cravings

If you try to eat healthy and take regular exercise I think it's possible to allow for all types of food in your diet in moderation.

But, sometimes you may find yourself overcome with evil cravings that seem to have a mind of their own!

So, why do we crave certain foods? According to Dr Elizabeth Markley, assistant professor at the University of Connecticut:

Are you an emotional eater? I am, and I know that overeating for me, rarely has anything to do with actual hunger. Those same tips and tricks that help keep non-emotional eaters' hunger cravings at bay, can help people like us.

But, we need to have a few mental tricks in our toolbox as well.

People who struggle with their weight are often prone to "emotional eating", consuming food as a response to mental triggers rather than physical hunger. Often, dieters fail to lose weight not because their diet plan itself is flawed, but because they are knocked off course by feeling stressed, tired, upset or bored.

The last of these is an especially common cue for many people to eat. For some, it's a habit learned in childhood ("I'm bored, mum!" - "Run down to the shop and buy yourself a candy bar, then.") For others, it's a reaction to the dull parts of adult life: munching on biscuits while rocking the baby to sleep, or getting yet another handful of chocolates because the afternoon is really dragging at work.

Here's eight ways to beat those chocolate cravings: