food cravings
imagymrat
Posts: 862 Member
This week I focused on food cravings with my ladies at the gym, i'll pass along the same information to my MFP friends as I did with my weight loss ladies at the gym. I hope it may help you to better understand your body and why it does what it does 
Cravings have nothing to do with willpower!
An enormous percentage of women crave sugar, carbohydrates, or alcohol. In most cases, these food cravings are not true eating disorders, but instead are signs of hormonal imbalance caused by a lack of healthy nutrition.
Your personal issue may be the afternoon snack (often chocolate or candy or a food that’s also heavy in carbohydrates), too many potato chips, the extra glass of wine at night, or a hundred other variations. But the underlying mechanism, and the way to curb cravings, is the same. And it has nothing to do with willpower, or your lack thereof!
Food cravings mean that the body has its signals mixed up. When we are exhausted or blue, we have low blood sugar and/or low serotonin, and the body signals the brain that it needs a pick-me-up. This signal causes a sugar craving or carbohydrate craving.
Serotonin is our basic feel-good hormone. If serotonin is low, we feel sad or depressed. And hormonal imbalance or weak digestion can lead to low serotonin. Unfortunately, sugars and simple carbohydrates release a short burst of serotonin — we feel good for a moment, but soon return to our low-serotonin state — then crave more sugar and simple carbohydrates. It’s a downward spiral.
If you eat a low-fat diet in the hope of losing weight, you unintentionally make the problem worse. If, like millions of women, you have eaten a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet for many years, or followed fad diets, the odds are good that you have become at least partially insulin resistant.
Insulin is responsible for maintaining stable blood sugar levels by telling the body’s cells when to absorb glucose from the bloodstream. Being insulin resistant means your body stops responding to insulin, and instead grabs every calorie it can and deposits it as fat. So no matter how little you eat, you will gradually gain weight.
At the same time, your cells cannot absorb the glucose they need, so they signal your brain that you need more carbohydrates or sugars. The result is persistent food cravings.
Even worse, insulin resistance leads directly to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Many experts believe it is the root cause of the epidemic of those diseases in America today. And a low-fat diet makes it far more likely you will suffer from this condition.
Millions of women are now trying the Atkins Diet or the South Beach Diet. While these diets are an improvement over the conventional low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet, they can worsen your metabolic problems, because dieting itself is stressful to the body. So many women need to heal their metabolism first before even considering weight loss.
Another cause of food cravings is adrenal fatigue. If you are under a great deal of stress, or suffer from insomnia or sleep deprivation, you are probably exhausted much of the time. This leads to adrenal fatigue or outright adrenal exhaustion, which in turn signals the body it needs a pick-me-up. You may resort to sugar or carbohydrate snacks or coffee during the day and carbohydrates or alcohol at night, all of which exacerbate the problem.
How to curb cravings:
Women who blame themselves for their food cravings only worsen their mood and increase their need for serotonin. That’s when a pattern of emotional eating can develop. Remember, there are biological causes of sugar cravings, and your carbohydrate craving is rarely just a behavioral problem. The root problem is more likely inadequate nutrition.
How to break this vicious cycle? To reduce food cravings, the body needs real support , and lots of it. We have seen over and over that eating healthy foods, and exercise can almost miraculously curb cravings. Your metabolism will heal itself when provided with the necessary nutritional support. If it has been damaged, the process can take some time, but it will happen. The good news is, you don’t have to give up chocolate!
Once again my friends it comes down to your nutrition!
Cravings have nothing to do with willpower!
An enormous percentage of women crave sugar, carbohydrates, or alcohol. In most cases, these food cravings are not true eating disorders, but instead are signs of hormonal imbalance caused by a lack of healthy nutrition.
Your personal issue may be the afternoon snack (often chocolate or candy or a food that’s also heavy in carbohydrates), too many potato chips, the extra glass of wine at night, or a hundred other variations. But the underlying mechanism, and the way to curb cravings, is the same. And it has nothing to do with willpower, or your lack thereof!
Food cravings mean that the body has its signals mixed up. When we are exhausted or blue, we have low blood sugar and/or low serotonin, and the body signals the brain that it needs a pick-me-up. This signal causes a sugar craving or carbohydrate craving.
Serotonin is our basic feel-good hormone. If serotonin is low, we feel sad or depressed. And hormonal imbalance or weak digestion can lead to low serotonin. Unfortunately, sugars and simple carbohydrates release a short burst of serotonin — we feel good for a moment, but soon return to our low-serotonin state — then crave more sugar and simple carbohydrates. It’s a downward spiral.
If you eat a low-fat diet in the hope of losing weight, you unintentionally make the problem worse. If, like millions of women, you have eaten a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet for many years, or followed fad diets, the odds are good that you have become at least partially insulin resistant.
Insulin is responsible for maintaining stable blood sugar levels by telling the body’s cells when to absorb glucose from the bloodstream. Being insulin resistant means your body stops responding to insulin, and instead grabs every calorie it can and deposits it as fat. So no matter how little you eat, you will gradually gain weight.
At the same time, your cells cannot absorb the glucose they need, so they signal your brain that you need more carbohydrates or sugars. The result is persistent food cravings.
