Food Cravings Chart
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Physically, humans strive to find balance in all aspects of life. With nature, among others, and physically.
In order to live an optimal healthy life, our blood cells need to maintain a 7.365 pH balance as much as possible.
Eating acidic foods (soda, coffee, dairy, sugar, gluten, alcohol, processed and fast foods) over time can tip us to the acidic side and not only lead to inflammation (which ultimately leads to chronic illness) but causes cravings.
What do food cravings mean?
Believe it or not, cravings are good. Food cravings mean that your body is warning you something is out of balance. You can nip it in the bud with managing your stress, getting more sleep, and connecting with your loved ones.
BUT if all the above don’t seem to be the issue, you might want to consider something going on nutritionally.
Since we’ve been working on the sugar thang for our Renewal Detoxes, I wanted to address q’s about craving salt-n-vinegar chips (Kate’s favorite!), fizzy drinks, coffee and what to do if you are feeling snacky more than usual.
If you rule out stress, exhaustion, lack of connection to others, sometimes what you are dealing with is a nutritional deficiency.
For example, if you crave chocolate, this might be a magnesium deficiency so you can start adding in dark leafy greens, nuts, and fruit or take a magnesium supplement before bed (it’s a muscle relaxer and can help with sleep, too). OR if you crave soda, this could mean you have a calcium deficiency so adding in more sesame seeds, broccoli or kale can help.
Sometimes the crowding out the cravings does wonders to really changing the game for you when it comes to living the clean life.
Here are more examples:
| Craving this:……… | Reason is:……… | Restore with this: ……… |
| Chocolate | Magnesium deficiency | raw cacao nibs, beans, nuts, seeds, dark leafy greens, fruit |
| Soda | Calcium deficiency | Sesame seeds, broccoli, kale, legumes, mustard greens |
| Pasta, baked goods | Chromium deficiency | Onion, romaine lettuce, tomato, cinnamon, grapes, apples, sweet potato |
| Cheese | Essential Fatty Acids deficiency | Omega 3’s (EPA and DHA)- Flax oil, ground flaxseeds, chia seeds, walnuts |
| Calcium deficiency | Sesame seeds, broccoli, kale, legumes, mustard greens |
| Salty Foods | Chloride deficiency | celery, olives, tomato, sea salt |
| Stress hormone fluctuations | Meditation, breathing, exercise, leafy greens, vitamin B and C |
| Eating Habit:……… | Reason is:……… | Restore with this:……… |
| Snacky | No balanced diet, missing nutrients | Do a 10 day detox, substitute junk food for healthy meals |
| Overeating | Tryptophan deficiency | spirulina, pumpkin/sesame/sunflower seeds, raw cacao, oatmeal, sweet potato, spinach, raisins |
AND more! I made this handy dandy Food Cravings + Habits Chart so you have the complete guide to decode your cravings and take steps to feeling better in no time. Salt, caffeine, lack of appetite, wanting the fizz, bread, etc… are all listed in the chart.
Download and use the Food Cravings + Habits Chart to pinpoint your cravings, find out what might be the cause and take steps to restoring balance.
Keep in mind, it’s not one or the other. Such as if you have a choice at 8 pm after dinner and want something sweet, reaching for kale won’t happen. You will grab the chocolate! (I would!). So it’s adding in more nutritional foods each day to crowd out the craving.
I also have some delish smoothie recipes that will kick your cravings to the curb!
What do you seem to crave more than ever these days? I’d love to hear how you plan to curb your cravings with the add ins from your chart!
