Each of us has experienced periods of irresistible cravings for sweets at least once in our lives. What to do if the constant desire to eat something sweet has dragged on, and not only changes in your figure, but also health problems are already noticeable?
First of all, you need to understand what “sweet” is and what it is needed for.
In Ozhegov's explanatory dictionary "sweet"- having a pleasant taste, characteristic of sugar or honey. Another meaning is pleasant, giving pleasure. Indeed, if you eat candy or cake, your mood immediately improves, life begins to play with bright colors, and you feel a surge of strength and energy. Unfortunately, this effect is very short-lived, and the craving for sweets increases.
In scientific language, the entire collection of cakes, chocolates, sweets, etc. called “easily digestible (fast) carbohydrates.” Carbohydrates perform a variety of functions in the human body. The very first of them is energy. When oxidizing 1 g. carbohydrates release 4.1 kcal of energy. The main source is free glucose, easily released from fast carbohydrates, and glycogen - carbohydrates stored in the body. The ability of easily digestible carbohydrates to quickly break down into glucose is necessary for a person to stressful situation for urgent energy saturation. Therefore, you can eat sweets without consequences after a sleepless night, or while preparing for an exam. In this case, fast carbohydrates are a means of emergency assistance to the body, and the craving for sweets is easily explained.
The stressful situation passed, but the craving for sweets remained. What to do?
First of all, it is necessary pay attention to your health status. No matter how strange it may sound, a craving for sweets can be a consequence of a concussion, osteochondrosis, and even hypotension. In all three cases, the essence is the same - the brain does not have enough glucose due to impaired blood supply. Therefore, he begins to demand it, which manifests itself in the form of a headache that goes away if he eats, for example, candy.
These problems can be resolved by consulting therapist And neurologist. Specialists will help eliminate the cause, and the craving for sweets will weaken.
Another reason for craving sweets is lack of chromium in the body
The main function of chromium is to maintain normal blood glucose levels. It is involved in carbohydrate metabolism, increasing the permeability of cell walls to glucose. This microelement also increases the sensitivity of cell receptors to insulin, the pancreatic hormone responsible for carbohydrate metabolism. Therefore, sufficient chromium content in the body helps reduce cravings for sweets and speed up metabolism.
Chromium deficiency is most often caused by the abuse of sweets and sugar. The more sweets you eat, the more chromium is removed from the body, and, closing the vicious circle, you want something tasty even more.
In addition to strong cravings for sweets, symptoms of chromium deficiency include:
- Persistent feeling of hunger
- Profuse sweating
- Feeling tired after a night's rest,
- Dizziness.
Undoubtedly, chromium is best absorbed from food. The highest microelement content is in tuna (90 µg per 100 g). Various types of fish (carp, pollock, crucian carp, catfish, capelin, cod, etc.) contain smaller amounts - 55 mcg per 100 g. The next highest amount of chromium is liver (32 mcg per 100 g), duck (15 mcg) , chicken (10 mcg). Some vegetables are also quite rich in chromium. So broccoli contains 22 micrograms of microelement per 100 g, and beets 20 micrograms.
Another source of chromium is brewer's yeast. They are used as a food additive.
Among other things, you can use pharmaceutical drugs to normalize chromium levels. These can be either various vitamin-mineral complexes or dietary supplements. But do not forget that all medications can be taken only after consultation with a doctor, since not only a deficiency, but also an excess of chromium are harmful.
