#or peanut butter cookies… they can be soft or chewy or crunchy depending on which consistency you prefer

[ghosts-and-blue-sweaters]

If we ever meet in person I am going to make you all the gluten-free goodies and you can do nothing to stop me <3

CRADLE 🥺🥺

Okayokay if we ever meet up I should take you to a Good gluten-free pizza place (there are not many good ones, but the ones that are good are good) and also bake cookies for you >:D

#I actually don’t know if you like pizza aksgajsgkagsjag #IF YOU DO NOT #there are other Good gluten-free restaurants yes yesssss #oh my gosh I think it’d be so fun to go like shopping or go to a restaurant with you :D #!!! #ask #cradle tag #but yes I could make sugar cookies :0 they’re soft and taste slightly cherry-ish and are altogether wonderful #or peanut butter cookies… they can be soft or chewy or crunchy depending on which consistency you prefer #and VERY peanut buttery #AND MY PERSONAL FAVORITE: chocolate chip cookies!!! #the recipe I use for them is just amazing and I don’t wanna switch to any other recipe #they’re soooooo good #I could eat an entire bowl of the cookie dough I think lol

[goodbyeglutengoodies]

Coconut—The Perfect Ingredient for Gluten-Free Cookies

Coconut is the perfect ingredient for a gluten-free cookie. With the many gluten-free alternative ingredients available, you might wonder what is so special about coconut and what makes it the ultimate cookie ingredient. Well, if you like coconut, you’ll be happy to hear what’s going on behind the scenes to make coconut a cookie-friendly ingredient. If you haven’t been a fan up until now—but you’ve just gone gluten-free—it’s probably time to give a wholesome and delicious coconut cookie a chance!

What’s Great About Coconut? First, you need to know what makes a coconut cookie so great—so you feel like diving into a bag of organic coconut cookies. Coconut is a really wholesome, nutritious ingredient, and it has a lot going for it. It’s Tasty Coconut is super delicious. The part of the coconut often used as an ingredient is the flesh of the fruit (or tree nut, depending on what you consider a coconut). You can enjoy cuts of fresh coconut or dried coconut that has been shredded or flaked. Shredded, unsweetened, organic coconut is the great-tasting ingredient you want to see in cookies. It makes the cookie soft and chewy, too. Another way you might find coconut on a label is coconut sugar, made from the sap of a coconut palm. It's Gluten-Free This ingredient is gluten-free, as are all fruits and nuts. Still, if it’s in a cookie, you should see the Certified Gluten-Free label before indulging if you’re gluten-intolerant or have celiac disease. Coconut offers more texture to gluten-free cookies than finely ground flour alternatives. It’s Satisfying Coconut is a very satisfying food. It’s full of satiating fats and fiber that keep you full and nourish your body and brain. Fats are essential for your body, and who wouldn’t want to get healthy fats from a delicious cookie? Just one or two small-ish coconut cookies are enough to keep you full as a midday snack or satisfy your cravings for something sweet after dinner. How Does It Work in a Cookie? Coconut is an alternative ingredient that lends flavor and texture to a cookie. Brands like Emmy’s Organics combine coconut with other wholesome ingredients like almond flour and agave nectar for a subtly sweet gluten-free cookie. A coconut cookie, and even a chocolate coconut cookie, might taste a little coconutty, but that’s not a bad thing. You can also opt for other foods made with coconut, like grain-free brownies with coconut sugar. What Kinds of Cookies Does It Make? Coconut makes chewy, satisfying cookies that are the perfect snack or dessert. You can find various flavors, including coconut cookies chocolate chip, dark cacao, peanut butter, and vanilla bean. The cookies don’t spread out like traditional cookies with flour, butter, and refined sugar, so they might resemble energy bites, but they definitely taste more like a cookie. They’re a filling, delicious treat for people of all ages. If you find a bag of gluten-free cookies with coconut as a main ingredient, try them. Gluten-free brands (such as Emmy’s Organics) work hard to ensure their products taste delicious and help you feel your best when you eat something sweet, which is why they use coconut to give their cookies flavor and texture. Coconut might be your new favorite ingredient to see on gluten-free goods. About Emmy’s Organics A little treat goes a long way, and the little treats from Emmy’s Organics will exceed all your expectations. The gluten-free goodies are full of wholesome, nourishing ingredients, including coconut and agave nectar. You can take out the cookie bag and munch away on Chocolate Chip Coconut Cookies or get out the mixing bowl and whip up a batch of gluten-free brownies sweetened with coconut sugar. Emmy’s Organics is passionate about providing everyone with a delicious sweet perfect for any occasion. Whether you prefer the chewy, tasty coconut cookies or the crunchy, bite-sized Coconut Crunch’Ems, the certified B Corp will fill your pantry with great-tasting treats. They use less processed ingredients to create goodies that are bigger in flavor and better than all your gluten-free expectations. Learn more about Emmy’s Organics’ delicious coconut cookies at https://emmysorganics.com/ Original Source: https://bit.ly/3HBgGJn

#coconut cookies

[amatchgirl]

Pantry Staple Baking

We’ve rounded up a collection of recipes that utilize your everyday pantry ingredients. In the recipes below, feel free to switch up your spices, jams, nuts, garnishes, and more with whatever you happen to have stocked in your kitchen. Don’t be afraid to customize the flavor profiles to fit your baking needs! 

Caramelized Banana Bread

Crowned with golden Caramelized Banana halves and offering a hint of cinnamon flavor, this loaf is all about taking the banana to the nth power of sweetness. If you don’t have sour cream, you can substitute full fat regular yogurt or crème fraîche.

2. Hazelnut-Banana Sour Cream Muffins

With a toasty Hazelnut Streusel topping and the tender crumb of banana bread, these muffins are a welcome treat for any morning. If you don’t have hazelnuts, feel free to swap them out with whatever nut you have on hand.

3. Johnny Bread

Every Sunday morning in households and eateries across Bermuda, johnny bread is served with boiled potatoes, bananas, and codfish. With a golden-brown exterior and tender, fluffy crumb, johnny bread is versatile enough to enjoy with dinner or as a snack smeared with jam or honey. Traditionally, Bermudians cook the dough shaped into a disk or cut into a scone-like wedge in a hot skillet. For our recipe, we bake the bread for a few minutes after frying.

4. Cardamom Flourless Chocolate Cake

The beauty of this cake is the crackled top, which, combined with the cardamom-scented cake, yields the perfect mix of crispy, soft, chocolaty goodness in a single bite. If you’re running low on flour, this is the cake for you!

5. Classic Soda Bread

A traditional take on quick bread, this soda bread recipe is brought to life by buttermilk and baking soda. These two ingredients combine to create a crunchy crust and a subtle tartness that’s definitively mouthwatering. Plus, this recipe requires only a few pantry ingredients and you can make your own buttermilk by adding 1 tablespoon (15 grams) white distilled vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup (240 grams) whole milk.

6. PB&J Blondies

This blondie recipe makes the most of two pantry staples: peanut butter and jelly! In a throwback to your favorite childhood lunchbox item, we added luscious swirls of grape jelly and extra peanut butter to the top of our peanut butter-rich batter. Swap out the grape jelly for your favorite flavor.

7. Chocolate Olive Oil Cake

A grown-up chocolate cake, this olive oil stir-together batter has sophisticated cocoa notes complemented by a deep, dark ganache frosting. If you’re running low on butter, this cake is good option because it relies on olive oil for its fat content.

8. Cinnamon Jam Loaf

Filled with sweet, jammy swirls and topped with a nutty streusel, this quick bread makes for a hearty breakfast or tasty dessert. Substitute the jam for whatever fruit preserves or spreads you have at home. If you’re out of cinnamon, use nutmeg, allspice, or cardamom to spice things up instead.

9. Orange-Cardamom Loaves

Dripping with sweet Orange Glaze and scented with warm cardamom and vanilla, these loaves are absolutely mouthwatering. This recipe also relies on pantry staple vegetable oil rather than butter to impart tenderness to the crumb. 

10. Sour Cherry Shortbread Linzer Cookies

These are the best sandwich cookies you’ll make this summer. A tiny bit of citric acid in the cookie dough creates a zesty sour cherry flavor, which balances out the buttery shortbread cookies. You can fill these linzer cookies with any jam or  preserve you like, and you can nix the citric acid in the cookie if you don’t have any!

11. Toasted Almond Sablés

Président® butter makes these sparkling sablés the ultimate buttery, melt-in-your-mouth cookies. Here, it imparts a creaminess that complements the flavor of toasted almonds exquisitely. Président is France’s number one butter and our go-to for all crumbly French cookies. 

12. Lime Shortbread Bars

Classic shortbread gets a summertime makeover in these zesty Lime Shortbread Bars. Adding lime zest to the dough adds a bite of freshness and plays up the buttery flavor of shortbread you know and crave. You can freeze the uncooked dough and bake off as you need! 

13. Cheesy Beer Bread

This cheesy loaf comes together easily but packs a whole lot of flavor! Use your favorite pale ale and Monterey Jack cheese, or whatever you happen to have on hand.

14. Marble Sheet Cake

Swirls of rich chocolate batter and sweet almond batter combine to create this stunning sheet cake. Top with a dusting of confectioner’s sugar for a simple yet elegant finish. You can flavor the almond batter with any other extract you happen to have on hand. 

15. Peanut Butter Cookies

Chewy, cakey, and full of addictive nuttiness, this fuss-free recipe checks off all the boxes for the ultimate peanut butter cookie. Plus, it’s the supersize bakery style you know and love. You’ll turn to these again and again when the late-night cravings call.

16. Blueberry Muffin Bread

For all the blueberry muffin fans out there, this one’s for you. With a tender, buttery crumb packed with juicy blueberries and a crunchy sugar-coated top, this Blueberry Muffin Bread is the loaf pan version of everyone’s favorite muffin.

17. Oatmeal Cherry Walnut Cookies

These Oatmeal Cherry Walnut Cookies by Marian Cooper Cairns are the summer cookie you’ll be eating all season long. Who needs raisins when you can have a much bigger, even sweeter flavor impact with plump dried cherries? If walnuts are not your jam, pecans or hazelnuts are great substitutes. Be sure to toast the nuts for optimal flavor. Baking at 350°F (180°C) until the nuts smell slightly fragrant, about 8 minutes, will do the trick. 

