Have you ever been on your period, or you know your period will be coming soon, and suddenly you are hit with the urge to eat something salty? Ice cream? Chinese food?
No matter what your indulgence of choice is, some women find that when they are likely to be PMSing, they suddenly get hit with all of these PMS cravings they feel they have to give in to.
What causes these cravings? And how do you curb your desire to eat foods you probably should not just because your body seems to be telling you to?
What Causes Cravings?
A common myth associated with food cravings in general is that your body is telling you that you have a deficiency in some way and this deficiency is being projected through a food craving your body somehow remembers contains what it needs.
Do not mistake this as being wholly untrue in some areas – the catch is that this does in fact apply to situations!
For instance, you probably know you get jittery when you have low blood sugar, but that is not what a craving is. When you get a craving, your body is not sending you some all-knowing signal that it is going to shut down without ice cream.
One way to look at this myth logically is to think about the food people commonly crave: chocolate, ice cream, pickles, and types of food like Italian or Thai.
None of these foods actually have a direct, necessary correlation to an important compound or nutrient you need. If you really need calcium, why does your brain float to ice cream and not milk or yogurt?
The reality is that cravings are dually created by both your brain’s chemistry and patterns of behavior.
Think about the three R’s in relation to cravings – reminder, routine, and reward. These are often why cravings are born into a person.
3 Trigger Factors That Can Initiate A Craving
The following are the three main triggers that can actually initiate a craving:
1. Social Triggers
This happens when you are around someone, something or a situation that calls for eating or particularly eating a certain food. Examples including going out with friends so you need to grab lunch or going to a family dinner.
2. Emotional Triggers
Many people find comfort in food, and that is not necessarily a bad thing. It is okay to enjoy food! But, it still should not be your go-to emotional distress crutch. People eat because they are bored, angry, frustrated, or sad very often.
3. Situational Triggers
This is when you eat because the moment seemingly dictates it, like how you “have” to get popcorn at the movies or you “have” to get a snack when you watch TV or work.
How To Keep Cravings At Bay
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness are two of the biggest ways to eliminate cravings as part of a long-term solution, but let us face it – not everyone can commit to these methods or pay for them.
Science has proven that even short-term methods for curbing cravings can work, so take these four techniques for a spin:
Rewire Your Memory
Most food cravings are triggered by a memory and not just a situation. When you begin to crave a food, think about a vivid memory that has nothing to do with food, and make it a good one. Your brain is very bad at remembering more than one thing at once, and that is a good thing in this scenario.
Try EMDR Therapy
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is hard to say, but easy to do. Food is often linked with feelings, and to stop cravings you have to break that chain.
When you feel a craving, move your eyes back and forth as rapidly as possible for 10-30 seconds while simultaneously thinking of the feeling you get when you eat food. The craving will melt away!
Exercise And Stay Rested
It may not sound fun, but quick spontaneous exercise can be a great way to both stop cravings and get in a burst of cardio every day. This simultaneously helps push away the feeling of the craving and heightens important brain chemicals that do the same.
Stay Well Hydrated
And, last but not least, have you thought you might just be thirsty? Drink 1-2 glasses of water, and see how you feel after you have drunk them.
