Press Room for Sugar Shock! (Berkley Books)
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Sugar Shock! CAST OF CHARACTERS

By Connie Bennett, M.S.J., C.H.H.C., Author, Sugar Shock! (Berkley Books, Jan.  2007)

 

Sugar Addict or Sugar Junkie ™

A person of any age with an intense, incessant, insatiable craving for sweets and simple carbs—an addiction the person will go to great lengths to satisfy such as driving across town in the middle of the night for a pint of ice cream or hiding empty candy or cookie wrappers or soda bottles from loved ones.

 

Sugar Monster, Sugar Shrew or Sugar Crybaby ™

A Sugar Monster is a man or woman who, after eating too many sweets or simple carbs undergoes a personality change, transforming from a calm Dr. Jekyll to an erratic Mr. or Ms. Hyde. He or she can become irrational, crabby, cranky, fight-picking, edgy, ranting, restless, pouting, panic-stricken, unhappy, and unpredictable. Meanwhile, both a Sugar Shrew™ and Sugar Crybaby are overly emotional, irrational, erratic females who—for seemingly no reason—suddenly weep, whine, or bitch or hugely overreact to a situation. It’s not necessarily PMS; it could be all those sweets and processed snacks. Blood sugar spikes do not a sweet lady make. (That used to be me, Connie!)

 

Sugar Zombie or Sugar Dish Rag ™

A person who, within hours of ingesting sugary foods or quickie carbs, becomes sluggish, zoned out, muddy-brained, memory-challenged, lethargic, overcome by can’t-fight fatigue. Reminiscent of a dazed-out condition that occurs after doping up on drugs or staying up for three nights running.

 

Sugar Brat or “Sugrat” ™

Children’s version of all of the above. Stir in more unrelenting, exasperating, explosive temper tantrums, hyperactivity, inattentiveness, or difficulty concentrating. Those sugar-loaded imps will embarrass, disturb, frustrate, and frighten you by making scenes and acting out, including screaming, hitting, biting, and hurling objects across the room.

 

What Do They Have in Common? Sugar Shock! ™

A mood-damaging, personality-bending, health-destroying, confusion-creating constellation of symptoms affecting millions of people worldwide, who often eat processed sweets and much-like-sugar carbs™. “Sugar Shock!” describes the often-misdiagnosed, and maligned condition of reactive hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), as well as other blood sugar disorders, from insulin resistance to diabetes. Research reveals that repeatedly over-consuming sweeteners, dessert foods and quickie carbs (white rice, chips, etc.) wreaks havoc on your blood sugar levels, over stimulates insulin release, triggers inflammation and could contribute to more than 150 health problems, including obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancer, polycystic ovary syndrome, severe PMS, failing memory, mental confusion, candida, sexual dysfunction, infertility, wrinkles, acne, and early aging. Victims of Sugar Shock! also may experience depression, fatigue, headaches, dizziness, cold sweats, anxiety, irritability, tremors, crying spells, severe PMS, heart palpitations, forgetfulness, nightmares,  blurred vision, muscle pains, temper outbursts, suicidal thoughts, and more. Ultimately, this insidious rollercoaster effect hampers sufferers’ ability to function at full—or even half-throttle.