18. Classic Olive Oil Cake

A staple in most Mediterranean kitchens, this light and barely sweet cake is perfect for an afternoon snack or late morning tea. A final brush of olive oil just before serving brings the fruity flavor to the front of your palate as soon as you take a bite. Olive oil takes the place of butter in this rich cake. 

19. Flourless Fudgy Cookies

Chocolate lovers will swoon over the rich texture of these Flourless Fudgy Cookies! Top with walnuts, your favorite nut, or whatever nut you happen to have on hand.

20. Do-It-All-Dough

This miracle recipe can go sweet or savory, depending on the baker’s whim. This flexible enriched dough will become the most trusted recipe in your bread repertoire. Luxuriously rich with milk, butter, an egg, and just a dash of sugar, the Do-It-All Dough can become the tender base for both Almond Cream Rolls and Garlic Herb Clover Rolls. So feel free to fill and top with any of your favorite ingredients. 

21. Sour Cream Coffee Cake

This endlessly customizable classic comes together in a flash. The warm notes of vanilla complement the subtle tanginess from the sour cream beautifully in the irresistibly tender crumb. When topped with the nutty crunch from the almond-cinnamon streusel, it’s pure magic.

22. Classic Vanilla Pound Cake

You can choose your flavor with this incredibly simple, perfectly sweet pound cake. Go almond, lemon, or vanilla. Top with your favorite glaze, chocolate sauce, or a sprinkle of confectioner’s sugar. The possibilities are endless!

from WordPress http://sweetly.site/pantry-staple-baking/

#Baking

[redqueenmusings]

I read on Facebook that a fiend Kirsty had been making Snickerdoodles – They looked good but I had no idea what they were so had to hunt for a recipe.

I always have homemade biscuits – often using just enough mixture for a treat with a cuppa and freezing the rest to get out and use as needed. So on Sunday morning I set to to make a selection.

First I found a recipe for the Snickerdoodles. They were very easy to make and I cut the recipe to 1/3rd (even so I still popped 2/3rds of that into the freezer)

INGREDIENTS

2oz butter or margarine 2.5oz granulated sugar 1 egg 1 tsp baking powder – traditional Snickerdoodle’s also call for cream of tartar which it says give an acidic taste. I didn’t have any so just left it out. Pinch salt 4oz plain flour

CINNAMON SUGAR 1 tbsp granulated sugar 1 tsp ground cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS

In a bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the flour, egg, baking powder, salt and mix well.

I always find it necessary to use clean hands to work the last bit of flour into any biscuit dough.

In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and ground cinnamon

Roll the cookie dough into balls, I usual roll my biscuits into balls about the size of a golf ball (on average these weigh between 1.5 and 2oz).

Roll the snickerdoodle balls in the cinnamon-sugar and then place on a lined baking sheet. Flatten the dough balls out slightly. Sprinkle more cinnamon sugar over each cookie if desired.

Bake at 190°C for 8-12 minutes, until the cookies look just set.

Mine are usually right at 10 minutes, but it depends on how big you make your cookies and because ovens cook differently, this could vary.

Why is it called a Snickerdoodle? Apparently the name comes from the German Schneckennudeln, which means – wait for it… Snail noodles!

So once started it is a shame to put the oven on for just a couple of biscuits I continued with a firm favourite Peanut Butter Cookies. These are soft, chewy and are the best peanut butter cookie out there, trust me I’ve tried them all.

INGREDIENTS

3 tbsp peanut butter (I prefer crunchy) 2oz sugar 3 tbsp brown sugar 2oz margarine 1 egg 4oz SR flour Grated rind and juice of either a lemon or an orange

INSTRUCTIONS

Cream the butters and sugar together then add the egg and the flour. Once again get those hands into the bowl and form a stiff dough. Roll into something the size of a golf ball. Place on a baking sheet and cook for approximately 10 minutes.

Finally Stem Ginger Cookies, so easy even a child can make these.

INGREDIENTS

2oz butter 2oz soft brown sugar 1.5 tablespoons golden syrup 1.5oz stem ginger chopped 6oz SR flour 1 rounded teaspoons ground ginger

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 190°C

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and mix to form a dough.

Divide into even pieces (See above) and roll each piece into a ball.

Place the balls on the baking sheet and press each one down slightly.

Now bake in the oven until golden. (Again see above)

Allow to cool on a wire tray for a few minutes before enjoying.

All the cookies were approximately the same size as they went into the oven but the Snickerdoodles spread to more than double their size. As it is the first time I have made these (maybe the last) I think they should perhaps be smaller, and for me needed a lot more cinnamon, but they tasted nice, just not – wow I need more. 🙂

  Check Queenie’s Daily Snippets for Tenerife news & for daily weather updates 

Snickerdoodles and other biscuits I read on Facebook that a fiend Kirsty had been making Snickerdoodles – They looked good but I had no idea what they were so had to hunt for a recipe.

[kathydsalters31]

Home Alone: The Best 15 Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

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Updated August 19, 2020 | Bonding with Your Dog By Nia Martin

This post contains affiliate links. Read more here.

These days, our lives are more in flux than ever. Especially due to the pandemic, we’ve had changes to daily routines, work schedules, and even home life. You’re not the only one who feels overwhelmed by these shifts—your dog does, too. Toys are great tools to help ease your pup back into a routine—and help minimize separation anxiety. After all, your dog has gotten used to your company and attention, but as things continue to shift, your attention and presence may be elsewhere at times and for longer periods. That can be jarring to your pet. The best dog toys for separation anxiety are those that keep their senses engaged and don’t depend on you for interaction.

Start off with a new toy by giving it to your dog in the next room and build up from there. Always supervise play in the beginning when introducing a new toy in order to ensure that it’s safe for your dog—no toy is totally dog-proof.

The Best Puzzle Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

We’ve broken out our picks for the best dog toys for separation anxiety into a few different categories, including puzzle toys, snuffle mats, and tech toys, so you can find what works best for your dog—they won’t even notice you’re gone!

When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with a Kong. Durable for hours of licks and chews, stuff it with treats, or even freeze it with some peanut butter for an extra yummy challenge. It will keep your doggo busy, whether in their crate or just enjoying some solo playtime.

Verified review: “I use my Kongs (yes, I have multiple) constantly, not just to give my dog Buster something to do at home alone but to make him use his doggy brain to eat his meals. This thing can be frozen and put in the dishwasher, plus it bounces and floats. Buster loves it.”

Shop on Chewy

Trapping treats inside the ridges, this toy invites your pup to sink their teeth into a challenge, making it a great dog toy for separation anxiety. And if that gets too easy, you can up the degree of difficulty by connecting two different sizes of the toy together, keeping your dog very occupied.

Shop on Chewy

This toy’s all about concentration, so your dog might not even notice you’ve headed out for groceries. The flippable treat canisters come with two sets of lids with different sized holes so you can vary the degree of difficulty. Balance and precision are key, so this is the right fit for a dog who’s no stranger to puzzle toys.

Verified review: “This toy is a little more challenging and is designed for the intermediate canine gamer. It has three rotating beakers that can be filled with treats. Each beaker can be covered with two included sets of lids which can be mixed or matched to make it easier or harder.” (For more about this toy, see our Puzzle Toy Roundup review video.)

Shop on Chewy

Available in four different sizes, this plush hide-and-seek toy is full of fun. Your doggo can retrieve each of the squeaky squirrels nestled inside the soft tree trunk, one at a time. There’s even enough space in the trunk to hide some treats for longer play. Note that this toy is not advisable for destructive chewers.

Verified review: “This toy is like three toys in one. After my dog has pulled out all the squirrels, he likes to snuggle up with the soft trunk or toss the squeaky rodents around. It’s one of the few toys he plays with daily.”

Shop on Chewy

Take this puzzle toy for a spin—literally! From dog game creator Nina Ottosson, this toy has multiple rotating layers to explore—conceal treats in the slots. Does your dog need more of a challenge? Place the bone-shaped covers over the slots so your dog has dig out those hidden treats, along with spinning the layers. Separation anxiety? What separation anxiety?

Shop on Chewy

The Best Mat Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

It may not look like much, but this simple mat is actually a pretty great dog toy for separation anxiety. It engages your doggy’s nosework as they hunt for treats embedded amongst the fabric tufts. For more about snuffle mats, check out our article on the classic snuffle mat here.

Shop on Chewy

Having different ways to serve up treats is great for keeping your dog too busy to notice you’re not home. Hyper Pet makes a variety of textured mats: the Buddy is ridged in a maze-like pattern to keep pups occupied finding all the nooks, while the Soother’s nubs are designed to help keep your doggy calm while they lick.

Both mats also are good for teeth and gums. Spread a delicious dog-friendly treat over the mat and freeze for a tasty distraction. For more about this particular lick mat and how it faired with our tester’s dogs, see our article, Lick Mats for Dogs: Our Dog-Tested Review.

Shop on Chewy

This is another solid option when it comes to soft textured mats. Sprinkle some kibble in the fabric strips on your way out (you can break some into smaller pieces for more foraging variety) and your dog will happily snuffle around for those crunchies. Nosework mats are great for engaging dogs mentally and physically and lets them play at being a dog foraging in the wild.

Shop on Chewy

This activity mat can be laid out flat, or shaped into a bowl for deeper digging. Your dog will enjoy sniffing through strips of grassy green fabric to find the treats and kibble that you’ve hidden for them inside. A non-slip bottom helps keep this mat from sliding on hard surfaces—throw it in the machine to wash it for the next round of foraging.

Find on Amazon

If at first you don’t succeed, dig, dig, dig again. Digging is kind of the point of this mat which has pockets and flaps of fabric in which you can bury snacks and toys. Your diligent doggo won’t know the meaning of “separation anxiety” with this toy.

How did Shirley the Pug and Olive the little Boston Terrier do with this toy? See our article, iDig Digging Toy: Is It Worth the Money? for their video review.

Find on Amazon

The Best Tech Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

Missing your pup? Check in on them with Furbo’s live-stream dog camera that also allows you to say hello to them during the day. The best part? A built-in mechanism will “toss” treats to your furry friend via the free app, so even if you are separated, your dog can be less anxious knowing they’re on your mind with this tech toy.

Verified review: “The Furbo is the ultimate ‘didn’t know I needed it until I got it’ pet tech. This treat-shooting pet spy-gear has easy set-up and a user-friendly app. You can shoot treats at your pet, talk to them through the microphone, and sneak a peek at them while you’re away via the built-in camera.

