What Do You Crave?

Ever wonder why you crave pickles or coconut or a ham sandwich? Chocolate and ice cream cravings make sense to many of us because they taste so good. But that's not the only reason!

We all experience cravings, some more than others. If you start to pay attention and maybe even keep a food diary, you can sometimes recognize patterns. Cravings can be emotional, but a lot of times they are your body's way of demanding a certain nutrient. That's why it's important not to deny your cravings, but to figure out what they mean and how to meet them in a healthy way.

First, Try These Simple Steps

1. Drink water. A large percentage of all cravings can be satisfied by hydrating your body.

2. Use a tongue scraper. Clearing your palate of sensation will reduce cravings and prevent eating something to get rid of a "bad taste."

Craving dairy?

A craving for dairy, whether cheese, milk, ice cream, or something more specific, can mean that your body is in the market for fat. Healthy fat, contrary to popular belief, does not make you fat. In fact, it's essential to losing weight, as well as brain function and absorption of nutrients (which makes you feel satisfied and full sooner).

Try these healthy fats.

They key here is to avoid polyunsaturated, omega-6 rich vegetable oils (soy, corn, safflower, and canola) at all costs and go for saturated fats. If you don't use fat to cook with, now is a good time to start. Cooking with olive oil at medium temperatures and coconut oil at any temperature does adds taste and nutritional benefit to your food that makes the additional calories negligible. Try it, and you'll find that it's easier to lose weight and keep it off.

Animal fats are also incredibly beneficial, despite popular belief that saturated fat is bad for you. Actually, saturated fat is the most stable fat, meaning that it does not break down and become rancid at high temperatures, like polyunsaturated fats do. It also contains vitamin D and beneficial omega-3 fatty acids.

Do make sure that you are eating organic meat, and that it has been pasture raised and grass fed (cows) or caught wild (fish). Organic butter from grass-fed cows is also highly beneficial. If you eat dairy, be sure to eat full-fat products, in which the nutrients and minerals (including calcium) are more absorbable, and which satiate you more. Raw dairy contains many health benefits.

Finally, monounsaturated fats (olive oil, nuts, avocado) are also highly stable and beneficial, though nuts can be high in copper and are best soaked overnight before consuming.

Craving sugar?

Sugar is addictive, so it's easy to fall into a cycle of needing more and more of it. Using sugar-free products containing aspartame is not a solution; it's a gamble with your health, as calorie-free sugar substitutes have been linked to nervous system dysfunction, among other things. And while new-fad sweeteners like agave nectar claim to be healthy, their processing makes these supposed benefits are highly controversial.

Try sweet vegetables, fruits, and natural sugars.

To satisfy the sweet urge, sweet vegetables such as winter squashes (acorn, delicata, spaghetti, butternut), sweet potatoes, beets, rutabegas, turnips, radishes, cabbage, corn, carrots, onions, beets, parsnips, daikon radish, and burdock root.

Fruit can also be beneficial, though stay away from fruit juices because the natural fiber in fruit helps balance out blood sugar.

Also consider natural sugars such as raw honey (try to buy local if possible), date sugar, Rapadura (dehydrated sugar cane juice that still contains B vitamins and other nutrients to help regulate blood sugar), and maple syrup (buy organic and make sure it has not been processed using formaldehyde).

Craving potato chips?

Craving a salty snack can indicate a nutrient deficiency, so nutrient-dense foods are your best bet.

Try dark, leafy greens.

This may not sound very satisfying at first, but kale, collards, broccoli, arugula and other dark leafy greens are packed with vitamins, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, iron, potasand phosophorus. Not only that, but these minerals are much more absorbable than those found in pasteurized dairy products. In addition, greens require a lot of chewing, even when cooked, so this will satisfy the texture craving for crunchy foods like potato chips and pretzels.

Craving coffee, chocolate, or beer?

Cravings for these foods indicate a stressed liver. When the liver is blocked and overloaded, it may cause cravings for these bitter flavors that cause temporary movement and relief; however, alcohol and caffeine only cause more blockage in the long run.

Try foods that support the liver.

There's nothing your liver loves more than raw foods, so organic vegetables and fruits are your number one friend here, especially garlic and onions, apples, lemon, cruciferous vegtables, and dark leafy greens. A lemon juice and olive oil dressing further promotes liver support and maximum absorption of nutrients. Dandelion and milk thistle tea can also be beneficial to the liver, and if you need a caffeine fix, green tea is a great substitute that still provides energy along with antioxidants.

I wouldn't dream of asking you to give up chocolate, but try organic dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate or conventional candies, which are usually laden with sugar and preservatives. If you can find it, raw cacao is actually a superfood with many health benefits.

Craving your favorite creamy beverage?

Vanilla or chocolate soymilk may seem like a healthy treat, but think again. Non-fermented and genetically modified soy have serious side effects, among them links to reproductive issues, sterility, and breast cancer. By the same token, lattes are usually made with non-organic dairy, which means antibiotics and added hormones.

Try coconut smoothies and rooibos tea.

If you're looking for a cold, creamy drink, a smoothie made with coconut milk, natural vanilla flavor, and a frozen banana is a surprisingly delicious, healthy sweet treat. (Add a tablespoon of raw cacao if you want chocolate.) If you need something hot and comforting, rooibos tea is full of antioxidents with a rich flavor. It's caffeine-free, and many varieties are naturally sweet. My favorite is Yogi Chai Rooibos.

Craving entertainment, comfort, or movement?

Many times when we are bored, stressed, or lonely, we fill the void with food. Becoming aware of what we are really wanting can help reduce emotional eating. If you are lonely, call a friend, attend a local cultural function, or take yourself on a date to a movie you've been wanting to see or dinner with a good book. Go out for a walk or sign up for an exercise class you've never tried before, or treat yourself to a few sessions with a personal trainer. Fulfill a creative passion from your past: maybe you used to play an instrument, paint, or hike.

