real candy since my surgery, I do on occasion eat some SF stuff but to me its not worth it, I get some gosh awful gas and I "get" to sleep in my son's room. Does anyone here eat real candy? or snacks? My snack of choice is a mini bag of microwave popcorn but once in a while I will have half of a Biscotti cookie. There is a cookie jar in my kitchen full of junk stuff for the family and I am not even tempted to eat out of it. So I guess I may come to the conclusion that all candy, sf or full of sugar is not going to be something I have. Although I did just order some SF tootsi pops from walgreens and I am hoping they tastes good and don't give me gas. I have also found that NSA is not too bad if I don't eat too much of it. I think I am doing pretty well, I have maintained my weight since July at 150 and in just 2 weeks I am having a huge hernia under my sternum repaired plus a TT... so what wisdom do you have about SF, nsa or sugar? Donna 277/150 ish

I don't do any of it. I never was a 'in moderation-type girl' and nothing has changed in that regards...I'm better off staying the Hell away from it all. The closest I get is SF/FF pudding or NSA hot cocoa. ~~Sherry

Wisdom would say that if you are able to stay away from sugar and you suspect that the little sugar that you have had didn't agree with you in one way or the other....I would stay away from it. You have found what works for you (maintaining at 150!) and with your TT coming up you want to keep that success going. I tolerate all foods including sugar. I follow the steadfast daily rules (protein, water, supplements, no drinking with meals, excercise) and so long as those are met I have a sweet pretty much every day. Some examples would be five hershey kisses (dark of course) or a couple of cookies if someone in the house makes them, about 15 M&Ms, some graham crackers, etc. A little bit keeps me happy, and doesn't seem to lead to increased bad eating. If anything it seems to keep me more on track. I know I would be much more interested in ALL the sweets in my house if I didn't allow myself a little. I continue to lose a pound here and there, but have pretty much maintained for about six months. I've never gained anything and am down 170 pounds. Patty

Donna-It's great that you are doing so well. I too have never been a moderation person. I try pretty hard to stay away from real sugar. Gosh I remember the days when one of those 14 oz cadbury bars (I think they were one pound at one time)was my snack of choice. I don't think 'normal" people do that. I do regularly (almost every day) have a sugar free ice cream bar--blue bunny crunch. Once in a blue moon I will buy a z-carb bar or a splurge bar. They have a different kind of sugar alcohol which doesn't cause gas. I have been watching all these low carb selections we have available to us now. Here is my theory--I think that snacking on these low carb things-especially doing do early on-leads to poor habits and can lead to snacking and grazing later on. I'm so happy that it works for some people, but for many of us (me included) our minds and eating are not normal and snacking leads to problems. Just my humble opinion.

I think this is a choice each of us has to make based on our history and how we react to sf or regular sugar. I know non gastric bypass patients who say the sf candy gives them gas and even gives them the runs. Based on your experience with the sf I'd try a small amount of candy and see how I reacted to it. Personally I don't see enough difference in the calorie count to stop me from eating the real sugar now that I'm on maintenance. However if one mini Snickers bar led to 5 more then I'd ban it from the house. I find one a couple of times a week is enough to satisfy me and doesn't add that many calories. I was very strict with myself for the 16 months I was in the weight loss phase of the program. Now that I'm below my surgeons goal and have been told to stop losing I am still very conscious of eating nutritional foods, however I don't plan to go the rest of my life never eating anything with sugar. I don't dump, so as long as it fits in my daily calorie count I don't think an occasional treat is going to ruin my maintenance. I'm in control of food now days with the assistance of my pouch, so I no longer have to fear eating any food in moderation. I'm sure many will disagree with what I've written but to me it's all about balance. My thoughts are if we can find balance in our diet and stay within the calorie guidelines the weight won't come back.

I do regular candy and chocolate. I'm not much of a candy (hard candy) person but the s/f makes me deathly ill - I run to the bathroom and have to eat Imodium ID for hours to make it quit. An occasional piece of chocolate cures the craving and gives me a treat.

When I'm in the mood for sweets, I'll eat regular candy or chocolate...sometimes sugarfree, I've found some good ones...but it's whatever I'm craving. I have learned moderation and I'm glad that I have...eating the odd snack here and there etc...hasn't hurt me in the least. It's all in knowing when to stop...some of us can, some can't....if you're worried you can't, then surely don't chance it. As it's been said...it's a personal choice that each idividual has to work out for themselves...I'd surely never advise people to eat the way I do...what works for me may not work for someone else (some people would cringe at the list of foods I've eaten post-op ) Hugsssssssssss Linda 268/129 BELOW GOAL! and.....ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (wedding date set: August 5th, 2006!) **Don't forget to sign my profile Guestbook!**