I love it because (1) I now have confirmation that my dog seems pretty content when I’m not around. (2) It sends me a push notification whenever he’s barking so I can turn on the camera and see what’s up. (Spoiler alert: It’s always the mailman.) and (3) I can remind him any time, from anywhere, that I love him. That’s definitely the best part.”

Find on Amazon

Not all toys have to be super fancy. Sometimes the simplest things bring the most comfort. Made with puppies in mind, this is a good dog toy for separation anxiety, especially for gently testing the waters with your new, young friend. The stuffed pup provides company and even comes with a heat pack to help with calming. An inserted, battery-operated heart  creates a pulsing heartbeat to help soothe your pup. Bonus: Batteries are included.

Shop on Chewy

Tell them what a sweet puppy they are—even when you’re not there. This interactive ball makes 20 different sounds, including phrases to keep your dog curious and interested. The ball activates when touched and turns off when not in use, so it doesn’t waste batteries.

Shop on Chewy

Motion-activated to encourage hours of play, this adorable owl friend is sure to pique your furry friend’s curiosity as it wiggles, barks, and makes noises all on its own. There’s also a crab and hedgehog version if you want to build a menagerie of friends to keep your dog company.

Shop on Chewy

Bluetooth-enabled, this hands-free chew toy is recommended for medium- and large-breed dogs and has two modes: autoplay and drive. For autoplay, the bone roams around at different speeds, responding to your dog’s touch. For drive, this techy toy can be controlled via app. Have your dog play with this toy in a separate room from where you can control it to begin easing back into periods of separation.

Find on Amazon

Further Reading

Featured image by Alexandr Ivanov/Pixabay

Nia Martin grew up with cats, dogs, horses, and a goldfish that lived for eight years. Based in Seattle, her writing and photography have appeared in Seattle magazine, The Seattle Times, The Fold, Cascadia Magazine, and Bitterroot Magazine, among others. When not working, you can find her petting dogs and visiting her family’s charismatic tabby, William of Orange.

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source http://www.luckydogsolutions.com/home-alone-the-best-15-dog-toys-for-separation-anxiety/ from Lucky Dog Solutions https://luckydogsolutions.blogspot.com/2020/08/home-alone-best-15-dog-toys-for.html

[barryswamsleyaz]

Home Alone: The Best 15 Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

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Our website uses cookies. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our use of cookies. To see what cookies we serve and set your own preferences, please review our Cookie Policy. Learn More.

ShareShare

Updated August 19, 2020 | Bonding with Your Dog By Nia Martin

This post contains affiliate links. Read more here.

These days, our lives are more in flux than ever. Especially due to the pandemic, we’ve had changes to daily routines, work schedules, and even home life. You’re not the only one who feels overwhelmed by these shifts—your dog does, too. Toys are great tools to help ease your pup back into a routine—and help minimize separation anxiety. After all, your dog has gotten used to your company and attention, but as things continue to shift, your attention and presence may be elsewhere at times and for longer periods. That can be jarring to your pet. The best dog toys for separation anxiety are those that keep their senses engaged and don’t depend on you for interaction.

Start off with a new toy by giving it to your dog in the next room and build up from there. Always supervise play in the beginning when introducing a new toy in order to ensure that it’s safe for your dog—no toy is totally dog-proof.

The Best Puzzle Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

We’ve broken out our picks for the best dog toys for separation anxiety into a few different categories, including puzzle toys, snuffle mats, and tech toys, so you can find what works best for your dog—they won’t even notice you’re gone!

When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with a Kong. Durable for hours of licks and chews, stuff it with treats, or even freeze it with some peanut butter for an extra yummy challenge. It will keep your doggo busy, whether in their crate or just enjoying some solo playtime.

Verified review: “I use my Kongs (yes, I have multiple) constantly, not just to give my dog Buster something to do at home alone but to make him use his doggy brain to eat his meals. This thing can be frozen and put in the dishwasher, plus it bounces and floats. Buster loves it.”

Shop on Chewy

Trapping treats inside the ridges, this toy invites your pup to sink their teeth into a challenge, making it a great dog toy for separation anxiety. And if that gets too easy, you can up the degree of difficulty by connecting two different sizes of the toy together, keeping your dog very occupied.

Shop on Chewy

This toy’s all about concentration, so your dog might not even notice you’ve headed out for groceries. The flippable treat canisters come with two sets of lids with different sized holes so you can vary the degree of difficulty. Balance and precision are key, so this is the right fit for a dog who’s no stranger to puzzle toys.

Verified review: “This toy is a little more challenging and is designed for the intermediate canine gamer. It has three rotating beakers that can be filled with treats. Each beaker can be covered with two included sets of lids which can be mixed or matched to make it easier or harder.” (For more about this toy, see our Puzzle Toy Roundup review video.)

Shop on Chewy

Available in four different sizes, this plush hide-and-seek toy is full of fun. Your doggo can retrieve each of the squeaky squirrels nestled inside the soft tree trunk, one at a time. There’s even enough space in the trunk to hide some treats for longer play. Note that this toy is not advisable for destructive chewers.

Verified review: “This toy is like three toys in one. After my dog has pulled out all the squirrels, he likes to snuggle up with the soft trunk or toss the squeaky rodents around. It’s one of the few toys he plays with daily.”

Shop on Chewy

Take this puzzle toy for a spin—literally! From dog game creator Nina Ottosson, this toy has multiple rotating layers to explore—conceal treats in the slots. Does your dog need more of a challenge? Place the bone-shaped covers over the slots so your dog has dig out those hidden treats, along with spinning the layers. Separation anxiety? What separation anxiety?

Shop on Chewy

The Best Mat Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

It may not look like much, but this simple mat is actually a pretty great dog toy for separation anxiety. It engages your doggy’s nosework as they hunt for treats embedded amongst the fabric tufts. For more about snuffle mats, check out our article on the classic snuffle mat here.

Shop on Chewy

Having different ways to serve up treats is great for keeping your dog too busy to notice you’re not home. Hyper Pet makes a variety of textured mats: the Buddy is ridged in a maze-like pattern to keep pups occupied finding all the nooks, while the Soother’s nubs are designed to help keep your doggy calm while they lick.

Both mats also are good for teeth and gums. Spread a delicious dog-friendly treat over the mat and freeze for a tasty distraction. For more about this particular lick mat and how it faired with our tester’s dogs, see our article, Lick Mats for Dogs: Our Dog-Tested Review.

Shop on Chewy

This is another solid option when it comes to soft textured mats. Sprinkle some kibble in the fabric strips on your way out (you can break some into smaller pieces for more foraging variety) and your dog will happily snuffle around for those crunchies. Nosework mats are great for engaging dogs mentally and physically and lets them play at being a dog foraging in the wild.

Shop on Chewy

This activity mat can be laid out flat, or shaped into a bowl for deeper digging. Your dog will enjoy sniffing through strips of grassy green fabric to find the treats and kibble that you’ve hidden for them inside. A non-slip bottom helps keep this mat from sliding on hard surfaces—throw it in the machine to wash it for the next round of foraging.

Find on Amazon

If at first you don’t succeed, dig, dig, dig again. Digging is kind of the point of this mat which has pockets and flaps of fabric in which you can bury snacks and toys. Your diligent doggo won’t know the meaning of “separation anxiety” with this toy.

How did Shirley the Pug and Olive the little Boston Terrier do with this toy? See our article, iDig Digging Toy: Is It Worth the Money? for their video review.

Find on Amazon

The Best Tech Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

Missing your pup? Check in on them with Furbo’s live-stream dog camera that also allows you to say hello to them during the day. The best part? A built-in mechanism will “toss” treats to your furry friend via the free app, so even if you are separated, your dog can be less anxious knowing they’re on your mind with this tech toy.

Verified review: “The Furbo is the ultimate ‘didn’t know I needed it until I got it’ pet tech. This treat-shooting pet spy-gear has easy set-up and a user-friendly app. You can shoot treats at your pet, talk to them through the microphone, and sneak a peek at them while you’re away via the built-in camera.

I love it because (1) I now have confirmation that my dog seems pretty content when I’m not around. (2) It sends me a push notification whenever he’s barking so I can turn on the camera and see what’s up. (Spoiler alert: It’s always the mailman.) and (3) I can remind him any time, from anywhere, that I love him. That’s definitely the best part.”

Find on Amazon

Not all toys have to be super fancy. Sometimes the simplest things bring the most comfort. Made with puppies in mind, this is a good dog toy for separation anxiety, especially for gently testing the waters with your new, young friend. The stuffed pup provides company and even comes with a heat pack to help with calming. An inserted, battery-operated heart  creates a pulsing heartbeat to help soothe your pup. Bonus: Batteries are included.

Shop on Chewy

Tell them what a sweet puppy they are—even when you’re not there. This interactive ball makes 20 different sounds, including phrases to keep your dog curious and interested. The ball activates when touched and turns off when not in use, so it doesn’t waste batteries.

Shop on Chewy

Motion-activated to encourage hours of play, this adorable owl friend is sure to pique your furry friend’s curiosity as it wiggles, barks, and makes noises all on its own. There’s also a crab and hedgehog version if you want to build a menagerie of friends to keep your dog company.

Shop on Chewy

Bluetooth-enabled, this hands-free chew toy is recommended for medium- and large-breed dogs and has two modes: autoplay and drive. For autoplay, the bone roams around at different speeds, responding to your dog’s touch. For drive, this techy toy can be controlled via app. Have your dog play with this toy in a separate room from where you can control it to begin easing back into periods of separation.

Find on Amazon

Further Reading

Featured image by Alexandr Ivanov/Pixabay

Nia Martin grew up with cats, dogs, horses, and a goldfish that lived for eight years. Based in Seattle, her writing and photography have appeared in Seattle magazine, The Seattle Times, The Fold, Cascadia Magazine, and Bitterroot Magazine, among others. When not working, you can find her petting dogs and visiting her family’s charismatic tabby, William of Orange.

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Home Alone: The Best 15 Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

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Updated August 19, 2020 | Bonding with Your Dog By Nia Martin

This post contains affiliate links. Read more here.

