Can’t keep your hands out the biscuit tin? NHS nutritionist shares foolproof plan to beat sugar cravings… and it takes just minutes
It’s a sensation that’s familiar to many of us—it’s the evening, you’ve had dinner so you’re not hungry but as you relax in front of the TV you develop the urge for a biscuit or piece of chocolate.
Before you know it, you’ve risen from the comfort of the sofa to rummage around in the kitchen in search of something sweet to satisfy the desire for a treat.
That same urge can hit between meals or if you pass a bakery or restaurant wafting tempting aromas out into the street.
But while food cravings are a near universal experience, they’re often an unwelcome part of daily life and can cause anxiety and even self-loathing for people who are trying to cut down on sugar or processed foods or who simply want to have more control over their food intake.
Yet Robbie Puddick, nutritionist with NHS-backed healthy eating plan Second Nature, which uses behavioural science to retrain your mind to make healthy choices automatically, says: ‘Food cravings aren’t a sign of weakness, they’re our brain’s response to both nutritional and psychological needs.
‘Cravings often stem from two main categories: nutrition reasons, like not eating enough, restricting certain foods, or leaving long gaps between meals, and psychological reasons, including stress, emotions and unmet needs.’
In fact, in a 2023 study, Bangor University researchers found that people with higher levels of stress were significantly more likely to report weight gain and twice as likely to report increased food cravings and comfort food consumption.
In turn, people who report an increase in food cravings were six to 11 times more likely to snack and have increased consumption of high sugar or processed foods.
Mr Puddick says that knowing more about cravings is the key to being able to override them
Today the term ‘food noise’ has become a common phrase to describe the persistent, unwelcome thoughts about food that often drive cravings.
Mr Puddick told the Daily Mail that knowing more about cravings is the key to being able to override them.
‘Understanding that cravings are a normal response, not a personal failing, is crucial.’
He says that brains are ‘hard-wired’ to seek high-energy foods; particularly when we’re not nourishing ourselves adequately.
‘When we restrict foods or eat too little, our brain increases our hunger hormone and heightens our senses, making us especially sensitive to high-energy food cues like chocolate, crisps, or ice cream,’ he says.
‘These cravings intensify when we’re physically underfed or emotionally depleted.
‘Additionally, if we’ve been using food as our primary coping mechanism for stress or difficult emotions, these neural pathways strengthen over time. Recognising these patterns helps us understand that cravings often signal an unmet need, whether that’s proper nourishment or emotional support.’
Yet a simple 15-minute routine can help you decode what’s really driving your cravings and provide evidence-based tools to respond differently, addressing both the physical and emotional aspects of food cravings.
Cravings intensify when we’re physically underfed or emotionally depleted, says our expert
Here Mr Puddick explains the three key steps that will help you banish your cravings for good.
Mr Puddick also revealed a good reactive strategy for beating cravings is a technique called ‘urge surfing’. Imagine a craving as a wave, starting small and increasing in intensity.
Instead of fighting it, visualise yourself surfing the wave and experiencing the ups and downs.
As the wave builds, you might feel restless or obsessive thoughts about food and feel compelled to act on the craving at its peak. But acting on it reinforces the brain’s association between craving and food reward.
To urge surf, set a timer and note how long you can tolerate the craving before acting on it. Next time, try extending it by a minute or two.
During the craving, engage in an alternative activity that disrupts the craving-reward association, such as deep breathing, calling a loved one, or taking a walk.
By redirecting our attention elsewhere and letting the craving pass, our brain gradually dissociates the craving from the food reward or associates the cue with something more helpful.
