How to Beat Your Food Cravings

The Majority of people will occasionally suffer from food cravings. Cravings come for specific foods or types of foods, and are generally not just for something to satisfy hunger. In most cases people crave sugar or carbs, which is easily found in candy and chocolate. It could even come from just a bag of chips or that extra glass of wine you probably shouldn't have.

A common misconception about food cravings is that it comes from people having bad habits or that the individual has poor will power, and this really is not the case in most situations. Food cravings have biological reasons behind them, and if you want to learn how to beat these cravings, you must first understand why they happen.

Reasons for food cravings

Anytime your body is tired or when you feel depressed the body has a low blood sugar condition and when this happens your body will instinctively tell the brain that it needs help. This in turn leads to a craving for some sugar or carbs. One cause for our body acting this way is Serotonin, this is a hormone in the body that makes you feel good. Low levels of blood sugar and low levels of Serotonin are directly linked with each other. This is why when there is a low level of Serotonin we get a craving for foods like candy to make up for the low blood sugar.

Unfortunately, the sugar and carbs that we crave only give our bodies a short burst of Serotonin, and when this goes away, our craving comes back. And this can lead us into a downward spiral.

Another common reason for food cravings is Adrenal Fatigue. Whenever you feel stressed out, are extremely tired for no reason at all, or can't seem to get a peaceful sleep, you are suffering from adrenal fatigue. Today this health problem is very common, but unfortunately is not given the proper attention.

When you are suffering from Adrenal Fatigue, the body calls the brain for help just like with low blood sugar. Your body is looking for another burst of energy and this comes in the forms of cravings for sugar or maybe a coffee during the daytime, and at night this might come in the form of carbs or alcohol. This makes the problem worse.

If you have ever heard of people eating less but actually gaining weight, this comes from confusion in the body. People who are on low fat and low carb diets, or take appetite suppressants still have food cravings. These people can sometimes becomes partially insulin resistant, which can lead to the lack of glucose being absorbed from the bloodstream when needed. Insulin is needed to maintain a proper blood sugar level in the body, and in an insulin resistant condition, the cells do not respond correctly and don't absorb sugar. This leads to the body calling out again for help and asking for more carbs and sugar, your body will then receive extra calories from your food cravings which are then turned into fat making you gain weight.

Beating Your Cravings!

Now that you know why you crave food, it makes it much easier to beat these cravings. To break them you need to eat real healthy foods, use nutritional supplements at times, and get a moderate amount of exercise each week. Once you start eating and living healthier, your cravings will slowly go away. If your body is given the right nutrition it will never have to make a distress call to your brain, and you know now this is why you have food cravings.