The Subject of Cravings & Comfort Foods

Cravings are such an interesting topic.  A craving for comfort food is something that can cause you to throw all of your convictions and will power out the window without ever giving any thought to consequence. How many diets have we been on where we will do well for 2 or 3 weeks and suddenly start justifying the cheat with little to no regard of what we have accomplished and the damage we were about to do.  And then we would do the deed and the diet would cease to exist.

So I'm sure you could imagine the question I get quite frequently is what do I do about cravings for meat, cheese, ice cream, chocolate, etc. Or I am told that I need to let myself eat what I want once and a while. And when I answer back that I don't really have cravings for my old foods and I do eat what I want, it catches a lot of people off guard.

I am not a doctor, dietitian, or nutritionist.  However, that will not stop me from postulating a theory.   Here goes:

• Cravings for junk and unhealthy foods are relevant to the emotional experiences (personal or social) those foods are linked to.  You are not going to crave ice cream, cookies, and fried chicken because your body is crying out for nutrients from them.

Don't get me wrong.  I still have cookies and ice cream (vegan/soy-free/gluten-free of course).  However, I make the choice consciously at this point.  I don't crave it and I don't feel bad about eating it.  I believe there are a plethora of reasons that allowed me to get to this point, and some I may still not even be aware of.   

It takes 3 weeks for your taste buds to forget and relearn.  That is all, 21 days.  My choice to change my eating habits to whole foods that were within a vegan diet was fueled by my desire to feel better and the immediate benefits of doing so.  This made 3 weeks turn into months without ever feeling sad, deprived, or wanting.  These little beneficial changes that were occurring within my health daily, drove me to learn more, be more active, discover new and interesting ways to eat and cook.  The positive effects allowed my mind to embrace the lifestyle change with little to no resistance.

During the first few weeks, I began creating new associations with the food I was eating.  Comfort food for me went from mac n' cheese to lentils, quinoa, and avocado (all of which are delicious on their own or mixed together).  Breakfast went from scramby eggs to steelcut oats and fruit.   I accepted these foods for their place in my life.  Food went from a source of comfort to a source of fuel.  And then I suddenly realized I had all the tools I needed to comfort myself.

Let me supplement this by saying sometimes your body truly does have nutritional based cravings which should not be ignored.  It could be for fat, carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, or minerals.  These are all important to balanced nutrition and it is our responsibility to ourselves to satisfy those needs by consuming the healthiest, whole food we can get our hands on to maintain balanced nutrition and a stable blood sugar level.