Craved gummy worms today. What happened?

FiberousJ
FiberousJ Posts: 82 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've been doing a lot better lately but today I caved into my gummy worm cravings. I got the cravings instantly and it became so intesne. I eventually drove to the store. I've been trying to figure out what causes the craving. Is it stress, lack of energy or a specific deficiency? I took 1,500 mg of L-glutamine to see if that would beat it. Didn't do anything. Glutamine, cinammon or magnesium have never really made me stop a craving. The craving was intense. I could feel it in my brain. But I don't know if that's mental or physical.

I asked myself. Do I crave other sugary foods at the moment? No, just gummy worms. And gummy bears taste very similar but for some reason I had no interest for gummy bears. My brain was telling me that it ''needs'' gummy worms to stop the intense brain feeling. And after eating a bunch of gummy worms, my craving went away. But the tradeoff is I just ate a whole bunch of junk calories in order for my body or brain to tell me I don't want anymore.

So this is tricky, but I'm very aware. Was my craving a vitamin defiency or was it just mental? And why was it gummy worms specifically and not gummy bears?

Replies

  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
    Only the deepest depths of your brain knows for sure.

    Either you tap into it (meditation, CBT, etc) or find super easy, super simple, primitive hacks to beat your cravings (or otherwise replace the behaviour). Whichever approach(es) you pick, the goal is to eventually get to the point where that craving is literally illogical to you 🤷🏾‍♀️

    Like in this case, I may have only "given in" if I ran - at a specific pace - to the store (instead of drive).

    Up the ante, as required...
    * run to the store in dress shoes
    * memorize a list of 10 things (and you can eat 10 gummy worms if you remember all the items correctly)
    * reconnect with someone you haven't spoken to in at least two years
    * etc
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,419 Member
    I think food cravings can be either physical (i.e. you're actually not eating enough consistently,) or psychological - such as feelings of being deprived or a desire to rebel or indulge, etc.

    Like MaltedTea said, you have to figure that out on your own.

    I'm putting my money on it being a combination of the two.

    Eat enough, mostly plants. Prosper.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Not every craving can be tied to a specific need or deficiency. In fact, there is little good evidence that most cravings are caused by a physical trigger Sometimes we just crave stuff.

  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,222 Member
    Actually thinking of something pleasurable releases endorphins.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,226 Member
    So, how many calories worth of gummy worms was it? Did it put you over your calories for the day (or on average for the week)? Did it prevent you from getting reasonable nutrition, in order to stick with your calorie goal? If it didn't do either of those things, then there really isn't a problem IMO. If it did one or both of those things, but it happens super-rarely, it's still probably not a problem.

    When you crave gummy worms, is it possible you to decide on some number of them that you can fit into your day (with reasonable calories and overall nutrition), and then only eat that many gummy worms, and feel satisfied? I would consider that a good option, if it's possible for you. (Most of us have *some* foods that we can't successfully moderate, at least for a while. But most any non-poisonous thing we want to eat, that we can moderate, is OK to eat now and then.)

    Life is about balance, and that includes balancing calorie and nutrition goals with simple enjoyment . . . at least it does in my world.
  • georgieamber2
    georgieamber2 Posts: 229 Member
    When you want a gummy worm, have a gummy worm! I craved them last week, got a bag of the vegan Wendy worms from Aldi! Had 1 a day for 2 days, had one yesterday but they’re just sat forgotten about it my cupboard because I don’t give them the power of high reward. I know if I want them I’ll have them which removes the extreme cravings which leads to binging. Why I always recommend intuitive eating!!

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