Even if you try to eat as healthy as possible, there are times when you crave a hamburger or chili fries or a sugar-rich dessert, right? Though this is normal to happen from time to time, when it starts to occur on a more frequent basis, it may actually signal some kind of problem and the body is trying to warn you through the cravings.
According to Healthy Holistic Living, scientists believe that these cravings indicate insufficient minerals in the body. Even though they can be found in unhealthy food choices, it is best for you to get them from whole foods. When you supply the body with minerals from healthy foods, whose nutrients are best absorbed by the body, you could put an end to these dangerous cravings.
Below, check out a list with the most commonly-craved foods and what the cravings could mean for your health.
Most Commonly Craved Foods & What It Means
- Chocolate
Newest statistics, as seen on Healthy Holistic Living, points out that up to 80 percent of American citizens are magnesium deficient. Magnesium is a mineral which is also found in chocolate. This important macromineral is necessary for more than 300 biochemical reactions, including relaxation of the body. Magnesium has the power to lower anxiety, insomnia, and irritability and to stabilize the blood pressure. This is why often times, people who are magnesium deficient eat a chocolate bar and immediately feel much better because of the small amount of the magnesium coming from the cacao. However, since processed chocolate is usually made with numerous unhealthy substances, it is better to opt for other magnesium-rich foods that are healthy, for example, fish, beans, dark chocolate, seeds, nuts, and blackstrap molasses.
- Sugary foods
A lot of Americans report feeling strong cravings for foods abundant in sugar. This could be a result of chromium, carbon, phosphorus, sulfur, or tryptophan deficiency. In order to try and cease these cravings, you need to better your diet and eat more whole foods and less artificial sugar. This will be of aid in elevating the mineral amounts in different body parts.
- Refined carbs
If you constantly battle with cravings for foods such as bread or pasta, you may be low on nitrogen. Its compounds are crucial elements of nucleic acids and protein and when you lack them, you become more prone to malnutrition. Try to boost your diet with foods abundant in nitrogen such as fruits and veggies, meat and poultry, fish and seafood, as well as dairy, eggs, nuts, and seeds.
- Other cravings
If you happen to crave a lot of oily and fatty foods, you may need to up your calcium levels by eating more cheese, turnip greens, milk, and broccoli. Craving ice is also possible and this may be a sign of iron deficiency. Therefore, enrich your diet with foods that contain iron such as meat, sea veggies, leafy greens, and blackstrap molasses. People who crave a lot of salt and salty foods may be lacking chloride and silicon. To prevent this from happening, increase your consumption of nuts, fish, and seeds.
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