There’s no sure-fire way to figure out exactly, why you want to eat a particular food at a particular time. But some food cravings can hint at nutritional deficiencies or other health issues, according Joseph Colella, MD, weight-loss expert and author of The Appetite Solution. So while food cravings aren’t the best diagnostic tools on their own, listening to what you crave – and putting those cravings into context, can help you give your body what it really needs!
Because society vilifies chocolate as high in calories and fat, people tend to crave chocolate at times, when they think it’s socially acceptable to eat it. So if you’ve heard that raging hormones make you crave chocolate or that chocolate contains special chemicals that improve your mood, you may crave it after a particularly bad day. We attribute cravings to whatever is obvious to us, we use any excuse to indulge.
If you’re on a diet that’s too restrictive, cravings can be the result of our intent to stay away from things that are pleasant and pleasurable to eat. And, when you’re hungry from restricting calories, your body registers chocolate, a food that’s calorically dense, as a perfect food to fill up on.
You’re sleep-deprived. Because lack of sleep leaves you low on energy and food provides energy to fuel your every move, it’s easy to confuse exhaustion and hungry. “Your brain knows these deep-fried foods activate your reward centre for a satisfying sense of fullness”, Dr Colella says, although he warns this feeling is only temporary and you’d do better to indulge in foods prepared with healthy fats rather than frying oils.
You may have heartburn or acid reflux. “Creamy dairy foods tend to be soothing”, Dr Colella says. You might be taking too many OTC pain relievers. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like naproxen and Motrin may seem harmless, but they can actually cause low-grade inflammation in the stomach. An ice cream craving could be your body’s way of expressing irritation, and a sign it needs a break.
You’re tired. Ice cream contains natural milk sugars that can give you a quick boost of energy. If you need a pick-me-up and happen to ice cream, it might be first food you reach for.
You’re not eating enough protein – especially if you eat mostly vegetarian or work out a ton. “Few people, who resistance or weight-train eat enough protein,” Dr Colella says. On days, when at least 50 percent of your workout involves resistance-training, try to eat about one gramme of protein for every pound you weigh, he suggests.
You have a chronic iron or vitamin B deficiency. If you get heavy periods, menstruation can leave you short on iron. If you don’t eat quite enough protein in the first place, and skimp on it throughout the course of a few cycles, your hankering for meat could mean your body is short on essential nutrients.
You’re actually craving sugar. “Once a starchy food gets past the back of your tongue, your body treats it the same way as sugary sweets,” Dr Colella says. You might reach for a bagel or a bowl of pasta before dipping into your candy stash because eating foods feels more socially acceptable than eating sweets.