subject: How To Stop Cravings [print this page] There is much research to support how we respond to pleasure.Food,sex,a glass of wine, certain drugs-they all raise levels of the reward chemical dopamine in our brain. For many people, eating sweet foods like chocolate and icecream raises dopamine levels in a way that keeps them going back for more. In other words, these people can become as hooked on food as alcoholics are on alcohol and smokers are on nicotine. Cravings are hard to control.
One reason the craving to overeat may occur is that the brain is deficient in dopamine receptors. In someone like this, it would take more food than normal to get the same hit of satisfaction. Dopamine is also a major player in the frontal cortex, the area of the brain that puts the brakes on destructive behavior. So being low in dopamine hits your weight control efforts because you are driven to eat more and it's harder to stop once you start.
There is no way to test your brain to determine whether it's dopamine levels are low. But if you suspect that's the case, you should try adopting new sources of pleasure. For example, exercise appears to raise dopamine levels so start exercising. Go for a walk or a swim and always avoid foods you can't stop eating and ensure you don't have them in the house to avoid falling down and consuming them.
Avoid high carbohydrates and sweet sugary foods as the high release of sugar into your system and can make you crave bad foods. Also if you do experience a craving, consider the craving will act a bit like a wave. The craving will come and it will get stronger and stronger and then Peak and then the craving will gently subside or roll away. So treat your craving like a wave. Ride it out and when the craving is at its stronget, distract yourself until it passes, because it certainly will pass!
