ARE YOU A NIGHT EATER? LOOK AT THESE CLEVER WAYS TO CURB THE CRAVINGS.
Modernisation is leading this world towards a stressful life. Stress and anxiety have led to disturbed individuals with lack of sleep. Moreover, all this leads to irregular eating patterns, emotional eating, eating disorders etc. Cravings raise especially during nighttime.Skipping some meals and depriving yourself, thinking that it makes you eat less has a totally opposite effect. It rather makes you eat more, especially during night because skipping a meal makes you think about food constantly and the ‘hungry you’ keeps on nibbling here and there.
Sitting relaxed at night with your laptops or netflix on, you have a packet of chips or some sweets in your hands and alternatively eat sweet and salty, without thinking how many calories you are stuffing yourself with.
This is probably ‘midnight hunger’ in which there is a persistent pattern of eating late at night. It feels as if the thought of these junkies have hijacked your brain. So try to make your clever mind a fool by following a few tips.
Search where the roots of trouble lie!
Some people eat at night just when they are bored. While there are others who over eat to suppress and control their emotions such as anger, frustration, sadness etc. You will probably find two types of people-one binge eaters who overeat and cannot control themselves while eating and then there is a second type-people with the nighttime eating syndrome. These people wake up at night to eat. We can find the solution to any problem after knowing the reason behind it. So it’s a must to explore the cause.
Know what activates your cravings!
Next comes that besides knowing what makes you eat more at night, also try to find out the patterns in your eating behaviour because they will ultimately lead you to some cues for your cravings. Maintain a ‘food and mood diary’ to keep a record of all that you ate and the changes in mood. This will tell you how your mood plays a significant role in what you eat; eating despite not being hungry. Know your triggers and stay away from them.
Follow a routine
Getting yourself into routine can always help because sometimes we eat at night when we haven’t had enough food during the day. Plan your meals. A good quality sleep should be the number one priority to avoid these unnecessary cravings and hunger.
De-stress yourself!
Eating when you aren’t even hungry has its most common roots in stress and anxiety. People tend to eat more to curb their emotions. Adopt some ways to make yourself away from the negative emotions and indulge in some meditation, yoga, stretching, hot bathing etc.
Regular eating patterns
Disordered eating is linked with overeating and nighttime eating. Follow a regularity when it comes to eating patterns. Skipping meals, overeating and then compensating it by eating less etc. all these lifestyles ultimately lead us towards untimely cravings and obesity. Also the blood sugar levels remain on the higher end this way. Keeping yourself hungry for long makes room for a craving of high-fat high-sugar junk foods. Having small and frequent meals is the key.
Make protein your best friend
Just as a best friend always stay by your side, befriend with protein at every meal of the day. It will keep you full for a longer time, reducing the cravings.
Throw the junk out of your house!
Best way to cut down the nighttime cravings is throwing all those unhealthy foods out of your house. You’ll probably not have it if it isn’t within reach. Have some good snacks available say dried salted legumes, peas, berries, yoghurt etc.
The final word
Nighttime Cravings have been linked with weight gain and obesity. Unhealthy overeating stems from emotions that don’t serve you. But the good news is you are the controller of your emotions. Try these little steps and change your lifestyle for good!