These days, our lives are more in flux than ever. Especially due to the pandemic, we’ve had changes to daily routines, work schedules, and even home life. You’re not the only one who feels overwhelmed by these shifts—your dog does, too. Toys are great tools to help ease your pup back into a routine—and help minimize separation anxiety. After all, your dog has gotten used to your company and attention, but as things continue to shift, your attention and presence may be elsewhere at times and for longer periods. That can be jarring to your pet. The best dog toys for separation anxiety are those that keep their senses engaged and don’t depend on you for interaction.

Start off with a new toy by giving it to your dog in the next room and build up from there. Always supervise play in the beginning when introducing a new toy in order to ensure that it’s safe for your dog—no toy is totally dog-proof.

The Best Puzzle Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

We’ve broken out our picks for the best dog toys for separation anxiety into a few different categories, including puzzle toys, snuffle mats, and tech toys, so you can find what works best for your dog—they won’t even notice you’re gone!

When in doubt, you can’t go wrong with a Kong. Durable for hours of licks and chews, stuff it with treats, or even freeze it with some peanut butter for an extra yummy challenge. It will keep your doggo busy, whether in their crate or just enjoying some solo playtime.

Verified review: “I use my Kongs (yes, I have multiple) constantly, not just to give my dog Buster something to do at home alone but to make him use his doggy brain to eat his meals. This thing can be frozen and put in the dishwasher, plus it bounces and floats. Buster loves it.”

Shop on Chewy

Trapping treats inside the ridges, this toy invites your pup to sink their teeth into a challenge, making it a great dog toy for separation anxiety. And if that gets too easy, you can up the degree of difficulty by connecting two different sizes of the toy together, keeping your dog very occupied.

Shop on Chewy

This toy’s all about concentration, so your dog might not even notice you’ve headed out for groceries. The flippable treat canisters come with two sets of lids with different sized holes so you can vary the degree of difficulty. Balance and precision are key, so this is the right fit for a dog who’s no stranger to puzzle toys.

Verified review: “This toy is a little more challenging and is designed for the intermediate canine gamer. It has three rotating beakers that can be filled with treats. Each beaker can be covered with two included sets of lids which can be mixed or matched to make it easier or harder.” (For more about this toy, see our Puzzle Toy Roundup review video.)

Shop on Chewy

Available in four different sizes, this plush hide-and-seek toy is full of fun. Your doggo can retrieve each of the squeaky squirrels nestled inside the soft tree trunk, one at a time. There’s even enough space in the trunk to hide some treats for longer play. Note that this toy is not advisable for destructive chewers.

Verified review: “This toy is like three toys in one. After my dog has pulled out all the squirrels, he likes to snuggle up with the soft trunk or toss the squeaky rodents around. It’s one of the few toys he plays with daily.”

Shop on Chewy

Take this puzzle toy for a spin—literally! From dog game creator Nina Ottosson, this toy has multiple rotating layers to explore—conceal treats in the slots. Does your dog need more of a challenge? Place the bone-shaped covers over the slots so your dog has dig out those hidden treats, along with spinning the layers. Separation anxiety? What separation anxiety?

Shop on Chewy

The Best Mat Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

It may not look like much, but this simple mat is actually a pretty great dog toy for separation anxiety. It engages your doggy’s nosework as they hunt for treats embedded amongst the fabric tufts. For more about snuffle mats, check out our article on the classic snuffle mat here.

Shop on Chewy

Having different ways to serve up treats is great for keeping your dog too busy to notice you’re not home. Hyper Pet makes a variety of textured mats: the Buddy is ridged in a maze-like pattern to keep pups occupied finding all the nooks, while the Soother’s nubs are designed to help keep your doggy calm while they lick.

Both mats also are good for teeth and gums. Spread a delicious dog-friendly treat over the mat and freeze for a tasty distraction. For more about this particular lick mat and how it faired with our tester’s dogs, see our article, Lick Mats for Dogs: Our Dog-Tested Review.

Shop on Chewy

This is another solid option when it comes to soft textured mats. Sprinkle some kibble in the fabric strips on your way out (you can break some into smaller pieces for more foraging variety) and your dog will happily snuffle around for those crunchies. Nosework mats are great for engaging dogs mentally and physically and lets them play at being a dog foraging in the wild.

Shop on Chewy

This activity mat can be laid out flat, or shaped into a bowl for deeper digging. Your dog will enjoy sniffing through strips of grassy green fabric to find the treats and kibble that you’ve hidden for them inside. A non-slip bottom helps keep this mat from sliding on hard surfaces—throw it in the machine to wash it for the next round of foraging.

Find on Amazon

If at first you don’t succeed, dig, dig, dig again. Digging is kind of the point of this mat which has pockets and flaps of fabric in which you can bury snacks and toys. Your diligent doggo won’t know the meaning of “separation anxiety” with this toy.

How did Shirley the Pug and Olive the little Boston Terrier do with this toy? See our article, iDig Digging Toy: Is It Worth the Money? for their video review.

Find on Amazon

The Best Tech Dog Toys for Separation Anxiety

Missing your pup? Check in on them with Furbo’s live-stream dog camera that also allows you to say hello to them during the day. The best part? A built-in mechanism will “toss” treats to your furry friend via the free app, so even if you are separated, your dog can be less anxious knowing they’re on your mind with this tech toy.

Verified review: “The Furbo is the ultimate ‘didn’t know I needed it until I got it’ pet tech. This treat-shooting pet spy-gear has easy set-up and a user-friendly app. You can shoot treats at your pet, talk to them through the microphone, and sneak a peek at them while you’re away via the built-in camera.

I love it because (1) I now have confirmation that my dog seems pretty content when I’m not around. (2) It sends me a push notification whenever he’s barking so I can turn on the camera and see what’s up. (Spoiler alert: It’s always the mailman.) and (3) I can remind him any time, from anywhere, that I love him. That’s definitely the best part.”

Find on Amazon

Not all toys have to be super fancy. Sometimes the simplest things bring the most comfort. Made with puppies in mind, this is a good dog toy for separation anxiety, especially for gently testing the waters with your new, young friend. The stuffed pup provides company and even comes with a heat pack to help with calming. An inserted, battery-operated heart  creates a pulsing heartbeat to help soothe your pup. Bonus: Batteries are included.

Shop on Chewy

Tell them what a sweet puppy they are—even when you’re not there. This interactive ball makes 20 different sounds, including phrases to keep your dog curious and interested. The ball activates when touched and turns off when not in use, so it doesn’t waste batteries.

Shop on Chewy

Motion-activated to encourage hours of play, this adorable owl friend is sure to pique your furry friend’s curiosity as it wiggles, barks, and makes noises all on its own. There’s also a crab and hedgehog version if you want to build a menagerie of friends to keep your dog company.

Shop on Chewy

Bluetooth-enabled, this hands-free chew toy is recommended for medium- and large-breed dogs and has two modes: autoplay and drive. For autoplay, the bone roams around at different speeds, responding to your dog’s touch. For drive, this techy toy can be controlled via app. Have your dog play with this toy in a separate room from where you can control it to begin easing back into periods of separation.

Find on Amazon

Further Reading

Featured image by Alexandr Ivanov/Pixabay

Nia Martin grew up with cats, dogs, horses, and a goldfish that lived for eight years. Based in Seattle, her writing and photography have appeared in Seattle magazine, The Seattle Times, The Fold, Cascadia Magazine, and Bitterroot Magazine, among others. When not working, you can find her petting dogs and visiting her family’s charismatic tabby, William of Orange.

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from Lucky Dog Solutions http://www.luckydogsolutions.com/home-alone-the-best-15-dog-toys-for-separation-anxiety/

[consulting-celiac-in-the-tardis]

45 Healthier Gluten Free Desserts for Valentine's Day

New blog post! Regardless of whether you're single or in a long-term relationship, a Valentine's Day lover or hater, our Valentine's Days all have one thing in common: lots of delicious food! To help make your February even tastier than usual, though, I thought I'd round up some of my favorite gluten free dessert recipes. The best part? All of these Valentine desserts have been given a healthy twist, whether it's by making them paleo, low carb or vegan, sneaking in some hidden veggies or including less sugar than your typical dessert. BUT they all taste just as delicious!

So whether you're looking for the best gluten free dessert recipes, healthier dessert ideas or just a delicious way to celebrate Valentine's Day this year, keep reading to discover 45 delicious gluten free dessert recipes!

1. Chocolate Raspberry Truffles (Keto) - Keen for Keto

These chocolate truffles look almost too good to eat. But if someone has to do it...I'll sure volunteer!

2. Avocado Chocolate Pudding (Vegan, Raw) - Imagelicious 

Out of all the gluten free vegan recipes out there, this avocado chocolate pudding is a definitely must-make. Who can turn down a creamy, dreamy chocolate dessert?!?

3. Healthier Blackberry Apple Hazelnut Crisp - Pass Me Some Tasty

A traditional gluten free apple crisp just got a berry delicious makeover.

4. Super Clumpy Summer Squash Granola (Vegan, Sugar Free, Oil Free) - Casey the College Celiac

Combine this gluten free granola with your choice of vegan ice cream, banana ice cream or dairy-full treat, and you'll have one delicious creamy and crunchy combo!

(As with all of the recipes in this round up, you should make sure you use gluten free, non-cross-contaminated nuts and seeds if you have celiac disease. Scroll to the bottom of this post for info on my favorite places to buy gluten free seeds/nuts!)

5. Apple Donut - Courtney's Sweets

Grab some gluten free frosting and apple slices will never taste so good.

6. Beet Nut Butter Cups (Vegan) - Veggie Desserts

There's no beet-ter way to get in some veggies than with these chocolate treats! Plus, this easy gluten free dessert only requires four ingredients to make.

7. Banana Mug Cake (Grain Free, Dairy Free, Vegan and Whole 30 Options) - One Clever Chef

If you've ever wished you could eat some banana bread or cake in two minutes or less...here's your dream come true.

8. Healthy Peanut Butter Balls (Keto, Low Carb) - Joy Filled Eats 

All you need is four ingredients to whip up a keto dessert that any peanut butter lover will fall head over heels for...

9. Chocolate Pecan Love Bites (Vegan) - E. A. Stewart Spicy RD Nutrition

These gluten free cookies have a secret healthy ingredient. Hint: it starts with "chick" and ends with "peas"...

10. Brownie Batter Hummus (Vegan) - Pink Fortitude

Who knew hummus could make such a delicious dessert?!?

