Craving For Sugar? Know Why And How To Control It!
Image Credit: Dessert cravings are very common | Unsplash

Sometimes, you have that unbearable craving for dessert right after having your food, don’t you? Even after a really heavy meal, post which you feel completely full, you feel the need to have something sweet. Our obsession with kuchh meetha ho jaaye does not even see the exception of hunger and anytime seems like a good time to enjoy some dessert. But as we all know, having too much sugar is not good for health. So, we need to understand why do we have these crazy episodes of craving sugar and how should we control it!

Why does our body crave sugar? 

Not eating enough – When you do not eat enough food, sometimes you might feel the need to overcompensate by having dessert. It is because sugar gives you quick energy and the body craves it.

Sugar addiction - Sugar stimulates a happy hormone called dopamine and also releases serotonin. This is the reason that the body repeatedly craves it and eventually gets addicted to it. 

Thirst – sometimes, our bodies just begin misinterpreting signals and even when it is thirsty, we feel as if we want to eat, which we interpret as severe sugar craving.

Eating wrong – Often, the meals post which we crave for dessert are high in carbohydrates. In such cases, the body asks for more carbs in the form of sugar.

How to control sugar cravings?

Controlling sugar cravings is important | Unsplash

 

1. Have some fruits instead of processed sugar. The sucrose in fruits helps you get over the sugar craving without harming your body much. 

2. Do not cut sugar out of your diet completely. That makes the body crave for it more. Instead, try to have it in moderation. The key to good health is actually eating everything in moderation. 

3. Eat smaller meals throughout the day instead of binge-eating all at once. It is more likely that you would not crave sugar after a small meal than a heavy one. 

4. Mix things up and see how it goes. If you are craving sugar, the only answer cannot be a decadent cake. Strawberries dipped in chocolate sauce or banana with honey sounds like the perfect middle-ground, doesn’t it? 

5. Many times, eating too much salty food gives rise to sugar craving. So, try to balance the amount of salt in your food. 

6. Doing some physical labour also helps. Be physically active and go for walks. Staying agile will help keep these sugar cravings away.

These are some of the methods by which you can evade sugar craving. But sometimes, you have to listen to your body and give in a little. Enjoy a pastry once in a while, because an overall healthy lifestyle cannot be disrupted by occasional indulgence.