Do you have a chocolate addiction?
You eat it when feeling happy, sad or stressed. When celebrating a victory and commiserating a loss of any kind; sometimes even while watching TV or driving in your car! The truth is that as much as we'd like to think this "treat" will fix anything for us--it doesn't really work out too great. When we have sugar cravings it's just another temporary fix and actually has negative consequences of weight gain and potential blood sugar imbalances or at least energy highs and lows.
How To Stop Chocolate Cravings
Most people love chocolate and certainly enjoy a chocolate fix on occasion, however for many people their cravings for chocolate are no longer an enjoyment, but rather a craving they seem to have difficulty controlling. Before those cravings get way out of hand, and you find yourself packing on those extra kilos maybe you should learn how to stop craving chocolate. Here are some tips that can help to eliminate that chocolate addiction or at least help you get it under control.
When you're feeling low on energy, take a look at how recently your last meal was. If it's been a while and blood glucose levels have sunk below normal range then the body is signalling you that fuel needs to be provided ASAP!
Reaching for some chocolate when you’re tired isn't a great long-term fix. The sugar in it can give you a quick burst of energy that wears off quickly, leaving you feeling worse than before. Eating a snack that provides longer-lasting energy is better for your body. I’d recommend apples with almond butter or a few nuts, because it will help slow the breakdown of sugar in order to prevent big spikes and crashes of sugar levels.
Balancing blood sugar levels can help to stop chocolate cravings
Often the craving for chocolate or other sugar cravings come because of an imbalance in blood glucose levels. You don't have to be diabetic to have your glucose levels rise and fall in rapid succession. In fact, due to poor eating schedules many people have trouble balancing their blood sugar levels in the course of the day. The best way to balance blood glucose levels is to try to eat at regular times during the day, and include protein like fish, lean meat or eggs. You also want to make sure that those carbohydrates you do eat are healthy carbs or complex carbs like whole grains and not simple ones like sugar.
Complex carbohydrates take longer to digest and therefore enter the blood stream slowly over a period of time, whereas a simple carbohydrate such as the sugar in chocolate digests easily and enters the blood stream in one large splurge. Once into the blood stream you feel energized, but simple carbs are quickly used causing your blood sugar levels to rapidly drop leaving you feeling tired and often looking for another quick fix to increase energy. By balancing those blood sugar levels, you maintain an even amount of energy during the day, feel less tired, and are less likely to feel the need to reach for a chocolate bar to give you renewed energy.
Feeding the actual cravings
That craving for chocolate may not actually be a craving for chocolate at all, but rather your body's way of telling you that it needs an essential mineral contained in chocolate. This mineral is magnesium and we need magnesium to help keep the heart healthy and functioning, for normal nerve and muslce function. Instead of eating chocolate to get this important mineral try consuming a helping of leafy green vegetables such as spinach or cabbage. You just may find that supplying the body with this needed mineral will make those chocolate cravings go completely away.
It's possible you may also find yourself low in other vitamins and minerals and send out hunger signals as a way of telling you that it needs these missing vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to remain healthy. Often people misinterpret these messages as a “craving” and reach for their favourite treat when what they really should be doing is changing their diet to include more healthy fruits and vegetables as well as those complex carbohydrates in whole grains. These foods will supply you with most if not all the vitamins and minerals your body needs and those food cravings should go away.
What to do when you have sugar cravings
If you have a sweet tooth eating fruit, for example berries, is a good option. Although high in sugar it's also high in fibre and vitamins. You can also try a big glass of water to stay hydrated and make sure the sugar craving isn't because you actually just need a drink of water. If you're feeling stressed and notice this increases your craving for chocolate have some healthy snacks on hand instead.
Eating sufficient healthy fats is another important strategy to help you stop eating chocolate and sweet treats. Try having a few nuts, some avocado and some olive oil on a regular basis. Also, adding other high fat foods like salmon or seeds to your meals can help with reducing processed foods. There are lots of overall health benefits of cutting your sugar cravings and added sugars in your diet like reduced heart disease risk.
Dark Chocolate
If you're looking for a healthier chocolate option and you're trying to avoid going cold turkey, think about upgrading to a high cocoa chocolate. Dark chocolate bars of about 70% cocoa or higher means less sugar. You can even get dark chocolate of 90 or 95% cocoa, which usually has no sugar at all.
The best way to eliminate craving chocolate is by balancing those blood sugar levels and supplying your body with those vitamins and minerals necessary for you to remain healthy. If you need help to stop sugar cravings you can do my Back To Basics Sugar Detox Program.