How To Manage Your Food Cravings

Maybe it's the turkey and gravy, perhaps that special holiday fudge, or possibly a nightly glass of eggnog, but whatever IT is for you, one thing's for certain: most all of us have food cravings, and they only get worse.

Of course, food cravings are usually for something "bad" for us. Something full of bad fats and sugar, lots of calories and not a lot else. In fact, some scientists define a food craving as a desire for high-calorie foods that are full of fat and/or sugar.

Why Don't We Crave Carrot Sticks?

The definition of a food craving does not stray far from reality. While it may be possible to "crave" healthy foods, most people do not.

"In theory, you ought to be able to learn to crave carrot sticks," says psychologist Marcia Pelchat of the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, who was the first to publish brain images associated with food cravings. "But 95 to 97 percent of the foods that people report craving are energy-dense."

Some scientists will not even count a desire for a healthy food as a real food craving.

"If people say, 'I crave radishes,'" says Adam Drewnowski, director of the nutritional sciences program at the University of Washington in Seattle, "I would say, 'No, you don't.' They're not energy-dense, nor sweet or filled with fat. But potato chips, yes."

Where do Food Cravings Come From?

When we eat a food we love, it activates the brain's pleasure centers, the same ones activated by drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and even buying shoes, Pelchat says.

"Think of food cravings as a sensory memory. You remember how good it felt the last time you had that food. You have to have experienced eating it before," she says.

Food cravings do affect both men and women, but gender does appear to influence what we crave. While women are more likely to crave sweets and chocolate, men tend to crave savory foods like pepperoni pizza, barbecued ribs and nachos.

How To Manage Your Food Cravings

Try out these simple tips that will also help to keep your food cravings under wraps.

• Put away the candy dish. Studies show that leaving tempting foods out where you can see them increases the amount people eat.


• Watch your portion size. If you give in to a craving, don't assume all is lost. Eating just a small amount is much better than eating the whole bag.


• Be aware of how much you're eating at social functions. It's easy to indulge while socializing and not realize that you just ate four brownies and a piece of pecan pie.


• Eat a variety of healthy foods. If you limit yourself too much, or only eat a few different foods, you're more likely to crave sweet or salty foods (whichever you haven't been eating).

- Ryan