The daily requirement varies depending on age and gender:
For children
- 1-3 years – 11 mcg
- 3-11 years – 15 mg
- 11-14 years – 25 mcg
- 14-18 years old – 35 mcg
For women
- Over 18 years old – 50 mcg
- Pregnant women – 100-120 mcg
For men
- Over 18 years old – 60-70 mcg
- Athletes – 120-200 mcg
The next reason for craving for sweets is hormonal disorders
The very first hormone that comes to mind when you mention sweets is insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas and is responsible for regulating blood sugar levels. If there is too much glucose in the blood, insulin begins to be produced, which helps distribute it among tissue cells. The body works and uses glucose from the cells. But this is ideal. A disorder that causes excessive cravings for sweets is insulin resistance. This is the resistance of cells to insulin. That is, when blood sugar levels increase, the hormone is produced, but glucose cannot penetrate the tissues. In response, the pancreas releases even more hormone to balance blood sugar levels. And the body begins to experience energy hunger. This manifests itself in the form of a strong, even “wolfish” feeling of hunger. Moreover, there is a desire to eat something that can quickly provide the necessary energy - fast carbohydrates, sweets.
A malfunction of the thyroid gland can also be the culprit of the desire to eat something that is not healthy. The hormones it produces are responsible for regulating metabolism. When their production is disrupted, severe hunger appears, which many satisfy with chocolates, cakes, and so on.
These problems can be resolved in consultation with endocrinologist.
Psychological addiction to sweets
All of the above are physiological causes of cravings for sweets, reasons at the body level. But we should not forget about the psychological factor, as well as about the action of passion in us. In this case, they talk about addiction to sweets.
Like any addiction, cravings for sweets begin with habit. The habit of drinking tea with a candy or two, the habit of eating a piece of cake after a working day, the habit of rewarding yourself with something tasty. It is the latter habit that is instilled in us from early childhood, when parents buy sweets for good behavior or an excellent grade. This is a kind of tradition that is sometimes difficult to argue with. And the modern rhythm of life is so rich in stress that it is not surprising to eat them with sweets. After all, sweets are something that brings pleasure. Over and over again, the habit becomes more and more ingrained. And at one “wonderful” moment it becomes an addiction. It’s already difficult to imagine a meal without dessert and not just dessert, but more. Sweet snacks appear between meals. Now you have to buy clothes in the next size... What to do?
First, you need to know what exactly excess carbohydrates in the human body turn into fat. Moreover, 90% of adipose tissue is formed from carbohydrates unspent for energy needs. How does this happen?
Glucose released from carbohydrates enters the liver. Then she has 3 ways:
- be used up as a source of energy,
- be stored as glycogen for muscle work,
- be stored as fat.
If neither energy expenditure is required for mental labor nor intense muscular work, then an excess of glucose is obtained. Therefore, the liver directs it along the third path.
Secondly, unlimited consumption of foods high in sugar negatively affects the immune system and intestinal microflora. A sweet environment promotes the growth of pathogenic microorganisms, yeast-like fungi. Also, due to the abundance of sweets, the skin suffers.
Thirdly, it is important to remember the quality of modern confectionery products. The vast majority of them are saturated with dangerous trans fats (palm oil, vegetable fat, confectionery fat, margarine, etc.). The influence of trans fats on the development of tumor processes in the body has been established.
Ways to get rid of sugar cravings
Awareness of the “enemy” is the first step on the path to health, lightness and freedom from sweets.
1. If you have an addiction, you should not immediately and radically prohibit yourself from eating sweets. This path is fraught with failures and does not bear fruit. However, from the experience of those struggling with cravings for sweets, we can advise you to completely give up those sweets that make you lose your mind and self-control. For example, if a slice of milk chocolate affects you in such a way that you “lose your head” and come to your senses only when you have completely finished the unfortunate bar, you should try to avoid chocolate altogether.
2. Replace chocolate, cakes and pastries with less harmful and even healthy sweets: bread with jam or honey, cottage cheese with sweet fruits, etc.
3. Without going to extremes, outside of established fasts, allow yourself to eat sweets in moderation until such time as it does not harm your spiritual life. The realization that you allow yourself dessert, but only a little in the morning, will greatly facilitate the path to freedom from addiction at the initial stage.