11. Easy Paleo Strawberry Cream Pie (No Bake) - Oh The Things We'll Make

Nothing says "Valentine's Day" like a pink paleo dessert that only takes 20 minutes to make...

12. Red Velvet Brownies (Vegan) - Veg Annie 

Beets, squash and black beans make these brownies as nutritious as they are delicious!

13. Superfood Berry Banana Bites (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac

Frozen fruit has never tasted so good!

14. 4-Ingredient (No Butter!) Chocolate Fudge with Coconut - Two Healthy Kitchens

If you're looking for easy gluten free desserts, this simple fudge fits the bill! You can make it ahead of time and mold it into whatever shapes fit your fancy.

15. Vanilla Cupcakes with Perfectly Pink Beet-Dyed Coconut Cream Frosting (Vegan) - Just Beet It

I really don't know what to say besides YUM.

16. Chocolate Banana Bars - This Ole Mom 

Make sure you use certified gluten free oats to whip up these gluten free dessert bars. I still can't believe this dessert features beans!

17. Triple Chocolate Mousse Shooters (Paleo, Refined Sugar Free) - Raia's Recipes

Creamy avocado mousse + fluffy coconut whipped cream + a crumbly almond flour crust = major YUM.

18. Easy No-Bake Chocolate Fig Bars (4-Ingredients, Vegan, Grain-Free) - Clean Eating Kitchen

Gluten free vegan recipes can sometimes require complicated ingredients or a lot of time in the kitchen...but this dessert recipe is the exception! Throw together some gluten free figs, pumpkin seeds, chocolate chips and coconut oil, and prepare to enjoy a Valentine's Day dessert you'll definitely remember.

19. Chocolate Superfood Smoothie Bowl (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac 

This vegan smoothie recipe is nutritious enough to be eaten for breakfast but tastes decadent enough to eat as dessert. The best of both worlds!

20. Sweet Potato Brownies (Vegan) - Rhian's Recipes

Sweet potatoes are the secret ingredient to these super fudgy gluten free brownies...

21. Easy Chocolate Fat Bombs with Coconut Oil (Keto, Paleo, Low Carb) - Wholesome Yum

Am I the only one drooling?!? I doubt it! A low carb dessert has never looked so decadent.

22. Strawberry Cupcakes - The Soccer Mom Blog

I love that these gluten free cupcakes feature some fresh strawberry puree in their batter and icing!

23. Keto Low Carb Cheesecake - Noshtastic

This is one keto dessert that anyone would enjoy digging into...

24. Chocolate Cauliflower Ice Lollies (Vegan) - Recipes From a Pantry

Can you believe these vegan popsicles have cauliflower in them?!? Mind. Blown.

25. Superfood Chocolate Banana Brownies (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac 

These brownies are soft like banana bread, packed with chocolate flavor and loaded with hidden superfoods. What more could you want?!?

26.  Raspberry Dusted Brownie Truffles (Vegan) - Spabettie

I have some gluten free cashews in my pantry that are begging to be made into this chocolate vegan dessert!

27. Homemade Jello Snacks - Food Meanderings 

Cut these homemade jello snacks into a heart, and no one will ever guess they're loaded with fruits and veggies!

28. Red Velvet Cupcakes - Good for You Gluten Free 

You can't go wrong with a classic...especially since these gluten free cupcakes are dyed naturally with beets.

29. Vegan Chocolate Pudding - Deliciously Plated

I love how the tart raspberry sauce complements the thick, rich vegan chocolate pudding! And if you're scared of diving into avocado pudding right away, this dessert features banana as well for extra sweetness.

30. The Best Low Carb Carrot Cake (Grain Free, No Sugar Added) - Dr. Davinah's Eats 

I've never been a huge carrot cake person, but I bet this could convert me!

31. 2-Ingredient Protein Candy (Vegan) - Nest and Glow

To get a dose of protein with your sweet fix, whip up this super easy 2-ingredient protein candy! I've had chocolate covered chickpeas before and they are waaaaay more delicious than they sound, so I definitely need to give this recipe a try.

31. Sweet n' Salty Banana Ice Cream (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac 

If you want an easy gluten free dessert, look no further than banana ice cream! You only need a few ingredients and it's super easy to make in a high-speed blender or food processor.

32. Delicata Squash Coconut Flour Brownies (Paleo) - Fearless Dining

Who knew that squash and chocolate were soul mates?!?

33. Chocolate Avocado Cupcakes (Vegan, No Added Oil) - Healthy Slow Cooking

Is there anything avocado can't do?!? I don't think so...

34. Low Carb Salted Raspberry Chocolate Bark (Keto) - Appetite for Energy 

Frozen raspberries are icing sprinkles on top of this homemade keto chocolate dessert.

35. Strawberry Chunky Monkey Dessert Quesadilla (Vegan Option) - Casey the College Celiac

Quesadillas just got a sweet and delicious upgrade!

36. Red Velvet Cheesecake Cupcakes (Low Carb) - Low Carb Yum

This low carb cream cheese dessert is perfect for Valentine's Day...or any day of the year, really!

37. Sweet Millet Balls with Sweet Berry Sauce (Vegan) - My Pure Plants 

Millet is high in fiber, protein, magnesium, copper and manganese...and it makes for a delicious, light dessert in the form of sweet millet balls.

38. Flourless Chocolate Cake (Dairy Free) - Cathy's Gluten Free 

Everyone loves a classic flourless chocolate cake...but this one's a lil' healthier by using coconut oil.

39. Easy Baked Cinnamon Apples (Vegan) - Delightful Adventures

Sometimes dessert can be as simple (and scrumptious) as baked apples!

40. Healthy Blueberry Banana Mug Cake (Vegan) - Vibrant Guide

Who needs blueberry banana oatmeal when you can grind up those gluten free oats and make a vegan mug cake instead?

41. Mini Almond Flour Chocolate Cake - Snappy Gourmet

Excuse me as I lick my computer screen...

42. Chewy Pumpkin Popcorn Balls (Vegan) - Casey the College Celiac 

Depending on the popcorn you use, this gluten free dessert is refined sugar free. Plus, you sneak in some veggies with the pumpkin!

43. Quinoa and Lavender Healthy Chocolate Bark - Turning the Clock Back

Homemade chocolate bark gets some added protein from quinoa and a pop of color and unique flavor from edible lavender. 

44. Chickpea Flour Cookies (Vegan) - Our Wasabi Life

Gluten free cookies just got a deliciously healthy makeover with chickpea flour. 

45. Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake (Vegan) - Give It a Whirl Girl

Who says you can't have cheesecake while eating a vegan diet?!? 

Where to Find Gluten Free Nuts/Seeds for Your Baking Adventures

As you've probably noticed, a lot of these gluten free recipes feature nuts and seeds. Make sure yours are gluten free and non-cross-contaminated. (Same with any oats you use!) Some of my favorite brands to buy gluten free nuts and seeds from are Nuts.com and Anthony's Goods (I usually order the latter on Amazon). I'm also an ambassador for Foods Alive, which offer a variety of delicious seeds and nuts, from hemp seeds to walnuts. Some of my favorites are their organic sunflower seeds and organic pumpkin seeds.  

The Bottom Line of Eating Gluten Free This Valentine's Day

When you're first diagnosed with celiac disease or need to start a gluten free diet, it can feel overwhelming to prepare gluten free foods for holidays like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day. As this round up shows, though, you don't have to eat gluten in order to enjoy a delicious dessert this Valentine's Day! In fact, you can even eat your cake and some hidden veggies with a lot of these gluten free dessert ideas. So whatever your dietary needs this holiday - from general gluten free to low carb to keto to refined sugar free - I hope you show yourself some extra edible love this Valentine's Day. Which recipe from this round up would you like to try first? Tell me in the comments! via Blogger http://bit.ly/2td3xju

#Blogger #college #celiac #gluten free #coeliac #celiacs #paleo #primal #foodporn #foodart

[oovitus]

Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control).

You know the feeling: One salty crunch turns into 100, and suddenly you’re licking the cheese dust and wondering: What’s wrong with me? 

Actually, it’s normal to feel like you can’t stop overeating certain things. Today’s hyperpalatable food is creating a modern-day food crisis — one that’s leaving us feeling sick, out of control, and constantly craving more.

Here’s how it works, plus 3 ways to overcome it.

++++

It’s happened to us all.

After a frenzy of lustful grabbing and furious crunching, we find ourselves at the bottom of a jumbo bag of chips.

“How did that happen?” we ask fuzzily.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stop?”

But, before going into full-fledged self-loathing mode, consider this.

Processed foods are scientifically engineered to be irresistible and easy to gobble up in large quantities. If you can’t stop, the chips are doing their job.

(In fact, someone at Frito-Lay probably got a promotion for that recipe.)

That’s why, in this article, we’ll explain exactly how junk food is designed to make us respond with compulsive, manic, gotta-have-more snack sessions.

Even better, we’ll arm you with three useful strategies for examining your relationship with processed food and taking control of overeating.

Because, if you feel out of control around certain foods, you’re not crazy.

Even healthy eaters feel out of control around food sometimes. Even if we value nutrition and want to take care of ourselves, some foods can make us feel… kinda possessed.

Know what I mean?

You show up to a potluck with quinoa salad goals and find yourself inhaling a plate of chips, cookies, and some chocolate-peanut-butter-marshmallow thing that some devil, um friend, made.

You reach into the freezer to have one spoonful of ice cream and suddenly you’re mining the caramel swirl, then the nut clusters, then the brownie chunks, and then… your spoon scrapes the bottom.

You just want a bite of your friend’s french fry, but you find yourself elbowing her out of the way so you can steal all the fries, plus the burger too.

Even with the best intentions, the pull of certain foods is so strong that it can leave us feeling powerless.

If you’ve felt this, you’re not alone (and you’re not broken).

Certain foods are actually designed to make us overeat.

If you’re overeating, it’s not because there’s something wrong with you or your willpower.

Here’s the truth: There’s a whole industry dedicated to creating food that’s hyperpalatable — food that’s so tasty it’s nearly irresistible.

Your body and brain are responding exactly as they’re supposed to. It’s supposed to feel almost unnatural to stop eating these foods!

But we’re not talking about food like celery sticks, whole brown rice, or baked salmon filets.

