6 Tips to Curb Cravings

Healthy foods don't always have the best taste, and dieting is even more difficult when the cravings start to kick into high gear. While you may have an easy time adjusting to smarter foods overall, it's important to find ways to avoid falling for every craving. It might be okay to cheat every once in a while, but our 7 helpful tips can help you gain complete control over your desire for junk food. 

Eat Before You're Hungry
An empty stomach causes a temporary feeling of desperation to put a stop to the hunger pains, and you may feel tempted to grab a bag of chips or settle for fast food. Cravings aren't likely to show up if you space out meals and healthy snacks well enough to avoid hunger. Baby carrots or fresh cut broccoli make a great crispy snack when you feel the urge to munch between meals. 

Distract Your Mind
Thinking about sweets and processed foods is ultimately going to make these temptations more difficult to avoid. Rather than sit around fantasizing about foods you're determined to not consume, get up and find a distraction. Get out of the house and get some fresh air during a walk around the block, or take a little drive listening to your favorite music. If you're finding it hard to overcome a sweet tooth, switch to a sugarless gum between meals to satisfy the urge without breaking your diet. 

Splurge on Water
Pour yourself a tall glass of cold water before every meal, and don't be afraid to drink another anytime you feel the urge to snack. After a few minutes, the craving is likely to fade because the body often confuses thirst with hunger. Eating before meals is a handy trick to eating smaller portions if your ultimate goal is to lose weight. 

Eliminate Daily Stress
It's not secret that people tend to look to their favorite foods when trying to cope with stressful or upsetting situations. Meditate regularly, relax with some herbal tea, and increase light exercise to eliminate stress that may influence bad eating habits. Excessive stress may also spike your cortisol levels, making it very difficult to lose undesirable belly fat. 

Never Shop While Hungry
Plan to head out on your shopping trip after finishing a meal, and stick closely to the intended grocery list. Temptation will be high when you are faced with your favorite junk items and the delicious aromas of fried foods at the deli counter. If you go into the store hungry, you'll end up leaving with a cart full of items that reflect the same foods that you're working so hard to avoid. 

Sleep Well
The relation between sleep and eating habits may be more significant than you realize, especially when it comes to poor dietary decisions. If you're accustomed to staying up late for any reason, you're more likely to partake in a little snacking right before you lay down. Not only is this bad for your diet, but it's normal for people reach for packaged snack items instead of preparing a healthier option. Inadequate sleep is also going to cause hormone fluctuations that enhance normal cravings to a greater intensity. Make sure that you get to bed a a decent time each night, and don't be afraid to use remedies like melatonin supplements or a glass of warm milk to help you fall asleep. 

6 Dangerous Effects of High Cholesterol

Exceeding a healthy level of cholesterol is an issue that affects more than 100 million Americans, but most do not truly understand the consequences. Any level above 200 mg/dL is out of the safe range because it significantly increases the risk of heart disease and other complications. Arteries gradually become more narrow as the waxy substance accumulates, but actual symptoms of high cholesterol levels are rare. Adults that are not considered high-risk are recommended to have a physician screen their levels every 5 years, but it may be necessary for individuals over 50 to get checked more often. Understanding the dangerous effects of high cholesterol in your body is the first step in protecting your health. 

Chest Pain
Angina is a condition that feels as though your chest is being compressed or squeezed forcibly, and it occurs often when the blood oxygen supply going to the heart is decreased. Coronary artery disease can cause symptoms like chest pain when the arteries are clogged with plaque, so it's important to pay attention to new or changing sensations in the chest. A heart attack can occur if the muscle is completely deprived of oxygen. 

High Blood Pressure
Cholesterol plaque that hardens the arteries puts extra strain on the heart, and the resulting high blood pressure will cause problems. Hypertension caused by extremely high blood pressure may cause issues with vision, breathing, painful headaches, or an irregular heartbeat. People that are lucky enough to experience these symptoms will know that they need to see their doctor promptly, but others suffer from consequences like a stroke or heart attack. 

Heart Attack
A coronary artery that becomes completely blocked is going to restrict the blood supply to the heart. If a life-threatening heart attack does occur, the patient could experience total heart failure or a dangerously irregular heartbeat. Arrhythmia isn't necessarily fatal, but a ventricular fibrillation requires immediate treatment to prevent deadly consequences. 

Stroke
There is a domino-effect of complications that begin with high cholesterol because it causes the initial buildup of plaque in the large arteries. As this leads to high blood pressure, the risk of having a fatal stroke is significantly increased. If the small blood vessels that lead to the brain are blocked and weakened, they can burst to cause a stroke. People that survive a stroke could experience permanent complications like limb paralysis, weak muscles, vision issues, confusion, and speech loss. 

Peripheral Vascular Disease
Clogged arteries that limit the blood supply to the limbs leads to a circulation disorder called peripheral vascular disease. Individuals with this disease often experience pain, dull aching, tingling, and weakness in their legs or feet. Without adequate treatment, the symptoms and physical damage are going to worsen to an eventual heart attack of stroke. 

Chronic Kidney Disease
The renal arteries that supply blood to the kidneys can become clogged with cholesterol plaque over time. Damage to the kidneys becomes more severe as a patient progresses through the stages of CKD. Kidney function may decrease gradually, but the complete loss of function can eventually occur.