Also, when we are dissatisfied with a certain area of our life, such as a job or relationship, we turn to food to "feed" us emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. This can never create satiation, for while food can create a sense of emotional well-being, it is physical sustenance. Create balance by journaling, meditating, practicing yoga, attending a place of worship, or developing a spiritual practice. Evaluate your career and passions, and try to match them up. Let go of unhealthy relationships, or agree to work on them together. This takes time, so be patient with yourself.

What do you crave?

Post your craving or e-mail me at emily@eat2prevent.com, and I'll help you deconstruct it!

Reader Question: The Psychology of Coffee Shops (How Labels Can Wreak Havoc on Your Eating Habits)

I was thrilled to receive a reader question by e-mail this past week!

"Like most freelancers, I spend a lot of time working out of coffee shops, which instinctively means coffee in every form, with a muffin, cookie or other piece of bakery goodness on the side. Thankfully, I spend time at the gym too, although lately my schedule has negated my workout and I've really noticed the pounds piling on.

"Any tips for picking out healthier options or tips to keep the weight off with my crazy schedule?"

Actually, I was dismayed to receive this question because I don't know the answer. I have spent most of my adult years loving coffee shops, coffee, and muffins. When I go into Starbucks, I don't want tea.

Then, my optimism was renewed. I realized, I don't go into Starbucks anymore because their coffee tastes burned and their pastries are frozen, and I actually find the smell of the store kind of nauseating since working there in college. (Although they still make the best Americano I've found yet.)

I also must admit that, yes, I do go for tea now about 60% of the time. This has been a huge change wrought from tears and sleepless nights—why can't I stop drinking coffee when it makes me feel so terrible (racing heart, near panic attacks, etc.)?

The thing is, coffee shops are a lifestyle, just like freelancing, just like wine bars or expensive restaurants or dives. We identify ourselves based on these trappings. Our subconscious mental script is "I am the kind of person who..." Drinks wine when she cooks, just like the sexy, cosmopolitan women on TV. Is too tough for decaf. Can drink my friends under the table. Shouldn't have to try to be skinny. Fill in the blank.

Do any of these reasons sound ridiculous to you? That's because they are. Yet they have all floated through my head at some point (and occasionally still do).

So the first thing to do is realize your mental subscript. What labels are you identifying yourself with? In the case of this reader, she is a freelancer. Perhaps her subscript is that freelancing about long, dogged hours without rest or home-cooked food, pushing herself to the limits of her stamina, working instead of eating, and then eating whatever is available without being too particular because she's starving. Or perhaps she like the social aspect of meeting in coffee shops with other freelances, and she doesn't want to lose touch with those people or be seen as aloof because she's trying to take care of herself.

The second step is the tough part. Start to change this mental subscript. We unconsciously label ourselves because it makes us feel safe, defined: we live in a world of labels--male, female, heterosexual, homosexual, grad student, soccer mom, husband, wife, partner, boyfriend, girlfriend, CEO, freelancer, you name it--and some part of us likes to fit into those categories.

I was obsessed for a while about what my job title would be. I didn't like "health counselor"; it was too vague. It took me a while to come up with "food therapist," but I love it! It is a label that empowers and nurtures me, and hopefully communicates some of what I do.

However, labels always have some kind of positive and negative connotations. Become aware of what labels you identify with and their positive and negative lifestyle traits. And then create your own definition of the label you choose to include taking care of yourself in whatever ways you need to.

Here are some practical ways to do this:

• Make the gym less intimidating and shorten your workout. Burning some calories is better than burning none at all. Interval workouts maximize calorie burn in minimum time. Or consider a yoga routine; I often find that doing yoga reduces my desire for sugar and caffeine.
  
• Be sure to eat breakfast. No arguing. If you are full of a black bean breakfast wrap and a banana, you're going to be a lot less likely to order a cheese danish in an hour or so.
  
• If you don't have an office, work and hold meetings in casual restaurants and cafes instead of coffee shops. That way you can choose to order healthier meals that are providing you some nutritional value.
• Quality, not quantity. Get the small mocha, but order it full fat. The higher fat content will satisfy you emotionally and physically for longer. Go for smaller cookies or pastries, and if they don't have anything small, break it in half and throw half away. Seriously, it all tastes the same after the first bite.
• Order a water with your beverage of choice. Water flushes toxins from your system. Drinking a glass of water for every caffeinated beverage will slow you down and keep you hydrated.
  
• Eat some variety. If you're craving sugar and caffeine, chances are you are out of balance nutritionally. Making sure to either cook or find a restaurant that provides dark leafy greens like kale and whole grains like quinoa as often as possible during the week.
• Make lunch your main meal. If you're out during the day, going from breakfast meeting to coffee chat to lunch with coworkers to afternoon client rendezvous, switch your main calorie intake from dinner to lunch.
  
• Evaluate primary food. What problems do your job create in taking care of yourself? What creative ways can you change or address them? Are you more important than your job or clients? Absolutely. If you are sick, tired, or just not feeling your best, who's going to complete your projects?
  

Lastly, don't try to do this alone. Enlist in the help and support of friends, and if you just aren't seeing results, get professional help. Of course, I always recommend my food therapy program, which can help you identify the areas of your life that are holding you back from living at your best.

Another great option is an acupuncturist. Many acupuncturists are trained in Chinese herbal medicine and can identify the sources of your imbalances and cravings. My acupuncturist, Amy Jo Gengler of Re-Soul in Charleston, has been hugely instrumental in reducing my dependency on caffeine.

OK, that's it for this very long post! What are your strategies for staying healthy throughout the workday?