Sugar withdrawal: symptoms, how long it lasts and getting through the first week
You decide to cut out sugar, and a day or two later you are short-tempered, tired and thinking about biscuits far more than usual. It is natural to wonder whether this is withdrawal, and whether it will get worse before it gets better.
Many people find that once they have a plan for their trigger moments, the first week feels more manageable.
I would rather give you an honest picture than a dramatic one. The research on sugar withdrawal in people is thin, and much of it comes from animal studies. The cravings are real, though, and there is plenty you can do about them. For the habit itself, see my main sugar cravings guide.
Sugar withdrawal symptoms: what people report
In the small human studies that have asked people what happened when they cut back, the things reported included:
- cravings for the food or drink they had stopped
- headaches
- feeling tired
- irritability
- feeling sad, low or less content
- lower motivation and trouble concentrating
Those come from the two studies described below. Neither proves that sugar causes a true withdrawal syndrome, but they are a fair guide to what you might notice.
Is sugar withdrawal real? What the research does and does not show
Most of the evidence for sugar addiction and withdrawal comes from animals. A 2016 review in the European Journal of Nutrition found little evidence to support sugar addiction in humans. It found that addiction-like behaviour in rats, such as bingeing, appeared only when they had sugar on and off rather than freely, and put this down to the pattern of access rather than the effects of sugar itself (Westwater and others, 2016).
There is some human research, but it is small and early. In a US study, 25 teenagers who usually had at least three sugary drinks a day switched to water or plain milk for three days. They reported more cravings and headaches, and less motivation, contentment and ability to concentrate (Falbe and others, Appetite, 2019). The researchers called it exploratory and said larger, longer studies are needed. Some sugary drinks also contain caffeine, which has its own withdrawal, so if your habit is cola, see my page on caffeine withdrawal.
Another US study asked 231 adults to look back on times in the past year when they had cut down on highly processed foods, such as pastries, chips and pizza, rather than sugar on its own. They reported sadness, irritability, tiredness and cravings, which peaked in the first two to five days and then eased (University of Michigan, 2018). Because people were remembering past attempts, it is a rough guide at best.
So there is no reliable day by day timeline for sugar withdrawal in people, and I will not invent one. The research hints that the first few days may be the hardest. In my work, what keeps pulling people back after that is mostly habit: the time of day, the place and the mood that used to come with something sweet.
How much sugar is too much? The NHS guidance
You do not have to cut out sugar completely to be within the guidelines. The NHS says adults should have no more than 30g of free sugars a day, roughly 7 sugar cubes (NHS, Sugar in our diet).
Free sugars are sugars added to food or drink, plus those in honey, syrups, and unsweetened fruit juice and smoothies. Sugar found naturally in milk, fruit and vegetables does not count, so a sugar detox does not mean giving up fruit. On a label, more than 22.5g of total sugars per 100g is high and 5g or less is low.
How to stop sugar cravings and get through the first week
- Cut down in steps if stopping overnight feels too much. The NHS suggests gradually reducing the sugar you add to hot drinks and cereal.
- Start with drinks. The NHS suggests swapping sugary drinks for water, lower-fat milk or drinks with no added sugar, and keeping fruit juice and smoothies to 150ml a day. My fizzy drinks page has more on this.
- Keep sweet food to mealtimes. The NHS advises this to protect your teeth, and it also means fewer sweet moments scattered through the day.
- Eat proper meals. Common sense rather than a study finding, but going hungry for hours makes a sweet snack far more tempting.
- Put a pause in. When a craving hits, have a glass of water and do something else for a few minutes before you decide.
- Change the cues. Move the biscuit tin, skip the aisle you always wander down, and take a different route past the petrol station. The fewer reminders you pass, the fewer cravings you have to argue with.
If one food is the main problem, my pages on sweets and chocolate go further. If it is constant thoughts about food rather than sugar itself, see food noise, and if the sugar cravings started after you stopped smoking, vaping or drinking, see cravings after quitting.
Diabetes, low blood sugar and sugar withdrawal
If you have diabetes, please speak to your GP or diabetes team before you make big changes to what you eat, especially if you take insulin or other diabetes medicines. The NHS says low blood sugar usually affects people with diabetes who take insulin or some other diabetes medicines, and that it is rare if you do not have diabetes (NHS, Low blood sugar).
A hypo can feel a little like what people call sugar withdrawal. The NHS lists symptoms including feeling hungry, dizzy, irritable, sweaty, shaky, tired or confused. It is not the same thing. If you have diabetes and get these symptoms, check your blood sugar if you can and follow the hypo plan your diabetes team has given you.
