Sleep Can Help Quiet Your Sweet Tooth
Having a sweet tooth means you're constantly craving sugar, which will impact your health. You need to find a way to curb your sweet tooth's impulse to gorge on candy and sugary beverages, in favor of healthier options that also won't make you feel sluggish. Here are 20 ways to deal with your sweet tooth.
1. Eat Protein First at Every Meal
Protein can stabilize blood sugar and reduce your cravings. Meals that are carb-heavy and low in protein can cause glucose to spike and then crash, which can urge your sweet tooth into action. Prioritize protein, like eggs, Greek yogurt, chicken, tofu, and beans.
2. Pair Sweets with Fiber
Rather than cutting sweets out of your diet altogether, pair them with foods that are high in fiber. Fruit with nut butter, dark chocolate with berries, or a cookie after a high-fiber meal slows sugar absorption. This approach circumvents the all-or-nothing approach that will kick your sugar cravings into overdrive.
3. Drink Water
Dehydration can often be confused for a sugar craving. Instead of reaching for something sweet or soda, drink a full glass of water and then wait ten minutes. A lot of cravings fade once you're properly hydrated.
4. Choose Naturally Sweet Foods
Fruit, roasted sweet potatoes, dates, and honey offer sweetness for your palate in addition to vitamins, fiber, and minerals. They'll satisfy your desire for sweet flavors without affecting your blood sugar.
5. Regular Meals Keep Blood Sugar Stable
Skipping meals or eating erratically throughout the day will set up your sugar cravings. Leaving long gaps between meals allows your blood glucose to lower, which triggers your body to crave sugar for a quick fix. Try eating balanced meals every 3 to 4 hours to prevent this cycle from happening.
6. Get Adequate Sleep
Sleep deprivation increases the hunger hormone and decreases satiety hormones, making sweet foods more tempting. A tired brain seeks fuel to sustain alertness, and no nutritional approach can compensate for a lack of proper sleep.
7. Don't Demonize Sugar
Treating sugar as "bad' often backfires and leads to even more sugar consumption. Restrictions typically increase desire and can result in overeating. If you allow some sugar into your diet, it loses its power, and you won't fall into the trap of being obsessed with consuming it.
8. Eat Dessert Intentionally
If you eat sweets mindlessly, you will fuel your sugar cravings. Choose desserts deliberately and without distraction. When eating dessert, savor each bite and focus on your satisfaction and resist the urge just to keep eating sugary food. This approach turns eating sweets into an enjoyable experience.
9. Reduce Stress
Chronic stress raises cortisol, which will increase cravings for foods high in sugar. Sugar temporarily lowers stress hormones, which can reinforce the habit. Address stress through movement, breathing, or giving yourself some downtime.
10. Upgrade Your Sweets
Go for high-quality sweets, like dark chocolate, homemade baked goods, or upscale bakery treats, that you truly enjoy. You'll eat fewer of these types of desserts because they are more satisfying.
11. Include Healthy Fats in Your Diet
Certain fats digest slowly and increase satiety, reducing the desire to consume sugar for a quick hit. Include avocados, olive oil, nuts, and seeds in your diet, and full-fat dairy can also keep sugar cravings at bay.
12. Identify Your Emotional Triggers
It's important to recognize that cravings aren't always about hunger. Boredom, loneliness, or stress can pose as sugar cravings or an unrelentless sweet tooth. Before reaching for sugary snacks, pause and ask yourself what you're actually feeling and need in that moment.
13. Brush Your Teeth After Dinner
Minty toothpaste tells your brain that you're done eating for the night. This simple trick can effectively reduce late-night snacking by changing your taste perception and reinforcing a new routine.
14. Keep a Pantry Full of Balanced Snacks
Convenience plays a role in dealing with your cravings. Having high protein snacks ready to go can help you make better choices and reduce the chances that you'll grab a sugary item.
15. Use Cinnamon and Vanilla Strategically
Cinnamon and vanilla can enhance the perceived sweetness without the addiction of sugar. Add either of these to coffee, oatmeal, yogurt, or smoothies to satisfy your sweet tooth. Furthermore, cinnamon helps regulate blood sugar.
16. Move Your Body Gently
Walking, stretching, and yoga are light exercises that can reduce sugar crqavings. They improve insulin sensitivity and release endorphins while stabilizing your mood. If your using exercise to do these things, you'll lower your reliance on sugar.
17. Avoid "Diet" Sweets
Artifically sweetened foods can make your sugar cravings even worse by keeping your palate used to intense sweetness. Whole-food sweets can be more satisfying and won't confuse your hunger signals. Your health goal should be about less sweetness overall, not zero sweetness.
18. Eat Enough Calories
Chronic under-eating is guaranteed to up your sugar cravings. Your body craves energy and when it doesn't get enough, it seeks the easiest route and fastest sources. Ensuring you consume enough calories reduces biological pressure to binge.
19. Create a "Sweet Window"
Try using a predictable dessert routine, like a small treat after dinner. This will reduce the habit of randomly looking for sweets and can prevent all-day craving cycles.
20. Be Patient
It's normal to have a sweet tooth, but managing it is a skill that you can develop over time. It shouldn't be a test of discipline. Remember, progress comes from awareness, and striving for perfection could lead to frustration.
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