4. An interesting principle is to share everything. Another trick of the psyche is that the brain counts not the grams eaten, but the individual quantity. That is why the chocolate bar is divided into slices. You can break off a whole strip. Or you can eat 5 small slices. The coloring will be the same, but the feeling of satisfaction will be greater. This principle applies to all sweets: cut candies, gingerbreads and even cookies into small pieces. Then, as in the fight against any other addiction, gradually reduce the amount of sweets.
5. An important psychological technique in the fight against sugar cravings - distract yourself and boost your endorphin levels in a non-addictive way. Think about what else could personally distract you from the habit of eating sweets and make you happy? Perhaps this is a walk or playing with children, or maybe singing your favorite songs with a guitar, etc. This list will be individual for everyone. But the essence is the same - the production of endorphin - the hormone of joy, as well as distracting yourself so much that you don’t think about sweets. Joy will be as complete as possible when we engage ourselves in something useful.
6. Physical activity helps increase the amount of happiness hormones. Choose the type of physical activity that best suits your needs. It could just be walking at a brisk pace, running, or maybe physical labor in the country. The main thing is that there will be less desire to cheer yourself up with sweets.
7. Important rule - get enough sleep. Lack of sleep leads to constant fatigue, which some people mistake for hunger. As stated above, the easiest way to drown it out is with something sweet. Among other things, as a result of lack of sleep, hormonal disorders appear, leading to increased appetite. And a sufficient amount of good sleep reduces stress in the body, and you don’t want to overeat it.
Spiritual aspects of sweet eating as a type of passion of gluttony
“We have a need for nutrition, or consumption of food and drink. He who labors under sin is subjected to overeating, sweet eating, feasting, drunkenness, and the like. Being enslaved to the truth, we must love abstinence in order to eat food and drink in moderation - and according to the rules of the Church." ()
It is very convenient to start weaning yourself from cravings for your favorite sweets during the period of fasting. On fasting days, you can fortify yourself with honey or jam, but remember in moderation and do not abuse the formal permission of these products.
“...You eat bread, sweets, think about the true bread, which gives eternal life to souls - about the Body and Blood of Christ, and hunger for this bread, that is, want to partake of it more often; drink water or tea, or honey, sweets, or other drinks, think about the true drink that quenches souls scorched by passions - about the most pure and life-giving Blood of the Savior...” Saint Righteous John of Kronstadt “How to Achieve Holiness”
It must be remembered that struggle with passions(in this case, with the passion of gluttony) is always accompanied by opposition from the enemy. Therefore, it is important to strengthen your spiritual strength with fervent prayer, confession of this sin, frequent communion, and taking holy water.
“We cannot force a person who has just come to church to live on bread and water. But the ascetics would hardly eat the cake. To each his own. As he grows spiritually."prot. Dimitry Moiseev, teacher at Kaluga Theological Seminary
How wonderful it is to feel free from cravings for sweets, when the sight of a cake does not make you want to eat it. When, out of fear of ruining our most desired relationship with Christ, we give up the craving to eat more and more sweet things. If these moments are the motivators to stand your ground with God’s help in an effort to eradicate addiction, then everything will definitely work out. Rest assured.
Harmful food addictions are the number 1 reason why people “break away” from a proper diet. And the most common of them are craving for sweets and starchy foods.
Let's be honest with ourselves. You know perfectly well how to eat properly - there is a lot of information. You need to eat more greens. You need to eat more vegetables. But, nevertheless, many people answer the question “Why didn’t you stick to proper nutrition before?” They answer: “Because of the craving for sweets and starchy foods.”
The title says there are 5 of them, but in fact there are four: more fiber, more protein, more healthy fats, more probiotics. If you follow these tips, and optionally the fifth tip I added, it will help you overcome your food addictions, such as addiction to sweets and baking.
1. Eat more protein
If you have a serious problem with sweets and starchy foods, take advice from Carly Randolph Pitman, author of Overcoming Sugar Addiction and a former "sugar addict": include protein in every meal.
