Cut Down Your Cholesterol Cravings through These Easy Steps
Are you reaching out for comfort food more often than you would ideally like? Do you fantasize about good food and make plans for making or ordering one? Do you find your waist line increasing due to continuous intake of food? If you answer “yes” to any or all of them then you are suffering from cholesterol craving.
Cholesterol craving is an intense desire to have comfort food or cholesterol rich food such as junk food and processed eatables high in fat, salt, and sugar. The desire could appear uncontrollable and you would not be satisfied until you get that particular food. Cholesterol cravings could act as a setback if you are trying to lose weight or maintain a steady weight. However, experts predict that these cravings last for just three to five minutes and they could easily be controlled by following some simple steps.
Sleep Well: Inadequate sleep disorients the hormonal balance which contributes to overeating and a craving for comfort food. Hence, you can easily rectify the situation by sleeping the adequate hours and bringing your hormones back to proper functioning.
Decrease Stress Level: In many individuals, stress trigger emotional eating and this increases the craving for cholesterol rich food. Hence, simply by working on stress and uplifting your mood, you can find a decrease in your cholesterol craving.
Drink More Water: Thirst produces sensations that are very similar to hunger. Hence, ensure proper hydration of your body to cut down on cholesterol craving
Stack-up on Protein: The Obesity journal published a study stating that people could control their food craving by consuming higher portion of protein. In fact, people can reduce their craving for night time snack simply by switching on to high protein diet.
Plan Your Daily Food: A planned diet would go a long way in curbing your comfort food desires. Plan a healthy diet for the whole day that includes snacks and health drinks and you could see a substantial decrease in your food craving.
Keep Fiber-rich Food Handy: Foods like beans, apple, and oatmeal contain high soluble fiber. Hence, they keep your body from absorbing additional cholesterol. You can find a significant drop in your LDL just by having 5 to 10 grams of fiber rich food each day. They will also make you feel fuller and reduce you snack craving. However, the quantity of fiber on your plate should be increased in a gradual manner as they could cause bloating or abdominal cramps.
Engage in an Absorbing Hobby: When you are engaged in an absorbing hobby then your mind stays diverted from your food cravings. So, take up a new hobby and remove your attention from cholesterol-rich food. You can also try reading interesting books and chilling out with friends to stay diverted from food thoughts.
Replace Comfort Food with Healthier Options: An easy way to deal with cholesterol craving is to replace comfort food with healthier options. For example, you can replace the salty potato chips with popcorn, or nuts (walnuts and almonds), and candy and pastries with seasonal fruits. In fact, if you drool over cheese then you can have the low-fat variety. This was your craving would be satisfied and you would fill your body with healthy stuff.
These above mentioned steps are destined to bring you fast relief with your cholesterol craving. Once you are on the road to right eating, you would witness a greater control over your body and mind and this would empower you to be in the physical shape that you desire.