One of my clients last week mentioned to me that she had been struggling for the past week with some food cravings which she was finding very hard to resist. She did not like the challenge of trying to resist chocolate, ice cream or even crisp chips when the attraction for these foods became so great.
So, are food cravings a good thing or a bad thing? Well, I guess it depends on how you look at it and more importantly how you respond to the food cravings.
The human body is very intelligent. It knows exactly what it needs to survive and better still what it needs to thrive.
Food cravings are the body's mechanism to alert us that the body is looking for food and more importantly specific nutrients that are contained in the food.
Therefore food cravings are not necessarily a bad thing as the body is reminding us that it's time to have some nutrients.
It is our job to look at the craving and try to work out what could be the nutrient in the food that I am craving that the body really is looking for.
When a food craving appears we have three options.
Let's look at an example.
Lan has just finished dinner and is sitting down reading a book before she prepares herself for bed. Lan ate a lovely healthy green salad with a topping of warm diced peppers with onion, garlic, ginger with a splash of 100% extra virgin olive oil on top with a small piece of Atlantic salmon. The craving for double chocolate cream biscuit is noticed by Lan as she continues reading and digesting her meal.
Lan now has the above 3 options to choose from.
When the body has a craving for a particular food it becomes our job to work out what nutrients the body maybe looking for and supply those nutrients in the form of good nutritious food.
In the above example the body was looking for sugar and if we chose option 3 we would have given the body a good source of natural sugar. We would have satisfied the craving without consuming unnecessary calories and putting extra pressure on our digestive and elimination systems.
Next time a food craving arises in your body try to work out what nutrient the body is craving and give it a good natural fresh form of food with those particular nutrients in them.
The body is craving chocolate. Sugar is in chocolate. Good natural form of sugar is fruit.
Now you can welcome food cravings as a sign from your body to increase your intake of nutrients through good healthy nutritious food.
Have some fun with this and become an expert food craving, nutrient detective.
So, are food cravings a good thing or a bad thing? Well, I guess it depends on how you look at it and more importantly how you respond to the food cravings.
The human body is very intelligent. It knows exactly what it needs to survive and better still what it needs to thrive.
Food cravings are the body's mechanism to alert us that the body is looking for food and more importantly specific nutrients that are contained in the food.
Therefore food cravings are not necessarily a bad thing as the body is reminding us that it's time to have some nutrients.
It is our job to look at the craving and try to work out what could be the nutrient in the food that I am craving that the body really is looking for.
When a food craving appears we have three options.
- We can try to ignore or resist the craving
- We can satisfy the craving with less than healthy food
- We can respond to the craving with good nutritious food
Let's look at an example.
Lan has just finished dinner and is sitting down reading a book before she prepares herself for bed. Lan ate a lovely healthy green salad with a topping of warm diced peppers with onion, garlic, ginger with a splash of 100% extra virgin olive oil on top with a small piece of Atlantic salmon. The craving for double chocolate cream biscuit is noticed by Lan as she continues reading and digesting her meal.
Lan now has the above 3 options to choose from.
- Lan uses will power to resist and continues reading.
- Lan goes to the kitchen and starts to polish off the packet of double chocolate cream biscuits.
- Lan reflects for a few minutes and understands that her body is craving sugar. She goes to the kitchen and prepares a few pieces of fresh pineapple and eats them.
When the body has a craving for a particular food it becomes our job to work out what nutrients the body maybe looking for and supply those nutrients in the form of good nutritious food.
In the above example the body was looking for sugar and if we chose option 3 we would have given the body a good source of natural sugar. We would have satisfied the craving without consuming unnecessary calories and putting extra pressure on our digestive and elimination systems.
Next time a food craving arises in your body try to work out what nutrient the body is craving and give it a good natural fresh form of food with those particular nutrients in them.
The body is craving chocolate. Sugar is in chocolate. Good natural form of sugar is fruit.
Now you can welcome food cravings as a sign from your body to increase your intake of nutrients through good healthy nutritious food.
Have some fun with this and become an expert food craving, nutrient detective.
Mr Paul Simos is a Certified Holistic Health Practitioner and Yoga Instructor. Paul has transformed his life from a business owner in Australia working long hours with no life and very poor health to traveling Health Coach now living in Vietnam.
Paul completely turned his health around and now teaches other business executives who have stressful lives how to do the same.
Paul completely turned his health around and now teaches other business executives who have stressful lives how to do the same.
