Nighttime Food Cravings
There are plenty of jokes about “nighttime trips” to the fridge. Late-night snacking has long been a source of teasing and humor. It is precisely these nighttime raids on the fridge and kitchen shelves stocked with chocolate, cookies, and pastries that play a cruel joke on your figure and negatively impact your overall health.
There is a logical explanation for that gnawing feeling of hunger at night. Strictly following three rules will solve the problem of nighttime hunger.
1. Breakfast is a mandatory meal!
A sandwich washed down with tea, an egg fried in oil, a cup of coffee with cookies or a chocolate bar, a fruit yogurt eaten on the run, or cottage cheese with 18% fat content can in no way be called breakfast. Such a breakfast is unbalanced and provides only short-term satiety. There are also those who rush out of the house without eating breakfast at all. It is important to know that a properly balanced breakfast must include fats, proteins, and carbohydrates. You should drink a glass of warm water every morning. If you follow these rules, you won’t have to worry about being drawn to the fridge again in the evening.
2. If you didn’t eat enough during the day, be prepared for a “nighttime run to the fridge.”
Not eating enough during the day, or consuming the wrong amounts of protein, fat, carbohydrates, and calories, will make itself known through nighttime stomach growls. You skipped breakfast, missed a snack, had a glass of kefir instead of a proper lunch, didn’t feel like eating dinner—and as a result, your body didn’t get its daily calorie intake. And whatever the body didn’t get during the day, it will definitely demand to be replenished at night. It’s no surprise that the body signals the need to make up for the daily calorie intake, and the phrase “I want to eat” swirls through your brain like a waltz.
3. Carbohydrate deficiency.
If your diet lacks carbohydrates, by evening you’ll feel tired and have a burning desire to eat—a craving that is “magically” satisfied at night, when, before you even realize it, you’ve polished off a plate of dumplings, a sausage sandwich, or a slice of cheesecake. Complex carbohydrates “properly” satisfy the body, slowly raise blood sugar levels, and most importantly—keep hunger at bay for a long time. They are found in foods such as buckwheat, wild and brown rice, barley, oats, bulgur, and whole-grain wheat pasta. Your daily diet should include 1–2 pieces of fruit for breakfast and your first snack, along with the complex carbohydrates listed above for breakfast and lunch. Whole-grain bread and whole-grain crackers should also be included in a properly balanced daily diet.
By following these three rules, the habit of eating at night will disappear on its own.
Calculating your daily intake of calories, protein, fat, and carbohydrates, and strictly adhering to these guidelines, will permanently cure your body of nighttime trips to the fridge.
Late-night raids on the kitchen shelves and the fridge aren’t a curse, a drug addiction, or just a habit. They’re the result of an unbalanced diet, miscalculating your macronutrient needs (everyone has their own requirements, which are calculated using a specific formula you can find online), and skipping breakfast. If you still find yourself craving sweets or the cold cuts, sausages, and dumplings in the fridge in the evenings, you should analyze your diet and make the necessary adjustments. It’s better to eat 20 grams more buckwheat for lunch than to devour chocolate in the evening.
So, a nutritious breakfast, balanced meals throughout the day (at least 5 times a day), and the daily recommended intake of carbohydrates will help you overcome nighttime food cravings.