Even worse, insulin resistance leads directly to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. Many experts believe it is the root cause of the epidemic of those diseases in America today. And a low-fat diet makes it far more likely you will suffer from this condition.
Millions of women are now trying the Atkins Diet or the South Beach Diet. While these diets are an improvement over the conventional low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet, they can worsen your metabolic problems, because dieting itself is stressful to the body. So many women need to heal their metabolism first before even considering weight loss.
Another cause of food cravings is adrenal fatigue. If you are under a great deal of stress, or suffer from insomnia or sleep deprivation, you are probably exhausted much of the time. This leads to adrenal fatigue or outright adrenal exhaustion, which in turn signals the body it needs a pick-me-up. You may resort to sugar or carbohydrate snacks or coffee during the day and carbohydrates or alcohol at night, all of which exacerbate the problem.
How to curb cravings:
Women who blame themselves for their food cravings only worsen their mood and increase their need for serotonin. That’s when a pattern of emotional eating can develop. Remember, there are biological causes of sugar cravings, and your carbohydrate craving is rarely just a behavioral problem. The root problem is more likely inadequate nutrition.
How to break this vicious cycle? To reduce food cravings, the body needs real support , and lots of it. We have seen over and over that eating healthy foods, and exercise can almost miraculously curb cravings. Your metabolism will heal itself when provided with the necessary nutritional support. If it has been damaged, the process can take some time, but it will happen. The good news is, you don’t have to give up chocolate!
Once again my friends it comes down to your nutrition!
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Replies
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Absolutely! thanks for the info,very informative:flowerforyou:0
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Thank you for sharing this. It makes so much sense. Now if I could just plan better so I don't end up so hungry I want to eat the first thing I see. I start out good but then something happens to throw everything off... :grumble:0
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Thank you for sharing this. It makes so much sense. Now if I could just plan better so I don't end up so hungry I want to eat the first thing I see. I start out good but then something happens to throw everything off... :grumble:
So you have to find out what that trigger is and then fix the bugger! lol :laugh: we worry so much about what to eat, when to eat and how much of it to eat, that it becomes a chore. Most people with poor nutrition, really do think that they eat right, when you actually see what they eat, it tells a different story. Your body needs to be reprogrammed to function as it should. The choice to have a sweet or salty snack should be based on a choice, not a craving, you're eating it because you're making a conscious decision, not reacting to a signal that your body has twisted..does that make sense?? lol :bigsmile:0 -
Thank you for sharing this. It makes so much sense. Now if I could just plan better so I don't end up so hungry I want to eat the first thing I see. I start out good but then something happens to throw everything off... :grumble:
So you have to find out what that trigger is and then fix the bugger! lol :laugh: we worry so much about what to eat, when to eat and how much of it to eat, that it becomes a chore. Most people with poor nutrition, really do think that they eat right, when you actually see what they eat, it tells a different story. Your body needs to be reprogrammed to function as it should. The choice to have a sweet or salty snack should be based on a choice, not a craving, you're eating it because you're making a conscious decision, not reacting to a signal that your body has twisted..does that make sense?? lol :bigsmile:
That makes a huge amount of sense and is now printed and on both the fridge and freezer doors!!!
Cheers m'dear!!0 -
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interesting, thanks!! I sometimes get down on myself so much when I eat something 'bad' which doesn't help with the downward spiral! I've been slowly making better choices, and not as hard on myself when I slip up every now and then. Thanks again!!0
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I love reading your posts and tips!0 -
I truly appreciate all the free advice you give here! It is sane, sustainable and invaluable. I find myself nodding at my screen reading through your postings. :laugh:
I wanted to add something else that I find completely eliminates my cravings is food balance. I was having a tough time with sweet cravings after meals and made one simple change, I added fruit at every meal and most snacks. It was like magic, the cravings don't haunt me now and yes, I can still have chocolate...but I don't HAVE to have it. Or if I have an apple for a snack I add a couple almonds with it, it sustains me until dinner without issue. I just started this a couple of weeks ago and if I stray off of this plan the cravings come back. But, it seems to be working for me.0 -
It's twisted, but I like it!:bigsmile:Thank you for sharing this. It makes so much sense. Now if I could just plan better so I don't end up so hungry I want to eat the first thing I see. I start out good but then something happens to throw everything off... :grumble:
So you have to find out what that trigger is and then fix the bugger! lol :laugh: we worry so much about what to eat, when to eat and how much of it to eat, that it becomes a chore. Most people with poor nutrition, really do think that they eat right, when you actually see what they eat, it tells a different story. Your body needs to be reprogrammed to function as it should. The choice to have a sweet or salty snack should be based on a choice, not a craving, you're eating it because you're making a conscious decision, not reacting to a signal that your body has twisted..does that make sense?? lol :bigsmile:
Thanks for another fab article Girl!:drinker:
Becca0 -
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Great info as always! Thanks for the post!0
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awesome. This totally makes sense.Thank you!
I still think its will power though. As a long time "self sabotager," I know better but I ctively make binge-like choices sometimes. At least now my apartment is loaded with healthy foods. 'Binging' on organic all natural no salt added peanut butter is better than ice cream!:smooched:0
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