When to talk to your GP or Beat
If you often eat large amounts and feel out of control, or you make yourself sick, skip meals or exercise to make up for eating, please talk to your GP or call Beat on 0808 801 0677.
Beat’s helplines are open 3pm to 8pm, Monday to Friday, and you do not need a formal diagnosis to call. In Scotland the number is 0808 801 0432, in Wales 0808 801 0433 and in Northern Ireland 0808 801 0434. If cutting out sugar has started to take over your thoughts, or you feel guilty or panicky after eating something sweet, that is worth talking through with them or your GP.
Where hypnotherapy fits
If you have cut out sugar before and found yourself back at the biscuit tin within days, that is not weakness. The cravings are real, and the habit around them is just as strong.
Hypnotherapy will not change your blood sugar, and it is not a diet. It works on the habit side of sugar: the biscuit with every cup of tea, the bar picked up at the till, the pudding you have because you always have pudding. In a relaxed, focused state we go through your own trigger moments and rehearse a different response, so there is more of a pause between the urge and the reach.
I’ve spent 17 years in clinical practice, and I hold a Postgraduate Certificate and a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy, both with Distinction.
You will still be the one making the choice each time, and change takes your own effort between sessions. I will not give you food rules or calorie targets. Hypnotherapy isn’t a treatment for an eating disorder, so if anything in the section above sounds like you, please speak to your GP or Beat first. For the honest evidence, I have written about whether hypnotherapy works, and here is more about my qualifications. If you want a feel for hypnosis before booking anything, there are more than 2,300 free sessions on my podcast, The Hypnotist.
Common questions
Is sugar withdrawal real?
The evidence in humans is limited. A 2016 review found little evidence for sugar addiction in people, and most of the research on withdrawal comes from animals. Small human studies have found people report cravings, headaches, tiredness, irritability and low mood when they cut back, so what you feel is real even if the science is still early.
How long does sugar withdrawal last?
There is no reliable timeline for sugar on its own. In one US study of adults cutting down on highly processed foods, symptoms peaked in the first two to five days and then eased, but it relied on people remembering past attempts. Cravings linked to habits, such as a sweet treat at the same time each day, can carry on for longer.
What are sugar detox symptoms?
A sugar detox is not a medical term. It is an everyday phrase for cutting right back on sugar. The symptoms people describe are the same ones listed above: cravings, headaches, tiredness, irritability, feeling low and finding it hard to concentrate.
Do I have to cut out sugar completely?
No. The NHS advises adults to have no more than 30g of free sugars a day, and the sugar naturally found in fruit, vegetables and milk does not count. Some people find it simpler to stop altogether for a while, others prefer to cut down. Either way, it is your choice.
How many sessions will I need?
That depends on how many moments in your day sugar is tied to. If there are one or two clear ones, such as the afternoon slump or the evening in front of the TV, one 90 minute session may give you a good start. If sugar is bound up with stress, tiredness or comfort, three sessions give us room to work on those as well. The consultation call is where we agree which makes more sense for you.
How do sessions work?
Most people I work with meet me one to one over Zoom, so they can join from home. You can also see me in person in Hertfordshire, for the same fee as Zoom. After each session you get a recording of the hypnosis to listen to while you cut down.
Cravings brought you back before?
A short call is the simplest next step. Here’s how it works.
- Take the habit check. See where you are now with the free habit check.
- Talk it through. Book a £49 consultation call. We’ll look at whether sessions would help, and the fee comes off your first session.
- Start your sessions. We work one to one over Zoom, and you keep a recording of the hypnosis to listen to between sessions.
See all session options and prices
Hypnosis downloads for cutting down on sugar
If you would rather begin on your own, these sessions work on swapping a sugar habit for a healthier routine and putting a pause in before you reach for food. Once you buy one, you can listen to it as often as you like.
Written by Adam Cox, clinical hypnotherapist. Sources: Westwater ML, Fletcher PC and Ziauddeen H, Sugar addiction: the state of the science, European Journal of Nutrition 2016; Falbe J and others, Potentially addictive properties of sugar-sweetened beverages among adolescents, Appetite 2019; University of Michigan news release on the Highly Processed Food Withdrawal Scale study (Schulte and others, Appetite), 2018; NHS, Sugar in our diet; NHS, Low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia); Beat helplines. Checked October 2026.