Your digestive system is a complex mixture of mechanical and neural functions that tells your brain whether you need food or whether you've had enough. Physical cues, such as whether your stomach is distended or whether food is moving through your intestines, play a role in signaling hunger or the feeling of fullness. Hormones, including insulin and cholecystokinin, also send hunger and fullness cues. If you have a weight problem, you could be oversensitive to hunger signals. Here are some methods for tricking your body into thinking you're full.
Snack on Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables are filling because they are high in fiber and they have far fewer calories than sweets or salty junk foods. When you crave sweets, try some grapes or an apple instead. The natural sugar might be just enough to satisfy your urge for sweets without damaging your diet plan.
Drink Water
Water is both healthful and filling. Sometimes when you think you're hungry, you are in fact dehydrated. Drink a glass of water and wait a few minutes to see if the hunger subsides.
Eat Nuts
Nuts sometimes help curb chocolate cravings. They also contain B-complex vitamins, which help regulate your metabolism. Raw nuts are more healthful and contain less fat than roasted nuts, such as cocktail peanuts.
Give in Just a Little
Don't try to cut out sweets entirely because you're likely to end up binging at some point. To help keep your urge for sweets in check, allow yourself one small treat a day, but choose one with a caloric value less than one-fifth of your daily limit, the website Health recommends. Try to focus on more healthful, low-fat or high-fiber treats such as an oatmeal raisin cookie.
Eat Often
Eat in smaller portions throughout the day so that your body gets a consistent level of carbohydrates. Ideally, you should eat every two to three hours. Try to consume foods that release carbohydrates slowly, such as whole grains.
Skip Artificial Sweetners
Low-calorie, lite and diet foods are loaded with artificial sweeteners to reduce calories, but these chemicals cause food cravings. Try flavored, but unsweetened seltzer water as an alternative to diet sodas and limit yourself to small amounts of organic sweets rather than large amounts of artificially sweetened, processed foods.
Drink Green Tea
Green tea can help reduce your food cravings. It also provides significant health benefits because it contains polyphenols, a powerful class of antioxidants.
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