Triggers for Common Food Cravings
Food cravings can be caused by many factors, ranging from being stressed and tired to actually needing nutrition. For example, a lack of sleep can augment fatigue and release the hormone cortisol, which can trigger hunger. Dieting and limiting calories can elevate ghrelin, the hunger hormone, and simultaneously can lessen the hormone leptin which provides a sensation of satiety. Additionally, if you are exercising a lot, this will naturally raise your calorie and nutrient requirements, of course. Even just simply being bored, doesn’t that often trigger food cravings?
How to Put an End to Food Cravings
- Get adequate sleep. Consistent good-quality sleep is needed for your body to repair and your brain to clean itself of toxins. Being well-rested will help you a great deal too when it comes to having the needed willpower to bypass the unhealthy sugary snacks that can be so tempting when one is tired.
- Manage stress the best you can. The more you can manage stress daily with simple but effective strategies, the more you will be able to control your food intake. My post, 5 Strategies to de-Stress Like Never Before, will walk you through the basics.
- Put unhealthy foods out of sight or simply do a pantry purge. The main idea is to have at home only foods that work well with your metabolism and that you are going to feel good eating whether you have a craving or not. Having a “good food environment” is key to long-term success.
- Stock up on healthy foods and snacks. The Primal Blueprint template works well for my metabolism. See which foods work best for you (as we are all unique individuals with specific requirements and sensitivities) and buy accordingly after consulting your personal physician of course.
More Strategies
- Consume enough protein each day. Consuming enough protein every day provides a host of health benefits. Among other things, it enhances muscle mass, aids with managing our weight, helps with stabilizing our blood sugar levels, and betters our mood.
- Keep a food diary. This will allow you to be more mindful of what you are eating every day. You can become more aware of what triggers food cravings the most (emotions, times of day, etc.).
- Get up and move. If you experience a food craving, sometimes just taking a walk or stretching, for instance, can help with getting rid of that craving. As mentioned in a previous post, we are meant to be active, engaging in regular physical activity throughout the day, each day. This means any type of movement depending on your preferences and routine. Regular physical activity is shown to help with heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and several cancers. It further helps with hypertension, keeping a healthy body weight, and enhancing mental health, quality of life, and well-being.
On a Final Note
All of the above strategies will help you a great deal in putting an end to food cravings this new year. To these strategies, I want to add Ketone-IQ, which are exogenous ketones. I take one serving mid-afternoon, in general, and this allows me to control the amount of food I eat at the end of the day much better. I think this is a big help, because it is usually at the end of the day when we become most fatigued, that we are more easily tempted to eat unhealthy foods. You may want to give it a try too!
Have an Amazing New Year!
Reference
Zerbe, L. (2023, November 13). How to Stop Food Cravings: 9 Ways. Ancient Nutrition | Dr. Axe. https://ancientnutrition.com/blogs/all/how-to-stop-food-cravings
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