Seeking for support in dealing with addiction: Why it is necessary that you get help from the professionals?

Seeking for support in dealing with addiction from experts is paramount in solving all problems of addiction and avoiding future relapse.

The journey of addiction recovery will not be an easy one and therefore when adding nutrition to your list of elements and tools of fighting addiction, it will be very important for you to find and collaborate with a trained nutritionist who can tailor your diet to your specific needs in recovery. Remember that no matter where you live, seeking for support in dealing with addiction is not optional and for sure it will not be difficult for you finding a trained nutritionist within your locality. The good news to you is that when you reach out for experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the able leadership of doctor Dalal Akoury, you will not only find nutritionist but also highly qualified addiction experts who will be able to holistically address all your nutritional and addiction needs professionally and timely leaving you to enjoy your life to the fullest thereafter.

Dr. Akoury is fellowship trained and certified in anti-aging functional and regenerative medicine, as well as having more than twenty years of accumulated experience in emergency medicine, pediatrics, and a master’s degree in public health. She has also served fellowships in pediatric hematology/oncology and has performed research in leukemia and the effects of smoking. Besides that her decision to create a medical center whose main objective is to transform each individual’s life through increasing awareness about health and wellness and by empowering individuals to find their own inner healing power was guided by the enormous struggle that she saw in the faces of those struggling with addiction problems. It will also interest you to note that Dr. Akoury’s practice focuses on personalized medicine through healthy lifestyle choices that deal with primary prevention and underlying causes instead of patching up symptoms. Therefore if you or any of your loved ones is struggling with any kind of addiction, you can reach out for her on telephone number 843 213 1480 and schedule for an appointment with her to have all your addiction needs professionally addressed today.

Seeking for support in dealing with addiction: The sugar saboteur and food as a substitute addiction

In her practice, doctor Akoury strongly emphasizes on sugar regulation because of its addictive nature. It is not uncommon, she says, for people recovering from drug and alcohol addiction to become addicted to sugar. Alcoholics are especially prone to sugar addiction and to the energy rollercoaster that accompanies it, nonetheless that is not all because sugar addiction also affects other addicts too. Akoury believes that eating in a way that promotes blood sugar spikes and crashes is a recipe for disaster when it comes to maintaining your sobriety. She says that when you get that blood sugar crash, your body craves for more sugar. In an alcoholic’s mind, and it works this way in a drug addict’s mind too, when you crave sugar it immediately translates in your brain to alcohol and you get a really strong craving for alcohol. It may be a craving that you can’t control. By regulating their blood sugar, recovering alcoholics can avoid the sugar highs and lows that often send them running for a drink. According to her, in many cases, an addict’s overwhelming urge for his or her next fix is actually a sugar craving in disguise.

The tendency for recovering addicts to develop sugar addiction as they withdraw from alcohol or drugs is an example of a very common phenomenon in addiction recovery. It is not uncommon for those recovering from addiction to turn to food as a replacement. According to a study published in the international research journal Appetite, men in the early stages of recovery often practice dysfunctional eating habits, including substituting food for their drug of choice.

Seeking for support in dealing with addiction: The role of amino acids

Professionals at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center agrees that one of the most promising areas of nutritional therapy for recovering addicts relates to neurotransmitters, amino acids, and how they all affect the brain. Research has also demonstrated that the substantial role neurotransmitters, the chemicals that transmit messages between neurons and other cells in the body, play in addiction.

The connection between neurotransmitters and addiction results from the ability of drugs and alcohol to impact the brain’s output of certain neurotransmitters. For example, cocaine causes the brain to increase its production of the neurotransmitter dopamine which impacts mood and stimulates the feeling of pleasure. A problem arises, however, when the brain has been artificially stimulated to produce a neurotransmitter so often that it no longer produces this neurotransmitter on its own. Essentially, what this means is those recovering from addiction are dealing with a brain that no longer creates neurotransmitters, like dopamine, which play an integral role in their well-being.

According to doctor Akoury, amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein, are precursors to neurotransmitters including those most related to addiction like serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine. This connection indicates the potential to treat addiction through the targeted consumption of amino acids, which can be done through the intake of certain foods or supplements. Since dopamine is the key neurotransmitter involved with addiction and is associated with ‘reward,’ it is critical to restore depleted dopamine levels through a higher protein intake. Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid which is widespread in food that becomes tyrosine, which is converted to dopamine.

An example of how amino acid supplementation works for addiction can be found in the instance of alcohol withdrawal. Alcoholics going through withdrawal experience an increased turnover of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine. The amino acid phenylalanine, however, is a precursor to norepinephrine. If an individual recovering from alcohol addiction eats foods high in phenylalanine, like meat and fish, he will be helping to fulfill the need for this neurotransmitter during withdrawal.

Finally says doctor Akoury, it is important to note that dietary recommendations do vary mostly depending on the substance you are withdrawing from. Alcohol and opiates, for example, negatively impact the stomach it therefore means that people recovering from these substances should work to restore gut health through increased intake of probiotics. Cocaine however is associated with essential fatty acid deficiency, so those recovering from cocaine addiction would benefit from increased consumption of Omega 3. Because of these nuances in each recovering addict’s dietary needs, it is important to collaborate with a trained nutritionist to determine what nutritional approach will help you most on your road to recovery.

Seeking for support in dealing with addiction: Why it is necessary that you get help from the professionals?