(How often do you hear yourself say, “I ate sooo much steamed asparagus! I just couldn’t stop myself!” That’s right. You’ve never heard yourself say that.)

We’re talking about processed foods.

Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their original, whole-food form in order to change their flavor, texture, or shelf-life. Often, they’re altered so that they hit as many pleasure centers as possible — from our brains to our mouths to our bellies.

Processed foods are highly cravable, immediately gratifying, fun to eat, and easy to over-consume quickly (and often cheaply).

Processed foods will also look and feel different from their whole food counterparts, depending on the degree that they’re processed.

Let’s take corn as an example.

Boiled and eaten off the cob it’s pale yellow, kinda fibrous, but chewy and delicious.

Corn that’s a bit processed — ground into a meal and shaped into a flat disk — turns into a soft corn tortilla. A tortilla has a nice corny flavor and a soft, pliable texture that makes it easy to eat and digest.

But what if you ultra-process that corn? You remove all the fiber, isolate the starch, and then use that starch to make little ring-shaped chips, which are fried and dusted with sweet and salty barbecue powder. They’re freaking delicious.

That corn on the cob is yummy. But those corn-derived ring chips? They’re… well they’re gone because someone ate them all.

Let’s take an even deeper look

The food industry has a variety of processing methods and ingredient additives they use to make food extra tasty and easy to consume…. and over-consume.

Here are a few examples:

Extrusion

Grains are processed into a slurry and pass through a machine called an extruder. With the help of high heat and pressure, whole, raw grains get transformed into airy, crispy, easy-to-digest shapes like cereals, crackers, and other crunchy foods with uniform shapes.

In addition to changing texture and digestibility, the extrusion process also destroys certain nutrients and enzymes, denatures proteins, and changes the starch composition of a grain. This lowers the nutrition and increases the glycemic index of the product.

Emulsifiers

Used to improve the “mouth feel” of a product, emulsifiers smooth out and thicken texture, creating a rich, luxurious feel. Although there are natural emulsifiers, like egg yolk, the food industry often uses chemical emulsifiers like Polysorbate-80, sodium phosphate, and carboxymethylcellulose.

Emulsifiers are often found in creamy treats like ice cream products and processed dairy foods like flavored yogurts or neon orange cheese spreads.

Flavor enhancers

Flavor additives like artificial flavoring agents or monosodium glutamate (MSG) allow food manufacturers to amplify taste without adding whole-food ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or spices. This is useful because artificial flavoring agents are cheap and won’t change a product’s texture.

Coloring agents

Color strongly affects how appealing we perceive a food to be. No one wants to eat gray crackers; add a toasty golden hue and suddenly that cracker is a lot more appealing. Coloring agents, like Yellow #5 (tartrazine) and Red #40 (allura red),  are added purely for the look of food — they don’t add nutrition.

Recently, many large food corporations have been switching to natural foods dyes, like beet powder or turmeric, to color their food products after some correlations emerged linking artificial coloring agents to behavioral problems in children.

Oil hydrogenation

Natural fats eventually go rancid, changing their flavor and texture. In order to render fats more stable, hydrogen atoms are added to fats (usually vegetable oils) so they are less vulnerable to oxidation.

Food manufacturers use hydrogenated oils because it means their products can stay on the shelves for longer without changing flavor or texture. However, the consumption of hydrogenated fats, or trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How processed foods trick us into eating more than we meant to.

There are four sneaky ways processed food can make you overeat. Often, we’re not even aware of how much these factors affect us.

That’s why, awareness = power.

1. Marketing convinces us that processed foods are “healthy”.

Processed foods come in packages with bright colors, cartoon characters, celebrity endorsements, and powerful words that triggers all kinds of positive associations.

Take, for example, “health halo” foods.

“Health halo” foods are processed foods that contain health buzzwords like organic, vegan, and gluten-free on their label to create an illusion, or halo, of health around them.

Companies come out with organic versions of their boxed macaroni and cheese, gluten-free versions of their glazed pastries, and vegan versions of their icing-filled cookies.

You’ll see chips “prepared with avocado oil,” sugary cereal “made with flaxseeds,” or creamy chip dip with “real spinach.”

The nutrient content of those foods isn’t particularly impressive, but the addition of nutrition buzzwords and trendy ingredients make us perceive them as healthier.

Marketers also choose words that relate more broadly to self-care.

Ever notice how many processed food slogans sound like this?

“Have a break.”

“Take some time for yourself.”

“You deserve it.”

Words like “break” and “deserve” distract us from our physical sensations and tap into our feelings — a place where we just want to be understood, supported, soothed, and perhaps just escape for a moment.

Health buzzwords and emotional appeals can make us perceive a food as “good for me”; it seems like a wise and caring choice to put them in our shopping carts, then in our mouths.

And if a food is “healthy” or “we deserve it,” we don’t feel so bad eating as much as we want.

2. Big portions make us think we’re getting a “good deal”.

People get mixed up about food and value.

We’re taught to save money and not waste food.

We’re taught to buy more for less.

Given the choice between a small juice for two dollars, and a pop with endless refills for the same price, the pop seems like better value.

What we don’t calculate into this equation is something I like to call the “health tax.”

The “health tax” is the toll you pay for eating low-nutrient, highly processed foods. If you eat them consistently over time, eventually you’ll pay the price with your health.

When companies use cheap, poor quality ingredients, they can sell bigger quantities without raising the price.

But what’s the deal?

Sure, you’ll save a buck in the short term, but you’ll pay the health tax — through poor health — in the long term.

3. Variety makes us hungrier.

Choice excites us.

Think of a self-serve frozen yogurt topping bar:

“Ooh! Sprinkles! And beer nuts! Oh, and they have those mini peanut butter cups! And granola clusters! Wait, are those crushed cookies?? And cheesecake chunks??! YES! Now on to the drizzles…”

Before you know it, there‘s a leaning tower of frozen dessert in front of you.

Or think of those “party mixes” — pretzels and corn chips and cheesy puffs and barbeque rings — all in one bag! The fun never ends because there’s a variety of flavors and textures to amuse you forever!

When we have lots of variety, we have lots of appetite.

It’s hard to overeat tons of one thing, with one flavor, like apples.

How many apples can you eat before, frankly, you get bored?

Reduce the variety and you also reduce distraction from your body’s built-in self-regulating signals. When we’re not so giddy with choice and stimuli, we’re more likely to slow down, eat mindfully, and eat less.

4. Multiple flavors at once are irresistible.

If there’s a party in your mouth, you can guarantee that at least two out of three of the following guests will be there:

Sugar

Fat

Salt

These three flavors — the sweetness of sugar, the luxurious mouthfeel of fat, and the sharp savory of salt — are favorites among those of us with mouths.

I never hear my clients say that they love eating spoonfuls of sugar or salt, or that they want to chug a bottle of oil.

However, when you combine these flavors, they become ultra delicious and hard-to-resist. This is called stimuli stacking — combining two or more flavors to create a hyperpalatable food.

For example:

The satisfying combination of fat and salt, found in chips, fries, nachos, cheesy things, etc.

The comforting combination of fat and sugar, found in baked goods, fudge, ice cream, cookies, chocolate, etc.

The irresistible combination of all three — heaven forbid you stumble on a combo of fat, salt, and sugar — a salted chocolate brownie, or caramel corn with candied nuts, or fries with ketchup!

Food manufacturers know: When it comes to encouraging people to overeat, two flavors are better than one.

In fact, when I spoke to an industry insider, a food scientist at a prominent processed food manufacturer, she revealed the specific “stimuli stacking” formula that the food industry uses to create hyperpalatable food.

They call it “The Big 5.”

Foods that fulfill “The Big 5” are:

Calorie dense, usually high in sugar and/or fat.

Intensely flavored — the food must deliver strong flavor hits.

Immediately delicious, with a love-at-first taste experience.

Easy to eat — no effortful chewing needed!

“Melted” down easily — the food almost dissolves in your mouth, thus easy to eat quickly and overconsume.

When these five factors exist in one food, you get a product that’s practically irresistible.

In fact, foods developed by this company have to hit the big 5, or they’re not allowed to go to market.

When processed food manufacturers evaluate a prospective food product, the “irresistibility” (the extent to which a person can’t stop eating a food) is more important even than taste!

Just think about the ease of eating whole foods versus processed foods:

Whole foods require about 25 chews per mouthful, which means that you have to slow down. When you slow down, your satiety signals keep pace with your eating and have a chance to tell you when you’ve had enough. Which is probably why you’ve never overeaten Brussel sprouts (also because, farting).

Processed food manufacturers, on the other hand, aim for food products to be broken down in 10 chews or less per mouthful. That means the intense, flavorful, crazy-delicious experience is over quickly, and you’re left wanting more — ASAP.

Restaurants use these “ease of eating” tactics, too.

A major national chain uses this sci-fi-esque trick:

To make their signature chicken dish, each chicken breast is injected with a highly flavored sauce through hundreds of tiny needles. This results in a jacked-up chicken breast with intense flavor hits, but also tenderizes the chicken so it requires less chewing.

In other words, there’s a reason that restaurant chicken often goes down easier and just tastes better than the simple grilled chicken breast you make in your kitchen. Unless you have hundreds of tiny sauce-needles (weird), that chicken is hard to recreate at home.

This is why I rarely talk about willpower when my clients come to me struggling with overeating. If you’re relying on willpower to resist these foods, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

The solution isn’t more willpower. The solution is educating yourself about these foods, examining your own relationship with food, and employing strategies that put you in control.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Our love of certain flavors has very primitive roots.

So does our desire to load up on calories.

Once upon a time, food was not so abundant. Not only was food challenging to obtain — through effortful scavenging and hunting — but it was also not reliably safe.

That leaf over there? Yeah, that could be poison.

Those berries? They might give you the runs or make your throat close up.

Therefore, our ancient ancestors evolved some survival instincts along the way.

For example, sweet foods tend not to be poisonous. Therefore, we stored a preference for sweet, starchy foods in our brains to keep us safe.

Babies and children are particularly attracted to sweet foods, probably because their immature immune systems are less likely to recover from eating a poisonous plant, and their immature brains can’t tell the difference between dangerous bitter green (like hemlock) and safe bitter green (like kale).

Therefore, kids’ attraction to sweet (read: safe) foods is a built-in mechanism to prevent death by poisoning.