Protein helps stabilize blood sugar levels and maintain adequate energy levels. Try to make sure every meal contains 15-25 grams of protein. This is enough to make you feel full for several hours, without lethargy or heaviness in your stomach.
This amount of protein is contained in 100 grams of cottage cheese, chicken breast or 150 grams of shrimp. Lean beef, turkey, and fish are also good.
If you follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, you can get the proteins you need from legumes, tofu, quinoa, amaranth, seeds and nuts.
Protein blend PlantFusion can become an ideal part of the diet for those who want to get rid of cravings for sweets and starchy foods forever.
With an ideal amino acid profile, PlantFusion's plant-based protein shake delivers 21 grams of complete protein per serving. An excellent option for vegetarians, vegans, and those who want to eat more plant-based protein.
2. Increase your share of healthy fats
To obtain the energy it needs, our body can burn both carbohydrates and fats. If you decide to eat less sweets and starchy foods, start eating more fat. But these fats must be healthy!
What about saturated fat? I'll tell you a secret: saturated fats can be healthy too! But it is not at all necessary to eat fatty meat, drink full-fat milk and eat sour cream with spoons. All you have to do is discover such a safe herbal product as coconut oil.
Coconut oil contains 62% beneficial medium chain fatty acids(caprylic, lauric and capric) and 91% of coconut oil fats are healthy dietary saturated fats.
Medium chain fatty acids are instantly burned by the body, producing energy and increasing metabolism. This means that your cells completely use up the fat contained in coconut oil and do not store it. And all this without raising your blood sugar!
Every time you want to eat candy or cake, open the refrigerator and scoop out a tablespoon of coconut oil. Experience heavenly pleasure!
Let's once again list the sources of healthy fats that help overcome sweet cravings:
- avocado, olives, nuts;
- flaxseed oil, chia seeds, fish oil;
Once you introduce these foods into your daily diet, your body will turn into a fat burning machine! And beyond weight loss, eating healthy fats will help you overcome your sugar cravings.
Natural Factors Pharmaceutical Grade Fish Oil is a highly purified product high in Omega-3 fatty acids. Each capsule of Rx-Omega-3 Factors contains 400 g of DHA and 200 g of EPA, 2-3 capsules per day are enough.
Organic Virgin Coconut Oil from Healthy Origins in an economical 1.5kg pack - unbeatable value for money.
3. Add fiber to your diet
Fiber increases satiety, reduces appetite and contains no calories! In addition, fiber helps cleanse the intestines and prevents candida from multiplying. And candida is one of the reasons for increased cravings for sweets and starchy foods.
If you have seriously decided to give up sweets and starchy foods, start eating more foods containing fiber!
These can be vegetables (especially cruciferous vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts), nuts, seeds (especially chia seeds and flax seeds). Oatmeal and buckwheat are rich in fiber grains.
Other foods that can help increase your daily fiber intake include oat bran, acacia fiber, apple pectin, and psyllium husk.
Stevia is a natural, plant-based sweetener that contains no calories.
In addition, stevia dissolves well in water, is resistant to high temperatures and is harmless with long-term use.
I use the glycerin-based stevia extract Better Stevia from Now Foods - I only need one drop per cup of tea. A very profitable option!
They helped us:
Evgeny Arzamastsev
Nutritionist at the Margarita Koroleva Center for Aesthetic Medicine
The World Health Organization estimates that a typical Russian eats about 100 grams of sugar per day. Despite the fact that the human body can process no more than 50 g of sweet additive more or less painlessly. And modern scientific research persistently links excess sugar in the menu with such serious diseases as diabetes, hypertension, strokes and heart attacks, and colon cancer. This list alone is enough to make you forget about soda and buns forever. But there is a nuance.
Stories about the dangers of sugar, alas, cannot force those with a sweet tooth to give up candy. American biologists have long proposed equating sweet poison to alcohol and tobacco and start honestly calling it a drug. Not for the sake of shocking: the mechanism of our brain’s reaction to sugar is not much different from the addictions that develop, say, with each new glass of champagne.
