Well over half of American adults drink, but just 20 percent of them consume 80 percent of all alcohol, and the top 10 percent—24 million people—average 74 drinks per week! Alcohol abuse is a huge problem, but there’s a way to curb alcohol cravings naturally—and even stop cravings for alcohol.
Cut Cravings for Alcohol With Vitamins and Minerals
Decades ago, Dr. Roger Williams discovered he could alter lab rats’ inclination to drink alcohol simply by adding or subtracting vitamins and minerals in their diets. In other words, optimal nutrition controlled their proclivity toward alcoholism while deficiencies increased it. This works for humans too. Consistent use of vitamin and mineral supplements stops the craving for alcohol.
In my opinion, adequate nutritional supplementation is the best way to curb alcohol cravings naturally and it may even be the cure for alcoholism.
Cravings for Alcohol: Not a Character Disorder
Let’s take a step back and discuss why our current treatment approach to alcoholism isn’t working. The fact that some view the inability to curb alcohol cravings as a character disorder is a travesty. Alcoholism is a disease, a biochemical disorder that affects approximately 18 million Americans. Yet we continue to treat people who can’t control their cravings for alcohol as if they caused their disease.
Group counseling is typically the only “treatment” offered, which makes about as much sense as using group counseling to lower the blood sugar of people with diabetes. Yet, per Dr. Williams’ study mentioned above, there is more than 50 years of evidence that alcoholism is likely caused by suboptimal intake of nutrients and can be treated with nutritional support.
Recommendations to Curb Alcohol Cravings Naturally
If you drink any alcohol at all, it is imperative that you supplement with a potent daily multivitamin and mineral regimen. This will not only reduce alcohol intake and cut cravings for alcohol, but will also compensate for the nutrient losses that occur, even with social drinking.
For alcohol problems, the following supplements will help curb cravings: 500–1,000 mg vitamin C whenever cravings hit (up to 10,000 mg daily) and 500–1,000 mg L-glutamine three times a day on an empty stomach. I also suggest taking additional calcium, magnesium, zinc, and B-complex vitamins. You can find these supplements in health food stores.
You can also curb alcohol cravings with kudzu extract, which comes from an invasive, fast-growing vine that is considered a pest in the US, especially the South. Massachusetts researchers set up a “lab” in an apartment where study subjects came after work. They took either a kudzu supplement or a placebo capsule and then drank as many beers as they desired. The experiment was later repeated and the kudzu-placebo groups were switched. Across the board, those taking kudzu drank more slowly and drank about half as much as when they were taking a placebo. If you tend to overindulge, give kudzu a try. Look for a standardized kudzu extract in health food stores and take as directed.
To learn even more about how to curb alcohol cravings naturally, read Joan Mathews-Larson’s book Seven Weeks to Sobriety or contact the Health Recovery Center.