Fat is also a preferred nutrient, as it’s high-calorie and would be a jackpot for our often-threatened-by-starvation ancestors.

While most foods our ancestors ate would have been fibrous and low-calorie (roots, greens, lean meats), fat would have been a highly prized treat.

Imagine, as a primitive hunter-gatherer, stumbling on a macadamia nut tree. The yield from that tree might provide enough calories to feed your tribe for days!

As a result, we stored another preference in our brains: fatty, calorie-dense foods = yum / stock up!

Today, of course, we don’t have to run and dig and hike for nine hours to get our food. Instead, we can just roll up to the drive-thru window and order a combination of flavors we’re primed to love — maybe in the form of a milkshake and a cheeseburger — and enjoy it while sitting in our car.

Evolution’s gifts now work against us.

So, now you see why processed foods are so hard to control yourself around.

But what can actually you do about it?

Up next, some practical strategies to put you (or your clients) in the driver’s seat.

3 strategies to find your way back to a peaceful relationship with food.

It’s one thing to know in theory why certain foods are so easy to over-consume, but it’s even more valuable to discover for yourself how food processing, certain ingredient combinations, marketing, and even easy accessibility affect you and your food choices.

So, it’s time to get a little nerdy, try some experiments, and learn some strategies that will help you improve your relationship with food, get healthier, and just feel more sane.

1. Get curious about the foods you eat.

We’ve established that processed foods are designed to be easy to eat.

For a food to be “easy to eat”, it has to be:

broken down easily (less chewing), and

low volume (doesn’t take up much physical space).

So:

Less chewing + Low volume = More eating

Chewing takes time. The more we have to chew something, the longer it takes us to eat, giving our fullness signals a chance to catch up.

That feeling of “fullness” matters a lot too.

When you eat, your stomach expands. It’s partly through that sensation of pressure that your body knows you’ve had enough. Processed foods deliver a lot of calories without taking up much space, meaning you can eat a lot before you realize you’ve overdone it.

Experiment #1: Observe as you chew.

Yup, that’s right. I want you to count your chews.

Note: Don’t do this forever. I’m not trying to turn you into the weirdo who no one wants to sit next to at the lunch table.  Just try it as an experiment to get some data about how you eat different foods.

First, eat a whole food — a vegetable, fruit, whole grain, lean protein, whatever — and count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat an entire portion of that food? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Then, next time you eat something processed, count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat that serving of pasta, chips, or cookies? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Make some comparisons and notice the differences. Contrast how long eating each of these foods takes you, how satiated you feel after eating each of them, and how much you want to keep eating.

How will you use that information to make food choices moving forward?

2. Notice the messages you’re getting about food.

Food manufacturers use creative marketing strategies to imply processed foods are healthy. And even if you know they’re not, they have other ways of getting you to buy them.

Here’s an example:

Ever notice that the produce section is the first area you pass through in grocery stores?

Grocery stores have found that if they put the produce section first, you’re more likely to purchase processed foods. This is probably because if you’ve already got your cart loaded with spinach, broccoli, and apples, perhaps you’ll feel better about picking up some ice cream, cookies, and crackers, before heading to the checkout line.

Let that sink in: The supermarkets we all shop in several times a month are designed to make you feel better about buying foods that could negatively impact your health goals.

The good news? Simply being aware of this trick can help you bypass it.

Experiment #2: Evaluate your pantry.

In this experiment, you’ll examine the foods you have in your home and the messages you’ve been given about them.

Note: Keep in mind that this is a mindful awareness activity. You’re not doing this to judge yourself or feel shame about the food choices you’ve made.

Look at your pantry with curious (and more informed) eyes.

Step 1: Look for “health halo” foods. Do you have any? If so, why did you choose them? Was it the language used to describe it? Was it the packaging? A trendy “superfood” ingredient? Is it organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, Paleo, or something else?

Step 2: Read the nutritional information. Once you’ve identified the “health halo” foods, take a closer look. Is your “healthy” organic dark chocolate peanut butter cup all that nutritionally different from that mass-market peanut butter cup? Chances are, it’s just different packaging.

Step 3: Count how many varieties of junk foods you have. If you love ice cream — how many flavors do you have? If you peek into your cupboards, are there cookies, popcorn, candy, or chips? Without judgment, count the total junk food variety currently in your home. Generally, the more options you have, the easier it is to overeat.

The takeaway?

You’ll be more aware of the particular types of marketing you’re susceptible to, which you can use to make more informed food choices.

You’ll also have a better idea of which treat foods you prefer, and by reducing the variety of them in your home, you’ll cut down on opportunities to overeat.

3. Look for patterns.

We often use food for reasons other than physical nourishment.

For example, if we feel sad, we might reach for a cookie to comfort ourselves. Temporarily, we feel better.

The next time we feel sad, we remember the temporary relief that cookie brought us. So we repeat the ritual. If we continue to repeat this cycle, we may find our arm reaching for the cookie jar every time we feel blue. We’re not even thinking about it at this point; it’s just habit.

Habits are powerful, for better or for worse. They can work for us or against us.

Luckily, we have control over this.

All it takes is a little time and an understanding of how habits get formed.

All animals learn habits in the following way:

This leads us to our next experiment…

Experiment #3: Put the science of habits to work.

If you want to break the habit of overeating, you can use this trigger, behavior, and reward loop to your advantage. Here’s how.

Step 1: identify your triggers.

A trigger can be a:

Feeling. We might eat more when we’re stressed, lonely, or bored. Food fills the void.

Time of day. We always have a cookie at 11am, or a soda at 3pm. It’s just part of our routine.

Social setting. Hey, everyone else is having beer and chicken wings, so might as well join the happy hour!

Place. For some reason, a dark movie theater or our parents’ kitchen might make us want to munch.

Thought pattern. Thinking “I deserve this” or “Life is too hard to chew kale” might steer us toward the drive-thru window.

When you find yourself eating when you’re not physically hungry, increase your awareness of your triggers by asking yourself:

What am I feeling?

What time is it?

Who am I with?

Where am I?

What thoughts am I having?

Keep a journal and look for patterns.

And remember: Overeating is generally problematic when it’s chronic — those pants are feeling pretty tight after most meals — or when episodes of overeating are particularly intense, like during a binge. So don’t get too worried with isolated episodes of overeating. To differentiate overeating from binge eating, keep in mind that binge eating feels disassociated, out of control, hard to stop, and usually comes with feelings of shame and guilt.

If, in observing your eating patterns, you discover that you may be dealing with compulsive bingeing behavior, then recruiting a doctor, therapist, or other qualified practitioner to help you navigate your feelings around food is likely the best course of action.

Step 2: Find a new behavior in response to your trigger(s).

Once you’ve identified your triggers, try associating new behaviors with them. These should support your health goals and feel good. If the new behaviors aren’t rewarding, they won’t be repeated, so they won’t be learned as habits.

In order to find the “right” new behavior, it’s helpful to know that when we eat, we’re trying to meet a “need.”

So when you brainstorm new behaviors, find something that meets that need — be it time in nature, some human connection, a physical release, or just a break from your thoughts.

For example, I had a client whose trigger was talking to her ex-husband. She felt angry when she interacted with him, and some furious crunching on chips temporarily made her feel better.

She eventually replaced the crunching with a punching bag session or by stomping up and down the stairs. Both activities were effective at relieving tension, but unlike the chips, they supported her goals.

Step 3: Practice.

Every time a trigger pops up that compels you to eat, replace eating with a healthy feel-good behavior.

Repeat this loop until the new behavior becomes a habit that’s just as automatic as reaching for the jar of peanut butter used to be.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Not all “feel-good” habits are created equal, in terms of their physiological effect on the stress response.

According to the American Psychological Association, the most effective stress relievers are:

exercising / playing sports,

reading,

listening to music,

praying / attending a religious service,

spending time with friends / family,

getting a massage,

walking outside,

meditation,

yoga, and

engaging in a creative hobby.

The least effective stress relievers are: gambling, shopping, smoking, eating, drinking, playing video games, surfing the internet, and watching TV / movies for more than two hours.

Although we may use the second list as “stress-relievers” — because they feel so good in the short term — they don’t actually reduce stress effectively.

This is because these habits rely on dopamine to give us a “hit” of pleasure. Dopamine feels rewarding immediately, but because it’s an excitatory neurotransmitter, it actually stimulates adrenaline and initiates the stress response.

In contrast, the first list of habits boost neurotransmitters like serotonin, GABA, and oxytocin, which calm down the stress response and induce a feeling of wellbeing.

Although these activities aren’t initially as “exciting” as the second list, they’re ultimately more rewarding and more effective at relieving stress long-term.

It’s not just about the food

As a dietician, I know how important nutrition is. So it might surprise you to hear me say the following:

It’s not all about the food.

Structure your diet around colorful, nutrient-dense whole foods, but also remember that a healthy life is not about calorie math or obsessing over everything you put in your mouth.

A healthy life is about giving time and attention to our whole selves.

Eating happens in context.

Pay attention to your mindset, your relationships, your work, and your environment.

When we’re well-nourished in other areas of our life, we’re less likely to use food as a cure-all when we struggle.

So if there’s one more piece of nutrition advice I have, it’s this:

Be good to yourself.

Not just at the table, but in all areas of life.

What to do next

1. Be kind, curious, and honest.

When we fall short of our ideals, we think that beating ourselves up is the fastest way to improvement. But it’s not.

Criticism and crash dieting may work in the short term, but can damage our mental and physical health in the long term.

Because overeating is already a painful experience, as you consider how these behaviors show up in your life and how you might address them, please be:

Kind: Be friendly and self-compassionate; work with yourself instead of against yourself.

Curious: Explore your habits with openness and interest. Be like a scientist looking at data rather than a criminal investigator looking to blame and punish.

Honest: Look at your reality. How are you behaving day-to-day around food? The more accurate you are at perceiving yourself, the better you can support yourself to change.

With this attitude of support and non-judgment, you’re more likely to move forward.

2. Use the “traffic light” system.

Precision Nutrition has a great tool for creating awareness around food that I use all the time with my clients. It’s called the “traffic light” system.

You see, we all have red light foods, yellow light foods, and green light foods.

Red means stop.

Red foods are a “no-go.” Either because they don’t help you achieve your goals, you have trouble eating them in reasonable amounts, or they plain old make you feel gross.