One of many experiments on this topic is indicative. Scientists from Princeton University fed experimental rats sugar daily, gradually increasing the dose. Everyone was happy. But one day, terrible for rodents, people completely excluded sweets from the menu. What do you think? The animals became restless, irritable and aggressive and, if they could, would probably complain of a headache and a desire to bite. In general, the poor rats experienced a typical withdrawal in the absence of the coveted dose.
But let's get back to the people. Most of us swallowed our first dose of sweet drugs before we could speak clearly, and for decades maintained a bad attachment by buying “something for tea.” We can't just stop eating sugar, no matter how strong-willed people we are., ask any narcologist. But we can gradually (this is a key condition for success) reduce the amount of sweets in our diet to a minimum or even to zero.
WH experts have formulated several rules for those who intend to one day give up desserts. Get a plan of action.
- Get enough sleep. Yes, it's that simple. The human body interprets lack of sleep as a stressful situation - and sends hormones that regulate appetite into overdrive. One sleepless night is enough for you to eat more than 200 extra kilocalories the next day, with priority given to fast carbohydrates, that is, sugar. A well-rested person is less drawn to cakes - proven at Harvard.
- Analyze your diet. An irresistible craving for sweets often manifests itself as a symptom of a lack of chromium, zinc or magnesium (or maybe all at once). Only a blood test can definitely determine this, but just in case, check how regularly the products from the list at the end of the article appear on your plate.
- Eat protein. This is a way to maintain stable levels of glucose and insulin in the blood and, as a result, crave sweets less. Ideally, protein should be ingested at every meal, but definitely at breakfast. By proteins we mean not only meat and fish, but also nuts, seeds, eggs, and legumes.
- Eat small and frequent meals. The thought of snacking on cookies doesn’t even occur to people whose sugar levels don’t jump sharply throughout the day. Try to eat food every 2-2.5 hours (of course, distributing its volume so that by the end of the month it does not resemble a ball in shape) - and you will notice that when you do not have to experience acute attacks of hunger, it is easier to pass by pastry shops.
- Don't keep sweets in sight. If there is a piece of cake waiting in the refrigerator, and gingerbread cookies in the table drawer, the temptation to eat them will defeat any vows. So it's simple: don't buy anything that isn't good for you. And for occasions when you are accustomed to eating sweets (coffee breaks with colleagues, meetings with girlfriends, morning tea), keep healthier alternatives to chocolate and croissants on hand. These can be seasonal fruits and berries, honey, dried fruits.
- Move. Regular exercise is a good way to cope with daily stress, which is often to blame for our emotional attachment to chocolate and jam.
- Add healthy fats. They are extremely important for the body's hormonal stability and help you feel full longer. Healthy unsaturated fats are found in avocados, nuts and seeds, and olive oil.
- Cook at home. To reduce the amount of sugar entering the body, you will have to limit industrially processed foods as much as possible. Sweeteners are now even added to dumplings and pickles, and the only way to avoid excess is to personally regulate the amount of sugar in your food. Here's a simple example: cutlets bought at the grocery store will almost certainly contain syrup or something like that; in a piece of meat that you personally turn into cutlets at home - no.
- Stop drinking calories. Any form of liquid sugar is worse than solid food containing it. Sugary drinks deliver the drug directly to your liver without even trying to create the illusion of satiety. Therefore, by drinking lemonade in between, you provoke yourself to eat more and more fast carbohydrates.
- Add spices Cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom naturally sweeten foods, help regulate blood sugar and control your addiction.
The first post in the “Weight loss supplements” series is dedicated to products that reduce cravings for sweets, starchy foods, and overeating. This happens very often, you stay on cottage cheese and salads all day, and in the evening you begin to have an unbearable itch to chew something sweet and starchy. I'll talk about three supplements: chromium picolinate, 5-htp (tryptophan) and glutamine.
