Cravings Part 1:
Cravings. Who doesn’t succumb from time to time? A pie, a pizza, a box of chocolates, a piece of cake or lasagne that turns into so much more.
A friend recently admitted that when there are certain foods in her house, she simply becomes obsessed. This otherwise exceptionally even-keeled person can’t sleep because of that thing that beckons all night from the deepest depths of the fridge.
There are thousands of books offering “foolproof” advice: don’t keep any around, take a walk, call a friend, find a hobby. Simple right? But what about others’ parties? Or restaurants? And what if your downfall happens to be your partner’s favourite food and they refuse to give it up? Then there are the days when you find yourself walking (or running) out of the supermarket in possession of said contraband with no idea how it got into your shopping cart. But there it is – the gummy bears, the box of chocolate biscuits, the tub of Ben and Jerry, the family-sized pack of crisps.
That’s when the negotiations start. You barter with yourself; you promise yourself that you’ll have “just one,” you go back and forth with a sense of purpose and a whole list of good intentions. It is my personal belief that if world peace were left in the hands of chronic dieters, emotional eaters and bingers, with the amount of back and forth and compromise that happens on a daily basis, there would be fewer conflicts in the world.
That’s when self-righteousness makes its first appearance. After all, it’s been quite a day/week/year/life and doesn’t everyone deserve a treat from time to time? Besides, anyone who has ever been on a diet knows that deprivation is so much worse than one little bite.
And what in the world could be wrong with just one little bite? By now, you’ve paid for it, and you can’t very well go wasting food, can you?
But then you open the refrigerator or the pantry and there are so many other, so-called healthier options. So you have something else – a piece of toast maybe – to tide you over. It’s not quite as satisfying as you had hoped and before long, you find yourself roaming around once again. What about that last apple? It does need to be finished. Ooh, you think, there’s that leftover chicken as well. And crackers with hummus. By the time you’ve exhausted your alternatives, the fridge is half-empty, your stomach hurts and somewhere in your head a little voice is still clamouring for that original craving.
For the most part, cravings are one of two things: either they are emotional or they are physical. Emotional cravings may be in response to feelings we don’t want to face, they may be a reaction to something or they may satisfy our need for comfort or a treat. Physical cravings are the way in which our bodies tell us that we are lacking certain nutrients. I know quite a few people who crave Brussels sprouts around this time of year, for example. That delicious mini cabbage that so many love to hate is actually a great source of Vitamin C, iron and potassium – all things we might need an extra dose of from time to time.
A craving for a Kit Kat bar, on the other hand, doesn’t scream “my body is lacking sugar/high fructose corn syrup and flavouring agents!” to me.
When parents forbid their children from doing things like putting their fingers in the electrical socket or playing with matches, suddenly that is all they want to do. Why should adults be any different? When certain foods aren’t allowed, why is it that we want them so much more? Because we’re human.
If you suffer from uncontrollable cravings and you want help in dealing with them, consider booking a cravings-focused session with The Picky Foodie. You can email me at Gabriela@thepickyfoodie.com to find out more or to set up a consultation.
Be well and enjoy,
Gabriela
P.S. Interested in Raw Food? Check out this week’s Friday Night Dinner Blog!
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