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Apr 5, 2023 · How to Stop Sugar Cravings: 5 Tips for the Long Term. One of the best ways to manage sugar cravings is to stop them before they start. To help you do that: Skip artificial sweeteners. They...
- Overview
- 1. Fruit
- 2. Berries
- 3. Dark Chocolate
- 4. Snack Bars
- 5. Chia Seeds
- 6. Sugar-Free Chewing Gum or Mints
- 7. Legumes
- 8. Yogurt
- 9. Dates
Eating certain foods, like fruit and yogurt, may help reduce cravings for sweets. Foods that contain whole grains, fiber, and protein may keep you feeling fuller longer.
Sugar cravings are extremely common, especially among women.
In fact, up to 97% of women and 68% of men report experiencing some sort of food craving, including cravings for sugar (1).
Those experiencing a sugar craving feel a strong urge to eat something sweet and can find it difficult to control themselves around food.
This can lead to binge eating or over-consuming calories, sometimes on a regular basis (2).
Luckily, there are things you can do to take the edge off.
When most people feel sugar cravings, they reach for high-fat, high-sugar foods like chocolate (1).
However, swapping out the junk food for some fruit when you feel like something sugary could give you the sweet hit you need and stop your craving in its tracks.
Fruit is naturally sweet but also contains lots of beneficial plant compounds and fiber, allowing you to have your fix and keep it healthy (3).
To make sure it hits the spot, eat fruits that are slightly higher in sugar like mangoes or grapes.
If you’re also hungry, try adding some yogurt to your fruit to make it a more satisfying snack.
Summary Fruit contains sugar,
Berries are an excellent, nutritious choice for stopping sugar cravings.
They taste sweet, but their high fiber content means they are actually quite low in sugar.
This could make them a great choice if you think your sugar cravings are linked to habit, rather than hunger. For example, you might crave sweet foods while you’re watching TV.
Additionally, berries are rich in plant compounds and have strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
This means they may help reduce risk factors for chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes (4, 5, 6).
Summary Berries taste sweet,
Chocolate is one of the most commonly reported foods people eat when they crave sweets. This is especially true for women (7).
However, if you find yourself craving chocolate, you can make a healthier choice by choosing dark chocolate.
Dark chocolate is chocolate that contains more than 70% cocoa. It also contains healthy plant compounds known as polyphenols.
Some studies have shown that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of these polyphenols may help improve markers of heart health (8, 9).
However, like regular chocolate, dark chocolate contains sugar and fat, so it’s best to limit yourself to a couple of squares to satisfy your craving (10).
Summary Swap regular chocolate
Not all snack bars are healthy, and some are very high in fat and sugar.
However, if you’re craving a sweet treat, there are some good, healthier options out there.
Try looking for a snack bar made with whole oats and sweetened with fresh or dried fruit, rather than table sugar.
Also watch out for bars that contain a lot of so-called “healthy” sugar, such as honey, agave syrup or coconut sugar. These are still added sugar, and they aren’t good for you.
The best bars have been made with whole foods. They are likely to be higher in fiber and contain more beneficial nutrients, even if they are still quite sweet.
Alternatively, you could try making your own healthy snack bar using a recipe like this one.
Chia seeds are a good source of many important nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, soluble dietary fiber and some healthy plant compounds (11, 12).
In fact, soluble fiber accounts for around 40% of chia seeds.
This sort of fiber readily absorbs water and swells up to form a jelly-like substance in your gut, which may help keep you feeling fuller for longer and prevent sugar cravings (13).
Chia seeds are also versatile, so if you want a dessert to satisfy your sweet craving, you could try making a chia pudding like this one.
Summary Chia seeds are high in
soluble fiber, which could help you feel fuller for longer and curb your sugar
Chewing gum can be a great way to control your sugar cravings.
Gum or mints that are made with artificial sweeteners taste sweet but contain a minimal number of calories and no sugar.