Let's start with the most popular supplement, which everyone who has once tried to lose weight or is already accustomed to living in a state of permanent weight loss knows, this is, of course, the famous chromium picolinate!
Chromium ranks first among all supplements in its ability to normalize blood sugar levels. More than 90% of people suffer from chromium deficiency in the body! (just think about this number).
Chromium deficiency is a vicious cycle: when there is little chromium in the body, sugar cravings increase, but the more sugar you consume, the more chromium in the body is depleted.
Therefore, regular intake of chromium is needed by almost all people, even those who are not losing weight, since it is chronic chromium deficiency that very often leads to impaired insulin metabolism and most chronic diseases (strokes, hypertension, gastritis, migraines, etc.).
Chromium picolinate reduces sugar cravings
I will not be distracted and will return to losing weight. The best way to get rid of excess fat, besides a low-carb diet, is taking chromium picolinate. Research shows that chromium picolinate hits weight loss on several fronts:
- reducing cravings for sweets, chromium makes it easier to follow a diet without failure
- even without a diet, chromium helps increase lean body mass, which speeds up metabolism (the more muscle in the body, the faster the metabolism)
- chromium prevents muscle loss during caloric restriction
- chromium increases calorie expenditure during exercise. By the way, sports and fitness accelerate the removal of chromium from the body, so it should be taken by everyone who plays sports!
Chromium has another important property: it fights cell glycation, one of the main factors in skin aging. This is a process of cell damage and dying due to high amounts of sugar in the blood, gluing of collagen fibers (this is why all fast food and sweets lead to early aging of the skin!).
How to choose the right chrome
The most effective chromium compounds is chromium picolinate and polynicotinate, but chromium picolinate has more pronounced effect. To reduce cravings for sweets, the daily dosage of chromium is 200-600 mcg per day, and for obesity or diabetes it is already 600-1000 mcg per day.
- Chromium Picolinate Solgar – $9.58
Tryptophan controls increased appetite, improves mood
I wrote two interesting articles about the amino acid tryptophan, I advise you to definitely look and
I call tryptophan “vitamins of happiness”, and I drink it as a mild and safe remedy to relieve symptoms of anxiety and stress, as well as in situations when you want to eat a lot of something harmful! Not because of hunger, but only because you are in a bad mood or bored. This is familiar to everyone!))
Tryptophan is ideal with constant diet failures and when leaving them. They also successfully treat eating disorders (gluttony, bulimia), this is what we need so as not to break down and not eat everything indiscriminately! And finally forget about late-night eating and terrible hunger pangs!
How to choose the right tryptophan
The most effective form of this amino acid is this, with the number 5 in the name 5-htp. Just look for it on the label! The effective dosage of such tryptophan is 300-400 mg per day, and you can take it in doses of 100 mg or more.
Sometimes tryptophan is combined with magnesium and vitamin B6, which prolongs the action of tryptophan so that it lasts longer. I chose exactly this Solgar complex, here it is:
- Tryptophan Solgar - $23.92
I drink tryptophan 1-2 capsules, shortly before dinner, It is advisable to drink it on an empty stomach, and not during meals, like most vitamins. If this complex is not on sale (and it is quickly sold out!), then read about others
Glutamine treats alcohol and sugar addiction
Glutamine is one of the most important amino acids in the human body, it accelerates tissue healing and is used to treat inflammatory bowel diseases and prevent cancer.
But she has one more important action, glutamine helps with addictions! Nutritionist Roger Williams has successfully used glutamine to treat alcohol addiction, with about 75% of patients actually being able to get rid of their cravings for alcohol!
After this experiment, researchers successfully began using glutamine to overcome uncontrollable sugar cravings. And very successfully, because glutamine helped most people get rid of sugar addiction test subjects!
Moreover, glutamine is good because it acts immediately - when a craving for sweets appears, you need to take 1-2 grams of l-glutamine, preferably with a spoonful of heavy cream, and the unbearable desire to indulge in sweets will go away.
