How To Stop Thinking About Food: 5 Key Tips
Trying to figure out how to stop thinking about food while improving your diet or managing your weight? You’re not alone.
This is a struggle for many, especially those making efforts to lose weight. Here are my helpful tips as a dietitian.
Why Am I Always Thinking About Food?
There are two brain circuits that affect hunger: homeostatic and hedonic. Basically, both pathways can make you feel like you’re always thinking about food, but hedonic hunger is more emotional while homeostatic hunger is more biological.
These circuits involve the “hunger hormone” ghrelin, and the “satiety hormone” leptin. Leptin is released when the body feels it has enough energy and suppresses thoughts and cravings around food.
Here are the other key differences between the two circuits.
What is Homeostatic Hunger?
According to studies, homeostatic hunger comes simply when you are not eating enough, so your brain tells your body to seek out food. It’s your body's natural response to maintain internal balance by signaling a need for nourishment when energy levels drop below a certain threshold. It does this by releasing ghrelin.
What is Hedonic Hunger?
Although homeostatic hunger can be a pest when trying to cut calories, hedonic hunger is the hunger that people really struggle to break free from. It is the type that people associate with “food obsession“ or “food addiction.”
Hedonic hunger, simply put, is hunger that comes along in times when you don’t actually need to consume energy. This can present a problem for people trying to control their weight or their food intake.
Stress-Related Hunger
The triggers of this type of hunger can vary from person to person, but one common reason is stress. When we feel stressed, science shows that the easiest thing to turn to for comfort tends to be our favorite foods, even if they aren’t the healthiest.
Environmental Triggers
Environment is also a thing. Even if you just had a nice hearty meal, if your friends invite you out to an event that has a BBQ food truck and the sweet smells of smoked meat and grilled vegetables are in the air, you might suddenly start feeling a craving for food again. Science has even shown this phenomenon happening with food commercials and other food advertisements.
Finally, having your favorite foods constantly within arm’s reach, or having your favorite fast food restaurant now within walking distance of your new home, can trigger hedonic hunger. That’s why dietitians advise that you keep snacks like chips and cookies put away in your pantry. Out of sight, out of mind might sound like a cliche, but it works. If you've walked by your bag of potato chips over a dozen times today because they're right on the kitchen counter, your subconscious might just start craving them out of the blue.
Is “Food Obsession” a Real Thing?
The concept of “food obsession” or “food addiction” is a very controversial topic, as addictions are considered to be more pathological when referred to in the context of substances, gambling, etc.
Considering these are non-essential behaviors and food is something you need to survive, experts are hesitant to classify food as an addiction. Addiction usually includes the following:
brain reward dysfunction
preoccupation
risky use
impaired control
tolerance/withdrawal
social impairment
chronicity
relapse
The study cited confirms that food addiction does not fit neatly into these addiction behaviors.
While the study does concede that hyperpalatable foods – foods that are high in sugar and fat – can produce addiction-like behavior, there isn’t enough evidence done on human subjects to confirm food addiction. That said, these behaviors can be intrusive, but there are ways to be more aware.
How Dieting Makes “Food Obsession” Feel More Intense
If you are already dealing with hedonic hunger, homeostatic hunger can make the feeling of food obsession more difficult to deal with. When you’re in a calorie deficit, the homeostatic pathways cause your body to crave more food.
The thing is, you have to stay in a consistent calorie deficit for some time to see significant weight loss. So feeling a bit hungry is unavoidable, even with a structured diet. However, a registered dietitian can help you navigate food choices that can help minimize these feelings of hunger.
How To Stop Obsessively Thinking About Food
So, how do you stop thinking about food? The key is to be aware of why you are thinking about food, have a good relationship with food, and ensure that what you are eating isn't making your hunger cues worse. Here are 5 key tips.
1. Eat Balanced Meals
It’s important to ensure you are eating satiating meals and snacks. Eating carb-based meals/snacks or foods that are low in fiber and protein can cause your stomach to empty more quickly. In turn, it makes you feel like you just can’t eat enough food.
Thus, having high-fiber, complex carbohydrates, lean protein, healthy fat, and plenty of fruits and vegetables in your meals can help keep those feelings of hunger at bay.
2. Know Your Triggers
As mentioned, there can be several things that cause you to start thinking about food, even when you just had a full meal. This could be a very effective food ad, feeling emotional, or having hyperpalatable foods that are easy to access. It’s important for you to identify your specific food triggers so you know how to avoid them or how to respond to them.
If you know you’re going to have to be in a triggering food environment, try having a protein shake right before going out. Put those snacks somewhere in the kitchen where they can’t be easily seen. Finally, find ways to manage your stress and other ways to let out your emotions, be it a boxing class, meditation, yoga or just watching your favorite movies.
3. Eat Mindfully
Studies have shown that eating attentively has a big influence on how much you eat. For example, if you’re the type to eat while driving or snack while working, you could be overeating without realizing it. The science shows that the brain doesn’t always communicate with the stomach that you’re fed if you eat while distracted. So, you could find yourself frustratingly thinking about food soon after you already had a meal.
Take traditional lunch breaks. Turn the television off while you eat. Eat slowly, chew thoroughly and really allow your brain to indulge in the taste of your food. Treating meal times as a time of leisure rather than a task can not only improve your hunger cues, but foster a better relationship with food as well.
4. Be Prepared and Consistent with Your Meals
Not skipping meals is another way to keep your hunger hormones in a good spot. Why? Skipping meals can trigger homeostatic hunger when you’re still dealing with hedonic hunger.
Skipping meals or not having meals ready, such as when you’re on lunch at work and forgot to pack your lunch, can also cause you to make poor food choices. You may choose foods that will make you feel “good” emotionally. Thus, meal prepping and generally eating consistently throughout the day can help prevent this.
5. Stay Hydrated
According to science, the brain often confuses thirst for hunger. So, if you’re finding that you feel hungry during times you shouldn’t be, think back on your fluid intake for the day.
It’s likely that the answer is, not much. In this case, try drinking 12-16 ounces of fluid and wait for 20-30 minutes. If the hunger is still there, it is likely true hunger and you should try having a small, high protein snack.
The Bottom Line on How to Stop Thinking About Food
If you’ve been asking yourself how to stop thinking about food with no solutions in sight, hopefully this provides a clear way forward. If you feel like you’re addicted to food or have a food obsession, an important step is to recognize your hedonic versus your homeostatic hunger, what your specific triggers are, and how to combat them.
This is especially important if you’re trying to lose weight, as hunger is often the biggest obstacle to deal with when trying to stick to a weight loss plan.
Luckily, a registered dietitian can help guide you through these struggles, assist you in identifying what stimulates your hedonic hunger, and construct a sensible eating plan. If this sounds like something you’re looking for, contact me today.