Food cravings are a serious matter because the Stomach wants what the Stomach wants. No matter what your Brain says. But why does the stomach want it? Well, there are a few traditional reasons. And it’s not because you love eating chocolate, trust us.
When you have food cravings, it’s like you’re at the mercy of a merciless deity, who just wants and asks for snacks, but only gives back indigestion, low energy and messed up sleep patterns. But you can correct your diet faux-pas and train your body to listen to you. So you will have control over your destiny!
What triggers your food cravings?
1.Bad sleep
Yes, I know I just said that food cravings lead to bad sleep patterns, but the fact is this is a vicious cycle that repeats itself over and over. If you don’t sleep enough, your body requires something fat, sweet or salty to sustain itself during the day.
If you don’t sleep well enough, your metabolic hormones, like insulin, cortisol, melatonin, leptin, adiponectin, and ghrelin go out of whack. These, in turn, ruin your mood and your blood sugar levels.
2.Processed foods
They contain simple sugars and chemicals which disrupt your blood sugar levels. They are absorbed quickly by your body, which leads to a rapid rise in your blood sugar, but also the secretion of insulin. The latter makes the cells take up the sugar, which makes the blood sugar drop again, very quickly. This is why we have sugar rushes and then an abrupt fall in energy levels.
As the body develops resistance to insulin, food cravings become a habit and can lead to obesity.
3.Diet lacking in protein and healthy fats
These stabilize your blood sugar and keep you feeling full. Start at breakfast with meat, organic poultry, fish, eggs, liver, which will take care of the protein. But also go for fats like nuts, nut butter, seeds, coconut oil, ghee, grass-fed butter, olive oil, and macadamia oil.
4.Too little fiber
Berries, avocado, cruciferous veggies – Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cabbage –, carrots, and nuts slow down the absorption of sugar, which means stable blood sugar levels. Also, fiber takes care of your gut bacteria, which helps with digestion and releasing of inflammatory toxins. These can ruin your mood for the day and make you go for comfort food, usually pretty unhealthy snacks.
Boiled potatoes, beans, brown rice are rich in resistant starch, which is only digested by the colon. Which means it will help you feel full, but the calories won’t end up on your thighs.
5. A low-carb diet
As we’ve mentioned before, there are some good, smart carbs out there, like the ones found in fruits like grapefruit, raspberries, and strawberries, but also veggies like squash, beets, peas, turnips and sweet potatoes. These carbohydrates help your body manage stress and sleep better.
6. Skipping breakfast
Like we said earlier, you need some protein and fats to stabilize your blood sugar in the morning. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day because it sets the tone of your metabolism. If you don’t take the time to eat something healthy each morning, you will most definitely have food cravings.
Add some foods high in fiber and some veggies, and you’re ready to start the day.
If you follow this advice at least moderately, your life will improve in most areas. Your mood will get better, and your energy levels will be higher than ever before!
