When you cut down on sugar your tastebuds will change so that you enjoy things you used to think needed sugar. I drink my herbal tea without any sweetener these days and enjoy having a piece of fruit here and there. If I'm making a paleo version of something that normally has sugar or HFCS (ketchup, for example) I will use honey, perhaps even cutting down on the amount I add. Things I used to think tasted normal now taste unbearably sweet to me. It's just a matter of cutting down for awhile and you will want less. It's almost like our tastebuds regain their sensitivity to sweet again when we stop bombarding them with so much sugar.

Try to wean yourself off of the sweets for a while. Most people are literally addicted to sugar, so even on a paleo diet, you've got to stay away from it if you can't control it. After a while, you can reintroduce some fruit in your diet, just make sure that you keep it moderate, and try to go for the more nutrient dense stuff like berries. Fruits are not that bad, you just really need to moderate your consumption of them, and if you're trying to lean out, think about eliminating them completely until you're as lean as you want. Hope this helps!

I have a major sweet tooth that I'm trying to tame. On occasion I will eat 85% dark chocolate, which is actually more bitter than sweet, but does satisfy that chocolate craving. I'll also do blueberries in heavy cream (coconut cream would work too.)

Speaking of coconut, Robb Wolf has mentioned eating 100% cocoa nibs and coconut chips on his podcast. I haven't tried it, but it sounds good.

After seeing the part of Human Planet where the guy climbs some crazy tall tree and braves the bees to bring his wife some honey, I'm pretty sure our ancestors had the occasional sweet treat. I think the key is that it was a very rare indulgence and they had to deal with bees for honey, thorns for many berries, etc.

Therefore, it was an occasional treat, not a part of the diet.

half a sweet potato, canned pumpkin, or butternut squash with butter or coconut oil and some cinnamon and nutmeg. Make into a mousse by throwing it in the food processor with some coconut milk or cream and whip.

See my older thread

http://paleohacks.com/questions/4976/if-sugar-is-bad-why-is-fruit-ok-even-in-moderation

Keep it simple - when you are on limited carbs, fats can taste mighty sweet --> almonds or almond milk is my fix... That blended with some cinnamon, nutmeg and sweetpotato for some added nutrients. Sweet potato shake, couple different recipes you can modify to make completely paleo.

• http://rawinspirations.wordpress.com/2009/12/21/sweet-potatoe-shake/
• http://jugalbandi.info/2009/12/eating-on-the-run-sweet-potato-saffron-protein-shake/

Stevia is a natural sweetener that does not result in the negative effects of the sweeteners you mentioned. Find the stuff without the maltodextrin. I use the powder in my tea and it's great. I have not found it to cause or contribute to sweet cravings.

Try freezing grapes. It is an awesome snack! I've had some extremely tasty 85% chocolate as well, but it is pricy.

Dates pitted and sliced in half with a pecan stuck into each half is also truly tasty!!

All cravings for sweet foods have disappeared for me, yet now I find myself craving fatty treats, such as almond butter or macadamias. Still trying to resist eating too many nuts!

Fuck all of you. Fucking fruit nazis. Fruit is paleo. Eat it when your sweet tooth hits.

Well, I think it depends. Theres a tribe that eats most of their calories from honey and fruit (lots of both), and they dont have diseases of civilisation, so that really suggests that quick sugars, in whole foods, are no issue if you are getting heaps of exercise.

Fruit and honey are both foods you can get in the bush, even if they take effort.

A good idea, something I am planning on bringing in (I am a sweet tooth), is sweet foods after/around exercise, both for recovery/health and as a reward.

If you dont try and move about lots (which isnt really paleo anyway), or your insulin mechanisms are screwed up, then you may want to be alot more moderate. In such a case, you can go with something like blueberries (all berries are low sugar, also apples and pears are fairly low) with cream/yogurt/coconut milk.

Glucose is less of a health issue than fructose, but glucose isnt as sweet as sucrose.

But Honey has nutrients, and insulin like compounds and health benefits, and inverted type sugars (where fructose and glucose are split, rather than in one molecule) are sweeter per calorie of carbs.

General consensus is that honey is the most paleo, and healthfulest (if you can consider anything on paleohacks a consensus, lol).

Id say glucose aint a bad option either, even though its refined, given its got no fructose (but its not as sweet, and if your the kind of person who is worried about GI, youll have to have it with a fat, like greek yogurt or whipped cream in order to slow its absorbtion. It requires no processing, its the bodies native sugar)

But yeah, its a personal call. Moderate, and move alot is my advice. Sugars are addictive too, so using them moderately requires willpower (but then so does avoiding them).

Excess honey, sucrose (table sugar), while inactive will overload you liver. Excess any carbs while inactive will mess with your insulin sensitivity. But if you move alot, it really looks like you can handle some kind of level, and given the tribe I mentioned, that level could be quite high (honey and fruit, both have fructose, and they are all quick carbs)

IDK if sugar is really the devil. A healthy metabolism should be able to handle it. Its got the same carbs in it as a pinapple (sucrose). But absurdly large amounts of it (sweeter than anything needs to be), along with inactivity, is doubtless the cause of a lot of modern disease IMO. So I beleive the key is in the quantity and the context.

My personal opinion is that too much sweet is bad for you. But, a fruit here and there or 1/4 of a teaspoon of raw, unfiltered, non pasteurized honey here and there, is not going to kill you. However, It should not be a staple food.

I posted about it on my blog recently here.

I find when I put fruit in the freezer after it is borderline "too ripe" it conserves it and taste twice as sweet as when it is ripe/fresh. With this said, I only eat 1/4 or 1/2 of the fruit because it is so much sweeter out of the freezer. Just like fudge is dense and you can't eat a bunch of it. My favorite fruit in the freezer is banana, mango and raspberries.

At this point, for me, any sort of fruit is a treat and a once in a while sort of thing. I usually never eat it during the week, save it for the weekends. When I do eat it, however, I don't really worry about how much I eat. Since I haven't eaten it all week or sometimes two weeks at a time I go nuts. Some may disagree with my approach, but it works for me.

We are new to this diet and so far like it but there are times . . . . . . . Thanks for this input on the sweets it helps a lot.

I like to make fruit Popsicles with bananas and berries, and also coconut milk ice cream with vanilla and fruits to sweeten. Sometimes I'll use a little honey or agave syrup or a pinch of salt to enhance it but never excessively. A ripe banana goes a really long way.