Although results are mixed, some studies have also found that chewing gum could help control hunger, cravings and the intake of carb-heavy foods later in the day (14, 15, 16, 17).
In addition to helping you fight the urge for sugar, chewing gum after your meals is good for your teeth (18).
Summary Chewing sugar-free gum
can provide you with a sweet taste that may help curb your cravings and control
Legumes like lentils, beans and chickpeas are great plant-based sources of fiber and protein.
In fact, 1 cup (198 grams) of lentils provides you with around 18 grams of protein and 16 grams of fiber (19).
Both these nutrients are thought to increase feelings of fullness. Thus, in theory, including legumes in your diet could help you feel fuller and reduce hunger-driven sugar cravings.
In line with this, a recent review found that eating lentils may aid weight loss (20).
This may be partly due to the short-term beneficial effects that legumes can have on your appetite (21, 22).
Summary Legumes like lentils,
Yogurt is a healthy snack that’s high in protein and rich in calcium.
Additionally, some studies have suggested that yogurt could be a good snack to help regulate your appetite and control your cravings (23, 24, 25, 26).
In fact, one study found that healthy-weight women who had high-protein Greek yogurt for an afternoon snack were less hungry and ate less later in the day, compared to those who had a lower-protein snack or no snack at all (27).
The healthiest choice for yogurt is one that contains live cultures and is free of added sugar.
Summary Yogurt is a
high-protein snack that could help you control your appetite and cravings.
Dates are the dried fruit of the date palm tree. They are highly nutritious and very sweet.
Even though they have been dried, they are a great source of fiber, potassium, iron and beneficial plant compounds.
Having a few dates instead of a soda or some candy can give you a sweet fix and also provide you with healthy nutrients.
You could even try pairing them with nuts like almonds for a sweet and crunchy treat.
However, remember that dates are very sweet, so stick to one portion at a time, or about three dates.
Summary Dates are very sweet,
- Helen West, RD
Mar 17, 2023 · We’ve compiled a list of the mental, physical and dietary changes that will help you fend off sugar cravings and help you manage your eating habits. Focus on eating a balanced diet
- Get more sleep. People don't realize it, but not sleeping well can affect your sugar cravings. "Studies have shown that poor sleep leads to more intense cravings for sweets," says Samantha Cassetty, MS, RD, co-author of Sugar Shock.
- Know the difference between a craving and hunger. Oftentimes when we think we're hungry, we're actually just having a craving. What's the difference? Next time you want to reach for that chocolate cake, ask yourself: if the only thing I had to eat right now was an apple, would I eat it?
- Add some protein to a carb-rich breakfast. "A study that looked at MRI scans of people eating a high-protein breakfast found reduced activity in the regions of the brain associated with cravings," Cassetty says.
- Create structure. Don't think so much about eliminating sugar, and instead reframe it as adding more of the good stuff to your diet. Aim to consistently fill your plate with protein, healthy fat, and high-fiber carbohydrates like non-starchy vegetables.
- Brittany Gibson
- Force of Habit. As it turns out, sugar cravings are often the result of conditioning over time. In other words, it's a habit. "You've got a stimulus, a behavior, and a reward," says Dr. Crupain.
- Gut Health and Gastrointestinal Issues. According to Hartman, poor gut health, gut inflammation, and other G.I. tract issues might be another cause of sugar cravings.
- Hunger Hormones. Another reason you might be constantly hankering for dessert could have to do with the hunger hormone ghrelin. “Research has shown that ghrelin levels increase in response to sugar intake and may contribute to the development of sugar cravings,” Dr. Ungerleider says.
- Low Serotonin Levels. If you've ever wondered why you might feel like you need to indulge in ice cream after a tough day, that might have something to do with your serotonin levels.
Oct 16, 2024 · You may be able to curb sugar cravings by eating foods with certain nutrients or drinking water. Distracting yourself by engaging in other activities may also help. Many people...
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