In addition to treating sugar and alcohol addiction, glutamine may also be useful to us:
- Glutamine repairs muscle tissue after workouts, allowing the body to burn more fat
- Glutamine cleanses the liver of byproducts of fat metabolism
- and is also an accessible non-carbohydrate source of energy in a low-calorie diet.
This means that on a strict diet or detox you can forget about the constant feeling of fatigue and apathy when the body just lacks energy!
How to choose the right glutamine
Choose the most accessible form in the form of l-glutamine. It is available both in powder and in capsules; capsules are more convenient. Capsules are needed with a dosage of 1000 mg. To overcome cravings for alcohol and sugar, it is enough to take 1-3 grams of glutamine at the same time, it should be taken immediately after the desire to drink alcohol or eat something sweet.
- Glutamine Solgar – $10.38
To stimulate the immune system, dosages of 5-20 grams of glutamine are usually prescribed per day, so a dosage of 3 grams is not at all scary))
Glutamine goes well with chromium picolinate, it’s just that glutamine provides an immediate effect against cravings for sweets, while chromium picolinate provides a balanced and gradual effect throughout the day.
Where can I get these supplements to treat our gluttony))
I order all my vitamins from my favorite American store iherb, you can also find them in Russian pharmacies, just be prepared for the fact that prices for high-quality supplements will be several times higher. Ordering them on iHerb is much easier and cheaper!
I wrote in detail how to get a discount on your first order here, everything is super easy there!
- Solgar, Chromium Picolinate, 500 mcg, 120 Veggie Caps
- Solgar, 5-HTP, 100 mg, 90 Veggie Caps - $23.92
- Solgar, L-Glutamine, 1000 mg, 60 Tablets — $10.38
Well, now tell me, do you still empty the refrigerator at night, are you going to put a lock in the kitchen? Then I'm coming to you!))
It is generally accepted that only girls have a sweet tooth. In fact, cravings for sweet or sour, spicy or a specific product (meat, cakes) do not depend on gender. It depends on the chemical and psychological state of the body. To get rid of sugar cravings, you need to understand the effect sweet foods have on the body.
Sweet is sugar. Sugar is a fast carbohydrate. Fast carbohydrates instantly charge the body with energy, but the charge does not last long. And the decline that happens exceeds the primary level of charge. Because of this, the body asks for a new and larger dose.
Sweet cravings are an option. What happens after eating dessert:
- a sharp jump in energy, a surge of strength (because of this, athletes are recommended to eat a banana before and after training);
- increased brain activity (sweet snacks are very helpful for mental workers);
- improved mood.
These changes occur against the background of hormonal processes - the production of dopamine and serotonin (hormones of happiness, pleasure, joy).
By the way, from the point of view of chemical processes, all sweets are equal: both artificial and natural. So replacing candy with honey is healthier, but in terms of energy and hormones it is the same.
Psychological reasons for cravings
Sweets actually help you binge eat. Due to the rapid production of energy in the body, there is a surge of strength, and due to dopamine, mood improves. A person becomes psychologically, intellectually and physically resilient. But the effect of fast carbohydrates ends on average after half an hour. New recharge is required.
Everything would be fine, but fast carbohydrates are very high in calories. Nutritionists will say so. And the psychologist will say that eating stress is not a solution to the problem. Since you have found out that you are fighting stress with the help of sweets, then please find a more rational method to eliminate rather than mask the problem.
Other psychological causes of cravings:
- in personal life, lack of family;
- internal problems, complexes, ;
- the bleakness of life;
- a void in some area that is filled with sweets.
How to get rid
As a one-time and emergency aid, sweets are a very good resource. For example, before taking an exam or after a difficult presentation with a report. The craving for sweets in this case is a natural signal from an exhausted body, a request for support and restoration of balance. But if the craving is systematic, then it’s worth thinking about.
