What Drives Our Cravings? (Part 1)

with Julia Ross

Do you often crave a bowl of ice cream late at night? Does stress lead you to ply yourself with cereal and carbs? Julia Ross, author of “The Craving Cure,” has a deep understanding of the brain/craving connection and today she shares her insights into why we crave certain foods, at particular times. Julia helps us identify what kind of “cravers” we are, and how we got that way in the first place.

Julia is an expert in the use of innovative nutritional therapies for the treatment of eating disorders, addictions, and mood problems. Today’s conversation covers many pieces of the craving puzzle–from the “bliss point” of food, to the addictive nature of wheat, to how changes to our food system have impacted our relationship to food, leading to behaviors dictated by the neurotransmitters in our brains.

Notes:

Highlights from this conversation include:

an inspirational account of how one woman cured her food cravings for good
how changes to our sugar source and wheat in the 1970s negatively impacted our weight and relationship with food
the danger of high-fructose sweeteners
the addictive nature of hybridized wheat
an explanation of the “bliss point” for food
the brain as a craving control center
the psychoactive nature of food on children
how our brain’s neurotransmitters dictate what food we crave
an overview of the five types of cravers: depressed, crashed, comfort, stressed, and fatigued
how to identify the type of craver you are