Top 5 Food Cravings And What They Mean
Going throughout our day, we never really stop to think about what our body craves. Have you had those crazy cravings for potato chips or chocolate cake? Our body might be trying to tell us something. We may be nutrient deficient leading us to crave unhealthy food choices. In our Top 5 Food Cravings and What They Mean, I will go over what our body may be telling us about cravings.
Nutrient deficiencies, come from many factors. If you catch what is causing them, this will help guide you to the types of foods you need to eat to be healthy. The four reasons you may be nutrient deficient are:
- Poor Diet
- Chronic Stress
- Dehydration
- Low Stomach Acid
Addressing these concerns may not be enough. Changing our diet or adding in foods that stop these food cravings will help give a balanced diet.
Salt
Craving salty foods such as potato chips may mean your body is lacking trace minerals or fighting adrenal fatigue. Lacking these can throw your body off and create a chemical imbalance which can alter pH levels in the body. If not corrected, this can lead to inflammation and take you down a path of unhealthy eating. Reaching for foods rich in trace minerals will help with this nutrient deficiency.
Next time you are craving salt, reach for a hearty salad, avocados, bone broth, pink salt, or seaweed. My meal of choice is a green-leafy salad with green olives and avocado. When I am craving this salt fix, this all-around meal helps replenish my trace minerals making me feel more balanced. Top your salad with some pasteurize-raised hard-boiled eggs and wild-caught salmon to give an extra protein boost to your body.
Sugar
Blood sugar swings account for us wanting to indulge in a donut or two. Instead of reaching for those empty caloric foods that mess up your blood sugars. Which usually makes us only craving something to eat an hour later. You may have a chromium deficiency. Chromium is needed in small amounts and regulates metabolism and if you are lacking this nutrient, you may have a sense of anxiety.
Next time you have that sweet tooth, grab some foods rich in chromium. Foods rich in chromium are mushrooms, broccoli, romaine lettuce, cinnamon, tomatoes, and raw onions. Keeping your blood sugar in check will help keep those sweet cravings at bay. Make a dense salad rich with these items or a refreshing cup of coffee sprinkled with some cinnamon for a nice treat.
Since the 1950’s when chromium was coined the “glucose tolerance factor” which helps insulin regulate carbohydrate metabolism, keeping our blood glucose levels normal by improving the way our bodies use insulin. Chromium is very important, especially for those with Diabetes. If you still are having a sweet craving, grab some berries and sprinkle with organic Stevia, like Pyure. Pyure is my favorite sweetener, I use it in my coffee, baking and sprinkled on top of berries for an indulging but not guilty sweet treat.
Dark Chocolate
My absolute weakness. I love dark chocolate, the darker the better. The bitterness of 100% cacao does not bother me. Craving dark chocolate may mean you have a magnesium deficiency. Over 80% of the American population has a magnesium deficiency. Symptoms that you may be magnesium deficient are fatigue, insomnia, chronic pain, brain fog, muscle spasms or cramping, mood swings, and numbness or tingling. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, boost up your diet with foods rich in magnesium.
My favorite magnesium dense foods are raw leafy greens, pumpkin seeds, avocado, spinach, coffee, nuts, wild-caught fish, and raw, grass-fed dairy products. Next time you are craving cake, try this Death by Cholcate Keto Cake, by Chocolate Covered Katie on her The Healthy Desert Blog. This cake is easy on the blood sugars, moist, and great tasting. You can’t go wrong with eating chocolate!
Dairy
Have you been craving pizza lately? You may be lacking essential fatty acids like EPA, DHA, ALA, or GLA. These essential fatty acids regulate blood pressure, immune responses and liver function, as well as help with blood clotting and breaking down cholesterol in the body.
Eating healthy fats is crucial for our well being. Healing fats are anti-inflammatory and heal the body. These fats provide the body with energy. My favorite healthy fats to eat are butter, coconut oil, olive oil, and eggs. Adding essential fatty acids into your diet will help with these dairy cravings. My go-to foods for increasing essential fatty acids are wild-caught fish, grass-fed beef and lamb, pasture-raised eggs. Again, a salad works great here. Drizzle with olive oil, top with eggs, a protein of your choice, and seeds. If you are vegetarian, other options would be ground flaxseed, chia seed or hemp seed.
In the morning, drinking coffee helps me get my essential fatty acids in my diet. It also is my favorite part of the day. I wake up and being my day with a french-pressed cup of coffee. Adding cinnamon, heavy whipping cream, and some dark chocolate too it is a great way to balance my cravings. This is an easy way to get nutrient-dense foods into my system.
Red Meat
Being a female, I crave red meat during my menstrual cycle. This usually is because my body is depleted in nutrients iron, vitamin B-12, zinc, and amino acid acetyl-L-carnitine. These four critical nutrients help in brain function, boosting the immune system, and muscle strength. Indulging in red meat once in a while is good, but overloading your system is not healthy. Foods rich in these nutrients are wild-caught fish, 100% grass-fed beef, pasture-raised chicken liver, and spinach. Other foods you can eat if you are craving red meat but are vegetarian are avocados, nuts, tofu, and green leafy vegetables.
If you can get to the root cause of cravings and nutrient deficiencies, it will help you on your health food journey. These Top 5 Food Cravings and What They Mean to give your body what it is asking for. Keeping an eye out for these cravings will help you see just what to eat and you will know WHY you need to eat these foods.
