At 10 am it’s chocolate, by noon it’s fries, at 3 pm you can’t live without that Coke, and by 9 pm you’re spoon-deep in a tub of ice cream. Sound too familiar? If you feel like you’re constantly craving one food or another, it’s very likely that you’re simply not eating properly.

First, you may just be hungry. Do you get enough calories from protein, healthy fats and carbohydrates? Do you eat at regular enough intervals? When you’re hungry you’re more likely to crave high-calorie, high-fat foods. Cravings are also often related to dips in blood sugar levels, which happen when you don’t eat regularly enough. If you experience a dip in blood sugar, you’re likely to look for a quick fix in the form of chocolate or other candy.

Eating regular, well-balanced meals, with plenty of lowfat protein (eggs, fish, lean meat, legumes, leafy greens) will ensure that your blood sugar levels are stable and that you are getting the calories you require throughout the day. This can make a huge difference to getting your cravings under control.

Smart snacking on fruit, nuts, seeds (pumpkin, sunflower etc.) chopped vegetables, homemade soup, yogurt or lowfat cheese will also help you prevent a mid-afternoon blood-sugar slump and the cravings that accompany it.

Also keep in mind that lack of certain nutrients can lead to cravings. For example, lack of protein may cause you to crave ice cream, lack of carbohydrates may cause you to crave fries, and so on. The same goes for micronutrients – chocolate contains zinc and magnesium, so your afternoon Hershey’s bar may simply be satisfying a physiological need for more broccoli. Although, if you’re craving chocolate sometimes no other food will hit the spot – there’s a reason Hershey’s doesn’t make a broccoli bar!

When people want to lose weight or change their eating habits, they often deem certain foods “forbidden”. This may seem noble, but in reality it’s just a set-up for cravings. Saying “I’m never going to eat any chocolate at all” is a sure-fire way to end up craving it a week later. It’s better to have the occasional, planned treat than to deny yourself a food altogether.

Restricting a certain food group, such as carbohydrates, also pretty much guarantees a craving. For example, if you eliminate bread from your diet for an extended period of time, it's bread that you’re most likely to crave.

Staying interested in what you’re eating is key to preventing cravings. A monotonous, boring diet in which you only eat certain foods will inevitably lead to cravings.