Controlling Food Cravings

      Controlling food cravings requires that you eliminate all the high glycemic foods on our high glycemic food list.

      The reason is that these are signs of high blood sugar.

      High glycemic foods raise your blood sugar!   It's best to remove the food temptations from your home and avoid the high glycemic foods everywhere else.    It's a process that takes determination and commitment to your new life but the rewards are so worth it in losing fat, increasing your energy and improving your overall health.

     High glycemic foods send your blood sugar sky rocketing which feels like an immediate energy boost but lets you down hard later. They do NOT create that sustainable energy you need to get you through the day. They do not even satisfy your hunger for that long.   On the contrary sugary foods stimulate your appetite.

      They taste good and seem to fill a need in the short term but within a couple of hours you are hungry again. Sometimes you are ravenously hungry. In fact, high glycemic foods set you up to crave MORE high glycemic foods.    Controlling food cravings starts with removing the high glycemic foods from your daily eating plan.

They create FAT STORAGE.

      Sweet foods and other high glycemic foods like pastries and white breads are highly addictive in the same way that salty foods are.   Not to worry....these food cravings go away when you eat primarily low glycemic foods. The food cravings are simply the signs of high blood sugar.    High blood sugar means excess insulin which leads to all sorts of serious health problems.

     Controlling food cravings means that you need to avoid the high glycemic foods on this high glycemic food list. Yes, these foods are addictive but believe it or not when you start avoiding them and eating more low glycemic foods, especially raw fruits and vegetables, the cravings DO go away.

     Below are more high glycemic foods that stimulate the appetite and lead to food cravings and overeating. Most beans are low glycemic. These are the only ones to avoid. What causes food cravings are nutrient deficiencies and too much of the high glycemic sugars in the diet.    These high glycemic foods will raise your blood sugar and lead to fat storage.   In controlling food cravings by eliminating these foods you will also reduce all the fat you have accumulated.

Beans

black bean soup, canned

broad beans

fava beans

     Some of the high glycemic, high fiber foods are healthy for some people but not for those of us who need to maintain fat loss. Most beans are great for weight management.   These, however, and the soup, metabolize too quickly into sugar and must be avoided as you begin controlling your food cravings.

Grains

couscous	buckwheat		cornmeal
millet	white rice	white flour	corn flour

     The glycemic response of white rice can be as high as 135, depending on amylose content and cooking time. White, sticky rice has the highest glycemic response and should be avoided. As I have written elsewhere about rice in High Fiber Foods, amylose is resistant starch which means it has a low glycemic response. Look for the amylose content in rice. The lower the amylose content, the higher the glycemic response of the rice.

      The longer you cook the rice the higher the glycemic response.    High amylose, parboiled rice is lowest.    Some of the brown, unrefined rices have a glycemic index of 79 which is a moderate glycemic response. If you eat it with meat and vegetables you will lower the glycemic response even more.

      If the rice has been chilled as in rice rolls or sushi, it becomes resistant starch and has a lower glycemic reponse. Rice drinks, rice cakes, white rice and the commercial rices like Rice A Roni are to be avoided.

     When you are controlling food cravings with your food choices you will be on your way to being permanently thin.  Here are more tips for making this easier.

      I strongly recommend making green smoothies as often as possible to get over your addiction to high glycemic foods sooner rather than later. There is a green smoothie recipe at Alkaline Diet Foods.

     Commercial salad dressings and sauces are to be avoided unless they are on the printable low glycemic list and are known to have no high glycemic sweeteners and additives.   Read the labels.    If all the ingredients are foods in their natural state and have no high glycemic sweeteners or chemical additives then the dressing or sauce is low glycemic.

     AVOID ALL BREADS that are not listed in low glycemic foods.   In general avoid all white foods (except cauliflower and cheese) and processed foods.

     Avoid all sweeteners unless they are on the low glycemic sweeteners list in Sugar Free Desserts.

     Does this sound hard?  The more you remove sugar from your life the easier it will be controlling food cravings.

     High protein pasta is low glycemic and an excellent food choice but you need to avoid all canned pasta and canned noodles with or without sauces.

     Avoid gnocchi, macaroni and cheese, rice pasta and vermicelli, Spaghetti O's and overcooked pasta so that you are controlling food cravings.

     Pizza that has a thin, crispy crust has a reasonably low glycemic response but the LPL fat-storing (enzyme)and the insulin response of pizza is high. Limit your portion to one piece with no meat, just plain cheese. Add a salad with oil and vinegar dressing to further reduce the glycemic impact.

     All processed meats are to be avoided.

