Fighting Food Cravings

Our bodies tell us when we're hungry, but hunger isn't always the reason we eat, as many of us can attest to, whether we're overweight or not.

Whatever the spark, "food cravings" often lead to packing on pounds.

Samantha Heller, a clinical nutritionist at NYU Medical Center, tells The Early Show co-anchor Rene Syler a craving is defined as "a consuming desire or yearning."

Heller points to a study published a few years ago in the Journal of Nutrition that showed food cravings are extremely common, with 97 percent of women and 68 percent of men reporting such episodes.

She says food cravings may result from emotional, psychological, or physiological triggers.

Whatever the cause, Heller says there are things we can do to help us battle food cravings:

Learn the difference between physical hunger and "feeling like eating"

Physiological hunger means your body needs food. "Feeling like eating" can be emotional or psychological.

Before you start to eat, stop and ask yourself, "Am I really hungry?" Physiological hunger generally comes on slowly and may be accompanied by physical symptoms like a growling stomach. Physiological hunger goes away after you eat and does not reoccur until several hours later.

Emotional or psychological hunger often has no relation to when you last ate, and may not go away after eating. It is usually triggered by an event, a feeling or emotion.

Heller had a patient who reported eating cookies and ice cream the previous evening. When Heller asked why, she replied that she was craving sweets. Heller asked why she went to the kitchen at that particular time and she said she just felt like it, no other reason. Heller asked her what happened before she went into the kitchen and she said nothing. Then she remembered having had an argument with her husband.

Know your triggers and plan ahead. Eat consciously!

Be mindful of when and why you are eating. Many people use food as a distraction from uncomfortable feelings such as stress, boredom, depression and sadness.

It is difficult to get a handle on a craving when you are in the middle of one. Planning ahead for times when you are most susceptible to cravings would be a big help (nighttime, late afternoons, family occasions, stress).

Keep healthy snacks around the house or office. Plan ahead and think of things to do instead of eating at those times. Drink water, seltzer, teas, or other non-caloric beverages to quench thirst and help reduce the craving.

Figure out what works for you

Some experts suggest giving in to food cravings moderately, while others support the notion of letting the craving pass. You have to decide what will work for you, and the answer may lie somewhere between giving in and letting go. Find healthier alternatives for unhealthy food cravings. For instance, instead of chocolate ice cream, try fat-free frozen yogurt, Tofutti fudge pops or a fat-free chocolate pudding.

Get enough sleep.

Lack of sleep can lead to cravings. Recent studies have suggested that not getting enough sleep may increase hunger and appetite. This is in part due to hormonal changes in the body. It is also logical that, when we are tired, we eat to increase our energy. What we really need to do is get more sleep.

Brush and floss your teeth or pop in a strong mint or sugar-free gum.

These are good techniques to help reduce cravings and stop you from overeating.

Avoid eating refined foods.

While these foods offer a quick fix for a craving for sweets, you are likely to crash in an hour or two, resulting in cravings for more food, sweets, or caffeine. This vicious cycle can be broken by choosing whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables and healthy protein sources such as nuts, non-fat dairy, beans, chicken or fish.

Be kind to yourself.

If you give in to a craving, do not beat yourself up. This may lead to eating even more and feeling worse. Use the moment as a learning tool to help you figure out when cravings are likely to strike, why it happened and what you can do differently the next time.