Food Cravings And Sugar Cravings

Food Cravings Help 

You have been on a weight loss plan for a bit and then it hits – the food cravings and the sugar cravings.

You go shopping and load up your cart with the wrong foods, or you go to somewhere and have two servings of chocolate cake, when you know you should not be eating any.

Oh, oh, your food cravings just got the best of you. You are thinking your diet bit the dust.

The Way Our Brain Is Wired

Why does this happen? We all have food cravings and they activate brain areas related to reward, emotion and memory. Certain parts of the brain are associating emotions with rewards.

This craving could go so far as to have triggers – something happens and this craving starts up. A thought or an event takes place, and bam – there is your craving talking to you.

And with this food craving, usually comes a very clear picture of exactly what you want to eat. It could be sugar cravings, a salt craving, chocolate cravings, etc.

How To Curb Food Cravings

So how do you curb food cravings? Many people suggest that besides those food cravings being from a triggered response in the brain, the cravings may also have their roots in hidden nutritional deficiencies or thoughts and feelings.

So for example, if you have chocolate cravings, it could be that you are lacking in some of the nutrition found in chocolate, such as magnesium. So you would put more magnesium foods in your diet. Magnesium foods are dark leafy greens, raw nuts and seeds, legumes and fruit. These are good to have in your diet anyway.

Be Balanced When Using A Weight Loss Plan

That is why with a weight loss plan, it is important not to cut your calories too low, or to cut out too many foods, as this will set you up for nutritional deficiencies and you may start up with food cravings.

Another tip is to eat the snacks between meals, or spread your total servings of food out to 5 servings a day. This way you have a snack between your main meals. This keeps the blood sugar more stable and it won’t dip, setting up hunger or cravings.

So use a balanced, healthy weight loss plan, one that does not cut too many calories or health giving foods from your diet and you may not have to fight the food cravings and sugar cravings so much.

Don’t Get Your “Signals” Confused

Many people think they are hungry when they are actually thirsty. I suggest you also focus on drinking enough water each day. One quart of water for about every 50 pounds of weight. So if you weighed one hundred fifty pounds, you would need three quarts of water daily.

Make sure to start drinking some water as soon as you get up.  This is important. You have gone overnight without water while you sleep, so you will get up somewhat dehydrated.

Emotional Components

When something happens, we all react with thoughts and feelings about the situation. Many times, things have happened when you were young, both remembered and un-remembered now,  and it sets you off emotionally.

Or it could be something that happened as an adult. Because of these things, You may  be reaching for food to stuff down these thoughts and feelings down, as they are uncomfortable.

Emotional Freedom Techniques help quite a bit with this. It helps you release the old patterns, thoughts and beliefs that keep you stuck and you can use it to work with instilling  a new perspective that is healing, both physically and emotionally. See Body Beyond Belief now for for help in overcoming many challenges that are holding you hostage.