First of all, rule out or confirm medical reasons for cravings for sweets. The need to increase glucose occurs with osteochondrosis and other diseases that impair blood circulation. In this case, you need the help of a therapist or neurologist.
Check chromium and magnesium levels. The lack of these microelements causes cravings for sweets. Chromium is found in fish and eggs. Magnesium – in beans, green apples. Consult your doctor to prescribe a special vitamin complex.
Rule out hormonal disorders: problems with the pancreas and thyroid gland. Need help from an endocrinologist.
If your physical health is in order, then you need to think about your psychological health. Let's talk about this in more detail:
- Determine your goal for getting rid of cravings. This is without which success will not come. Remind yourself of the goal.
- If we are talking about a habit, for example, drinking tea and cake with your family or treating yourself to a cake for a successfully completed project at work (we are taught this from childhood), then it is worth fighting a bad habit. Replace with a useful ritual. Think about how else you can communicate with your family or how to praise yourself. It is possible that sweets are not a goal, but a means. Determine what you achieve by eating cookies.
- Determine what you are eating: loneliness, inadequacy, feelings of anxiety or insecurity, lack of personal life. What void do you fill with sweets?
- Trick your brain. A chocolate bar can be divided into strips or into cubes. In the latter case, the brain will say: “We ate not just one strip, but already three whole cubes.” You can also cut candy, etc. Learn to savor the pieces, chew, feel.
- The more sweets we eat, the stronger the cravings. Vicious circle. Force yourself to endure the withdrawal period. Restoring balance takes time and willpower. Reduce the amount of sweets and be patient.
- Look elsewhere for endorphins. What's in it for you? Decide for yourself. Some people enjoy walking the dog, others enjoy playing the guitar, others enjoy walking with their children, etc.
- Play sports. Nordic walking, cycling, step, Pilates, swimming, dancing, simple daily walks - in the modern variety of sports, everyone will find something to their liking. When playing sports, endorphins are also produced, and if you like sports, then there are even more hormones.
- Normalize your rest and sleep patterns. Remember that craving for sweets is a need for energy.
- Avoid stress and worries. Do not accumulate emotions in yourself so as not to eat them.
- Keep an eye on the emotional diversity of life. It is useful when there is more than one source of joy.
- Increase. It’s simple and common to eat up difficulties, but self-regulation is more useful. By the way, beef, cottage cheese and other foods that contain tryptophan (an anti-stress hormone) reduce stress. Study the information and choose your “medicine”.
- Learn to release emotions. While absorbing the positive, do not forget to rationally release the negative: beating a pillow, screaming into the void, breaking dishes in an attraction, etc. Combine business with pleasure. If you like to sing - karaoke (and shouted, released emotions, and received endorphin, let emotions in).
- Think and talk less about sweets. While I was writing the article, I wanted to eat some candy. So don’t get hung up on the idea of deliverance, fill your life with interesting and useful activities.
- Don't go hungry. Sweets quickly eliminate the feeling of hunger. But in half an hour it will come with renewed vigor. So don't go hungry, don't eat sweets as a full-fledged snack, and don't confuse hunger with thirst. Make it a rule to drink, and only then monitor the sensations. If the feeling of hunger passed, then it was thirst.
- Visit a nutritionist and get their perspective on the ins and outs of sugar cravings. Create a diet together.
Afterword
Nutritionists advise combining complex and fast carbohydrates, that is, eating desserts, but always after the main meal, and not instead of it. This scheme will not allow sugar to jump sharply, but energy will be produced gradually. But it will last for a long time, and then there will be no sudden loss of strength.
Consider whether you need to completely get rid of sweets. If you are simply worried about your figure, then learn to monitor your consumption, and not eliminate it completely. During active muscular and mental work, in stressful situations, sweets are a helper, not an enemy. On a weekend, on the contrary, you can eat fewer desserts. Remember that many substances are medicine in small doses and poison in large doses. In general, I would recommend focusing on the situation, getting rid of cravings, but not getting rid of sweets.