It is well-established that external visuals of high-calorie foods can drive us to desire them and seek them out, especially when we are hungry. Here are some simple strategies to help you avoid this high-risk situation:
Do not leave your home hungry. Our external environments are filled with alluring visuals of high risk, bad-for-you foods. Think billboards, fast food signage, etc.
Do not go to the grocery store hungry. Here you will encounter the real thing – not just the pictures!
If you bring high-risk foods into your home (which I do not recommend), keep them out of sight. Even within the refrigerator or cupboard it is helpful to hide them behind more healthy foods. “Out of sight out of mind”- so cover the ice cream up with bags of frozen spinach.
If traveling by air – watch those airports! Actually, do not watch those airports – put up blinders as you walk through the concourse (do not look at the Cinnabon counter or the Haagen Daaz counter!) And always pack healthy, travel-friendly snacks to avoid ravenous hunger in the toxic nutritional environments of airports. I travel frequently on business and my favorite snacks to pack are nuts, dark chocolate, whole fresh fruits, soy nuts, and dried wasabi peas.
It is well-established that external visuals of high-calorie foods can drive us to desire them and seek them out, especially when we are hungry. Here are some simple strategies to help you avoid this high-risk situation:
