Cravings Uncovered:
Why You Want Chocolate, Chips, or Cheese
... (and What to Do About It)
We’ve all had that moment. You’re not hungry. Dinner was great. You’re not even bored. But suddenly, it’s like your body morphs into a snack-seeking missile. You NEED something. Chocolate. Cheese. Salty chips. Wine. Bread with butter. Anything.
This isn’t hunger. It’s not even appetite. It’s a craving - and cravings have a flair for drama.
Let’s break this down.
Craving vs. Hunger vs. Appetite
➡️ Hunger = Your body’s physical signal that it needs energy and nutrients (empty stomach, growling, lightheadedness, low blood sugar, etc).
➡️ Appetite = Your body's desire to eat (often triggered by smells, social cues, memories).
➡️ Craving = The brain saying, “Don’t just eat. Eat this exact thing right now."
Harvard Health defines cravings as an "intense urge to eat a certain food - ideally right away." You could be full from a feast and still crave a Snickers bar. It’s not logical, but it is biological.
What Causes Food Cravings?
Here’s the deal: cravings aren’t caused by a lack of willpower. They’re caused by a mash-up of brain chemistry, hormones, emotional history, and daily habits. Let's look at some of the common culprits:
🪩 Food Euphoria
Crave-able foods (sweet, salty, fatty) trigger a release of dopamine in the brain - the feel-good chemical. This creates a reward feedback loop. Your brain remembers the pleasure and wants to recreate it. Over time, that loop gets faster and stronger. You don’t just want the cookie. You want the dopamine hit you know the cookie gives.
Do this: Acknowledge that your brain is seeking a chemical reward. Pause and offer it another dopamine source - like a 1-minute dance break, a stretch, or a quick connection message to someone you love.
⌛ Lack of Sleep
Less sleep = more cravings. Why? Two hormones:
⬆️ Ghrelin (the hunger hormone) goes up
⬇️ Leptin (the fullness hormone) goes down
... Plus, you’re tired, irritable, and your brain is dramatic saying things like, “Let’s grab some chips so that we can survive this day.”
Do this: Check your sleep log. If you’re running on fumes, cravings are just trying to help you function. Be kind to yourself but fuel with real food and get to bed earlier tonight.
Also, watch for an upcoming blog post on The Benefits of Getting a Good Night's Sleep!
❗ Stress
Chronic stress pumps out cortisol, which triggers the body to reach for high-energy foods (aka: carbs + fat). From an evolutionary perspective, this makes sense: in times of famine or danger, our ancestors needed to store energy quickly. Eating calorie-dense foods triggered dopamine, reinforcing the feast response. That ancient pattern still echoes today - except now the "danger" is your inbox, and the "feast" is a sleeve of cookies. Combine that with dopamine's soothing effects, and you’ve got a shortcut to relief your brain can’t stop requesting.
Do this: Say (out loud, if you need to): “I am not in danger. I’m just overwhelmed.” Remind your nervous system that it doesn’t need to feast to survive. Even that tiny bit of validation can diffuse a craving’s emotional intensity.
Also, check out our library of Supplements that can help with Brain Drain! Need help choosing? Contact us!
🙅 Conditioned Responses
Let’s get honest. Many of us were trained to use food as reward, comfort, or entertainment:
⚽️ "You scored a goal! Let’s get ice cream!"
😥 "I’m sorry you're sad—here's a cookie."
☔️ "It’s raining, we’re bored... want pizza?"
We’ve been conditioned to respond to emotion, celebration, disappointment, and even the weather with food. It’s not your fault. But it is your pattern - and patterns can change.
Do this: Spot the trigger. Ask: “What am I really responding to right now?” If it’s boredom, sadness, or celebration - try responding differently. Create a new association, like journaling a win, texting a friend, or throwing on a feel-good playlist.
🧬 Environment
Cravings can be triggered by smells, sights, habits, or context. If you’re used to having wine every time you sit on the couch or eating chips while driving, your brain will cue that craving the second you hit the switch.
Do this: Change the cue. Sit somewhere new, hold something else in your hands, chew gum, or brush your teeth. You’re interrupting the cycle - and that’s a win.
💧 Thirst
Your body is clever - but sometimes too clever. Mild dehydration can trigger the same brain regions that respond to hunger, making you think you need food when all you really need is water. That’s why sugar and carb cravings often show up when you’re just a little dry.
Do this: Stay hydrated before the craving hits. Aim for consistent sips throughout the day, not just big gulps when you're desperate. A good rule? Drink a glass of water and wait 10 minutes. Still hungry? Then eat.
So What Do You DO With a Craving?
Here are craving-busters that actually work (and require zero willpower superpowers):
💧 Drink water. Thirst is a sneaky craving imposter. Dehydration mimics hunger signals—drink first, then reassess.
🛋 Take a shower. Craving rarely survives shampoo. Shifting your state helps reset your nervous system.
🪥 Brush your teeth. Minty mouth = nothing tastes good. Plus, it signals “eating is done.”
😏 Distract yourself for 30 minutes. Time your craving - they usually passes quickly. Vacuum, voice note a friend, scroll memes, take a lap.
😴 Sleep. Even a short nap can shift hormones and drop cortisol. If you’re tired, cravings aren’t about food—they’re about survival.
😌 Breathe or stretch. Try 10 slow belly breaths. Or stretch your arms overhead and roll your shoulders. Nervous system says, “ahhh.”
✉ Text your Wellness Coach. Say “talk me down.” You don’t need to do this alone - we’ve got you.
🍽 Balance your meals. Cravings love chaos. Eat meals that include protein, fiber, and healthy fats to feel full and stable.
🥕 Make healthy snacks visible. Wash, prep, and stack your fridge with grab-and-go produce, dips, and clean treats. Hide the junk - or at least make it a pain in the butt to reach.
🎉 Use non-food rewards. You are allowed to celebrate and comfort yourself. Just try a bubble bath, solo dance party, or new book instead of frosting.
🧘♀️ Manage stress (realistically). A walk counts. Saying “no” counts. Breathing counts. It doesn’t have to be a retreat. It just has to help.
🧾 Pre-plan your day. Knowing what you’re eating ahead of time can remove decision fatigue and reduce the urge to “see what you’re in the mood for.”
One Client’s Craving Confession
Let me tell you about "Rachel." She always craved something sweet after lunch - even if she was full. During her personalized coaching, we were able to connect that, growing up, dessert was the only time her family sat around and talked. That bite of chocolate meant connection. Once she realized that, we created a new ritual: a walk outside, consciously saying hello to every human she crossed paths with; some intentional playtime and snuggles with her senior dog; sitting down to send voice notes to a few friends; calling her mom ... POOF! Cravings stopped mattering. The need underneath was finally met.
Final Thoughts
Cravings aren’t the enemy. They’re signals. They’re rooted in biology, emotion, and sometimes plain old habit.
You’re not broken. You don’t need to be fixed. And you definitely don’t need to swear off carbs or sugar forever. But you can learn to understand your cravings better. You can learn to pause, pivot, and choose powerfully.
And you don’t have to do it alone.
Book a session. Let’s find your patterns and make a plan that actually fits your life.
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