 Dairy Products

     Yes, these dairy products are sources of calcium but there are much better sources listed in Calcium Rich Foods. These aren't particularly healthy sources for anyone and especially those of us who want to maintain fat loss.   Controlling food cravings means you need to avoid these.

chocolate milk that contains sugar or corn syrup	instant pudding mixes	tapioca	parmesan cheese that is grated in a can
sweetened condensed whole milk, regular non-diet version	sweetened commercial whipped cream	soymilk unless it says unsweetened

 Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts

     Ice cream, sorbets and frozen desserts are often a problem when they are low fat.   That's because manufacturers make them sweeter to make up for the loss of the flavor of fats.   Read the label and pay close attention to the first ingredient which is the largest amount in the product. When you have sugar or high fructose corn syrup first and the protein or milk solid is the fourth ingredient, it will be a high glycemic product.

      What you want to see is the protein, milk, being the first ingredient and NO corn syrup. That would be a more moderate glycemic dessert.    If you see maltodextrins, glucose, glucose polymers, corn syrup, maltose or dextrose as the first ingredients do NOT buy it! Controlling food cravings means it is best to avoid the high fat frozen desserts as well.

    Most commercial ice cream outlets like Dairy Queen's soft desserts are likely made from high glycemic sucrose and corn syrup. Commercial dessert toppings have the high glycemic additives because they are cheap and they preserve the product. 

      The most significant thing you can do in controlling food cravings is eliminate the hidden sugars from your diet and avoid most high glycemic foods.   To make sure you are not buying processed foods with these hidden "fat traps" be sure to read Reading Food Labels.

 Food Additives

MSG

artificial dyes

Anything you don't recognize as a food

     Additives are in most commercial highly processed foods to enhance the flavor, preserve freshness or increase sweetness.    These are best to avoid for health purposes and also to maintain your fat loss.   If you are going to fudge a little go for the sugar rather then the high glycemic additives.    Sucrose has a slightly lower glycemic index than the maltodextrins and other high glycemic sugars.

     The meaning of food cravings is that your insulin is high due to sugar and  hidden high glycemic additives.  These are signs of high blood sugar.   Food cravings will go away - I promise - as you gradually reduce and eventually eliminate most if not all high glycemic foods from your life.    Once your blood sugar is under control you won't even think about these addictive foods.

     If you have a particular commercial food you love you can call the manufacturer and them to have the food tested for it's glycemic index.   If we are to become truly healthy in this country we need to demand higher quality foods that do not contribute to our weight gain. 

     To lose fat permanently, for a lifetime, controlling food cravings by eating to lower your blood sugar IS one of the most significant changes you can make!

     The articles below will support you in good weight management!

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High Glycemic Foods

More high glycemic foods to be eliminated.

Glycemic Index List of Foods

The glycemic index list of foods includes foods that lower blood sugar and help you to lose fat!

Portion Control Tips

This is the essential guide to figuring out serving sizes and what makes a low glycemic snack. You need to be eating these every 3 hours!

List of Raw Foods

This list of raw foods contains fruits and vegetables that are a powerhouse of nutrients and they are low glycemic, meaning you can eat as much of them as you desire!

Omega-3 Sources in Healthy Salads

Healthy salads, especially when you add omega-3 sources or foods with resistant starch are a great low glycemic meal. These are fat burning foods and are low on the glycemic index.

Low Glycemic Foods: Super Healthy Whole Grains

Eating lots of super healthy low glycemic foods means that you are once and for all replacing the fat storing high glycemic carbs in your diet with the low glycemic complex carbohydrates.

High Fiber Foods: Delicious Grains and Legumes

There are extraordinary benefits in eating fiber rich foods that include a lifetime of fat loss!

Low Carb Pastas and Cereals

Great news for pasta lovers....you don't need low carb pasta because pasta is low glycemic!

Good Fats

You need to look to the good fats (essential fatty acids) in learning how to eat a healthy diet and even to lose body fat! Calcium Rich Foods

Taking a look at dairy products and just how these calcium rich foods affect the glycemic index chart...

Sugar Free Desserts and the Good Sugars

Sugar free desserts that taste good? Is a sugar free dessert a low glycemic recipe? Yes!

Soups, Oriental Cuisine, Protein Foods

This low glycemic index chart shows the soups, the oriental cuisine and the protein foods that do not raise your blood sugar.
Glycemic Load

Too much of a good thing can be a glycemic load and definitely high glycemic foods are a glycemic load.

Acidic Foods: High Glycemic Sugars

Any list of acidic foods will have sodas at the top of the list. These drinks are high glycemic and fat storing drinks!

Food Lovers Diet

Food lovers can celebrate good food and manage their weight at the same time!

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