If you’re human, chances are you’ve experienced food cravings. Maybe it’s the lure of your favorite dessert or a sudden yearning for a dish tied to comforting memories of home. While cravings are often brushed off as mere indulgences, they hold deeper layers of meaning.

Sometimes, cravings stem from nutritional needs, but more often, they are linked to emotions, memories, and stress. By looking beyond the surface, we can use these urges as a window into our emotions and unmet needs. Here’s how to embrace food cravings and use them as a tool for personal growth and a healthier relationship with food.

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Why Food Cravings Aren’t the Enemy

Diet culture tells us that cravings are something to resist or eliminate. But what if the opposite were true? Cravings, rather than being our enemies, can be valuable teachers.

Research suggests that embracing an intuitive eating approach—a philosophy rooted in trusting your body’s cues—can have profound benefits. According to a 2021 review, intuitive eating supports mental health by fostering:

• Positive body image
• Higher self-esteem
• Overall well-being

Similarly, an eight-year study tracking 1,491 participants found that practicing intuitive eating reduced unhealthy behaviors like binge eating, restrictive dieting, and body dissatisfaction. Intuitive eating isn’t about giving in to every whim but about creating a harmonious relationship with food.

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Shifting from Control to Curiosity

Author and eating coach Geneen Roth, in her book Women, Food, and God, emphasizes that our struggles with food often reflect deeper issues, such as feelings of inadequacy.

“Compulsive eating is only the symptom; believing that you are not worth your own love is the problem,” Roth writes.

Rather than treating cravings as a threat, Roth encourages embracing them as natural and trustworthy. By acknowledging these desires without judgment, we reclaim the inner voice that diet culture has silenced.

“It’s never been true…that the value of a soul…is dependent on a number on a scale,” she reminds us.

Holistic wellness coach Sloane Elizabeth echoes this perspective, having navigated her struggles with food and control. For her, food cravings symbolized a need for perfection and control. By exploring these feelings, she was able to break free from their grip.

“When you believe in yourself more than you believe in food, you will stop using food as if it were your only chance at not falling apart,” says Roth.

The Emotional Roots of Cravings

Cravings often mask deeper emotional needs, and ignoring them only perpetuates the cycle. A 2020 review found that food deprivation can amplify cravings due to conditioned responses rather than genuine nutritional deficits.

Elizabeth explains that cravings often arise from subconscious fears: fear of being unlovable, fear of failure, or fear of imperfection. When we acknowledge these fears instead of suppressing them, the cravings lose their power.

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As Roth puts it, the goal isn’t to suppress cravings but to face the emotions they stem from. “Our work is not to change what you do but to witness what you do with enough awareness, enough curiosity, enough tenderness.”

7 Techniques to Understand Your Cravings

If cravings hold emotional wisdom, how do we begin to decode them? Here are seven practical techniques to help you connect with your deeper needs:

1. Sit with the Craving

Instead of reacting impulsively, pause and tune in to the craving. Where do you feel it in your body? Does it bring up certain memories or emotions?

• Try This:
  1. Acknowledge the craving without judgment.
  2. Explore other ways to meet the underlying need (e.g., drinking water, taking a nap, or calling a friend).
  3. If you still want the food, enjoy it mindfully.

2. Tune into Your Belly

Roth suggests focusing on your belly, a part of the body many people disconnect from due to shame. By becoming aware of its sensations, you can make more grounded choices about eating.

• Try This:
  1. Close your eyes and notice sensations in your belly—fullness, emptiness, warmth, or tingling.
  2. Count your breaths to stay present.
  3. Decide whether to eat based on what you feel.

3. Delegate the Decision

Many people overthink whether to eat, leading to stress and indecision. Elizabeth suggests trusting your body to handle cravings naturally, much like a company CEO trusts their team to manage day-to-day operations.

4. Learn Your Body’s Cues

Cravings can often signal what your body needs, but diet culture has trained us to ignore them. By paying attention to hunger, fullness, and cravings, you can rebuild trust in your body’s signals.

• Elizabeth Says: “The body basically starts screaming to get your attention. By listening, you can stop numbing these cues.”

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5. Celebrate Your Cravings

Rather than fearing cravings, view them as a sign of connection with your body. “Celebrate the fact that a craving is a line of communication to your body,” says Elizabeth.

6. Ask: What Else Am I Hungry For?

Sometimes cravings aren’t about food at all. Asking this question can help uncover unmet emotional needs, like love, rest, or validation.

7. Keep the Foods You Crave in the House

Surprisingly, Elizabeth advises keeping your favorite foods readily available. When they’re no longer off-limits, cravings lose their urgency. “When you allow yourself to eat what you want, the cravings don’t seem that special,” she says.

Tips for Enjoying Your Food

Roth offers these seven simple tips for savoring your meals:

1. Eat when you’re hungry.
2. Eat sitting down in a calm space.
3. Avoid distractions like TV or phones while eating.
4. Eat what your body truly wants.
5. Stop eating when you feel satisfied.
6. Eat in full view of others, fostering accountability.
7. Savor every bite with pleasure and gratitude.

Reclaiming Your Voice

“When we give up dieting, we take back something we were often too young to know we had given away: our own voice,” writes Roth.

By treating food cravings with curiosity and compassion, we can learn to trust our bodies again. This journey is less about controlling food and more about rediscovering our inner wisdom.

The next time you feel a craving, pause. Instead of battling it, listen. You might just find the insight you’ve been searching for, both in your relationship with food and within yourself.