How To Stop Food Cravings, Part 3

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We have discussed in previous posts why we get cravings and whether we can be addicted to food.

Now let’s talk about some practicalities and how to stop food cravings.  Here are three ideas to get you started.

1. Make sure you are well nourished by eating a healthy nutrient rich diets of real whole foods everyday.  If you are getting cravings for certain foods it may be that you deficient in certain nutrients and your body is asking for them.  You can go to the doctor and get a blood test, ask them to test your nutrient levels (Full bloods), this will look at B12, folic acid, iron, calcium, vitamin D and see whether any deficiencies show up.

2. Make sure you are eating regularly.  Sometimes we can get cravings for sugar and fat if we skip meals or go to long between eating or if we are eating a highly processed diet that is causing our blood sugar to peak suddenly and then drop dramatically.  Eat to control your blood sugar: eat complex carbohydrates (like whole grains, whole fruit and vegetables), eat some protein with each meal (like nuts, seeds, beans, meat, fish, eggs, yoghurt), eat regularly (every 3-6 hours).

3. Get curious, ask yourself why you are craving a certain food.  Sometimes we have positive associations with certain foods or conditioned responses (habits) around certain foods, so we find ourselves “craving” them at certain times or if certain things happen.  Ask yourself: “What do I really need right now?”  For example, if you find yourself craving chocolate after an upset or when you feel tired, what do you really need?  You may need reassurance (call a friend), or you may need sleep (plan an early night).  Often when cravings are associated with emotional eating, the body has learned that certain compounds in the food can help to make us feel better, and maybe they do for a moment, but there may be a more appropriate solution that is healthier in the long term.  If you are bored, maybe you need a break from monotony, or you need some stimulation… what else can you do to break up the day other than eat that cookie, those lollies, that chocolate or that bag of crisps?

(Quick tip: be kind to yourself while you are trying to stop cravings and exploring why you eat what you eat. Get curious without judgement, approach like an explorer not like a police officer.  Observe yourself and then start to make small changes, but whatever you do, don’t beat yourself up or try to be too restrictive too soon… that will just backfire!)

If you are interested in reading more on emotional eating and comfort eating, why not have a read of Lisa’s paperback book: Size Fantastic which is all about how emotions and our thinking can affect our eating, our health and our weight.

See more here: http://sizefantastic.com.au/product/size-fantastic-paperback-book/