Often, red light foods are processed foods like chips, candy, ice cream, and pastries. Red foods can also be foods that you’re allergic / intolerant to.

Yellow means proceed with caution.

Yellow light foods are sometimes OK, sometimes not. Maybe you can eat a little bit without feeling ill, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others but not at home alone, or you can have them as an occasional treat.

Yellow light foods might include things like bread, crackers, pasta, flavored yogurt, granola bars, or seasoned nuts. They’re not the worst choices, but they’re not the most nutritious either.

Green means go.

Green foods are a “go.” You like eating them because they’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts.

Green foods are usually whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean animal proteins, beans and legumes, raw nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

Create your own red, yellow, and green light food lists.

Everyone’s list will be different! You might leave ice cream in the freezer untouched for months, whereas another person might need a restraining order from that rocky road caramel swirl.

Once you have your list, stock your kitchen with as many green light foods as possible. Choose the yellow foods you allow in your house wisely. And red foods are to be limited or eliminated entirely.

At the very least, consider reducing the variety of red light or treat foods.

Take some pressure off your willpower and surround yourself with foods that support your goals.

3. Put quality above quantity.

It’s tempting to buy that jumbo bag of chips because it’s such a good deal.

But remember: Real value isn’t about price or quantity so much as it is about quality.

Quality foods are nutrient-dense and minimally-processed. They are foods that you like, and make sense for your schedule and budget.  

Quality foods may take a little more preparation and be a little more expensive up-front, but in the long run, they’re the real deal, and have a lower “health tax” to pay later in life.

4. Focus on whole foods.

Whole foods will make it easier to regulate food intake and will also improve nutrition.

We can almost feel “high” when we eat processed foods. Whole foods, on the other hand, are more subtle in flavor and require a bit more effort to chew and digest. Instead of feeling high, whole foods just make us feel nourished and content.

Whole foods are generally more perishable than processed foods, so this will require some more planning and preparation. So schedule some extra time in the kitchen — even ten minutes a day counts!

In ten minutes, you can cut up some veggies, boil some eggs, cook some oatmeal, or marinate some chicken breasts to make the following day go smoother.

While this might sound like more work, it’s rewarding. A closer relationship with food often means more respect and care for it too.

5. Find feel-good habits that support your goals.

Make a list of activities that you feel good doing. You might find that you like certain activities better than others depending on your feelings, the time of day, or your environment.

When you feel triggered to eat when you’re not physically hungry, choose an activity from your list.

This could be some gentle physical activity, fresh air, social interaction, playing a game, or a self-care ritual like painting your nails or getting a scalp massage.

The point is simply to disrupt the cycle of trigger > eat > reward, and replace eating with an activity that supports your goals.

6. Slow down.

If nothing else works, and the idea of taking away treat foods totally freaks you out, just do this:

Slow down.

Allow yourself to eat whatever you want, just eat slowly and mindfully.

Slowing down allows us to savor our food, making us satisfied with less. It also lets physical sensations of fullness to catch up, so we know when we’ve had enough.

Bingeing can feel stressful and out of control — by slowing down, we help ourselves calm down and take back some of the control.

7. If you feel like you’re in over your head, ask for help.

Sometimes we need support.

If overeating is especially frequent or extreme, or if you have health problems related to overeating that you don’t know how to manage, seek the help of a coach, nutritionist, dietician, or counselor who specializes in disordered eating behaviors.

There’s no shame in receiving support. The best coaches and practitioners often have their own support team too.

Want help becoming the healthiest, fittest, strongest version of you?

Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.

That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health… no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.

It’s also why we work with health, fitness and wellness professionals (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.

Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Wednesday, July 18th, 2018.

If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.

You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.

You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.

If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.

[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].

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References

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Avena, N.M, Gold, M.S. (2011). Variety and hyperpalatability: are they promoting addictive overeating? The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(2), 367-368. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.020164.

Drewnowski, A., Shrager, E., Lipsky, C., Stellar, E., Greenwood, M.R. (1989). Sugar and fat: Sensory and hedonic evaluation of liquid and solid foods. Physiology & Behavior, 45 (1), 177-183. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(89)90182-0.

Kessler, David A. Your food is fooling you: How your brain is hijacked by sugar, fat, and salt. Roaring Book Press, 2012.

Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (2006). Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035.

Provencher, V., Polivy, J., Herman, C.P. (2009). Perceived healthiness of food. If it’s healthy, you can eat more! Appetite, 52(2), 340-344. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2008.11.005.

Rolls, B.J., Drewnowski, A., Ledikwe, J.H. (2005). Changing the energy density of the diet as a strategy for weight management. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 105(5S), 98-103. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.033.

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20 Memorial Day Dessert Recipes

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20 Memorial Day Dessert Recipes

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[Photographs: Vicky Wasik]

It’s true that with all the many Memorial Day grilling recipes we’ve shared recently, you might not end up with much room in your stomach for dessert. But what’s a cookout without something sweet? After a meal of smoky, savory grilled meats, dessert can be a great opportunity to show off the fruit that’s just starting to come into season—think flaky, golden-crusted pies bursting with fresh cherries or blueberries; a moist and tender blackberry cake topped with tangy cream cheese frosting; the best strawberry ice cream; and more. Don’t let the fun stop with fruit, though. Chocolate chip cookies and Texas sheet cake will please guests of all ages and are ideal for serving a big crowd, while frosty DIY pudding pops make a picture-perfect nostalgic summertime treat. Whatever you’re in the mood for, you’ll find the right recipe for your cookout in this collection of 20 Memorial Day dessert recipes.

Cookies and Bars

Sunny Lemon Bars

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The texture of this tangy, bright dessert falls somewhere between lemon curd and lemon meringue pie—soft, rich, and just firm enough to hold its shape when you cut it. A custard made with equal parts whole eggs and egg yolks and cooked on the stove is the key. We also briefly bake the bars in the oven after making the custard, but only to help the filling spread out into a beautifully smooth, satiny layer.

Get the recipe for Sunny Lemon Bars »

Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I don’t know about you, but I’ve definitely stopped at the supermarket more than once for a package of Lofthouse cookies after realizing I needed a last-minute dessert for a party. It takes just a little more effort, though, to re-create these childhood favorites at home. To get them so soft and puffy that they’re more cake than cookie, carefully incorporate the eggs for the most tender crumb possible, and be sure to use only cake flour, such as Swans Down. Don’t forget the frosting, too—use organic powdered sugar to avoid a gritty texture.

Get the recipe for Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies »

Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Chocolate chip cookies are classic for a reason—who doesn’t love them? Our ultimate recipe requires resting the dough overnight, but if you don’t have that kind of time, this version comes together in just 45 minutes and is utterly delicious. The key is ditching the mass-produced chocolate chips in favor of hand-chopped bar chocolate—we like to use a mix of dark, milk, and white chocolate, for variety’s sake. Not only does bar chocolate taste better than chips, chopping it with a knife produces a cocoa dust that infuses every bite of cookie with chocolaty flavor.

Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies »

No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

These cookies are really a type of peanut butter fudge, but don’t let that scare you—with the help of a digital thermometer, this stovetop-only recipe is super easy. You can make the cookies with either instant or old-fashioned oats, but the best option is to use a mixture of the two for a thick, chewy texture. A combination of Dutched cocoa powder and dark chocolate gives the cookies a great flavor that’s mellow enough after cooking to be kid-friendly.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats »

Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate

[Photograph: Morgan Eisenberg]

This recipe combines the salty pretzels and potato chips you might normally see on a party table with chocolate and marshmallow, making a savory-sweet, Rice Krispies Treat–inspired dessert. We bind the pretzels and chips with a homemade marshmallow flavored with bitter stout—be sure to let the beer go flat first, to avoid a sticky boil-up—and finish the bars with stout-infused chocolate to boost the sweetness.

Get the recipe for Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate »

Cakes, Pies, and Cobblers

No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

We may be about to hit peak produce season, but the best choice for adding fruit flavor and vivid color to our no-bake cheesecake is powdered freeze-dried fruit—the excess of moisture in fresh fruit will ruin the texture. A graham cracker crust is a classic choice for cheesecake, but you might also try experimenting with different cookies depending on the fruit—consider Oreos paired with strawberry, Biscoff with banana, or gingersnaps with mango.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit »

The Best Cherry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Fruit pies can feel like an exercise in frustration—how many times have you followed a recipe to a T and still ended up with a filling that was way too loose or gloopy? Turns out, the secret to the best fruit pie comes down to science. If you combine the fruit with 25% of its weight in sugar and 5.5% of its weight in tapioca starch, you’ll end up with a thick but juicy pie every time. The formula works with either fresh or frozen fruit, so you can make this pie even if cherries haven’t appeared at your farmers market yet.

Get the recipe for The Best Cherry Pie »

The Best Blueberry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch works just as well with other fruits as it does with cherries, so you can use it to make a perfect blueberry pie as well. A mix of wild and cultivated blueberries produces the best depth of flavor, though it’s not essential. Our preferred pie plate is made of inexpensive tempered glass, which yields a crispier crust than ceramic or stoneware.

Get the recipe for The Best Blueberry Pie »

Summer Strawberry Pie

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

It’s already sweltering here in California, so turning on the oven long enough to bake a pie doesn’t sound like my idea of a good time. Come Memorial Day, I’m much more likely to whip up this fruity, eye-catching no-bake dessert, made with a combination of macerated strawberries and strawberry purée in a graham cracker crust. Rather than cooking the filling on the stovetop, we simply thicken it with gelatin quickly melted in the microwave—minimizing cooking helps preserve the fresh flavor of the berries.

Get the recipe for Summer Strawberry Pie »

Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

If I’m busy prepping for a big cookout, the last thing I want to do is struggle with a pie crust. A cobbler has all the fruity deliciousness of a pie, but pairs it with tender drop biscuits instead, a much less labor-intensive project. We thicken this lemon-tinged peach filling with a bit of cornstarch, but moisture is less of a concern than it is with a pie—there’s no bottom crust to get soggy, and cobblers are meant to be messy anyhow.

Get the recipe for Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler »

Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Our blackberry cobbler relies on three key ingredients: baking soda (to tame the acidity of the fruit), cinnamon (which intensifies the flavor of the blackberries), and—perhaps surprisingly—a small amount of raspberries. The latter adds a complex sweetness to balance out the blackberries, which can be prone to bitterness if they’re not perfectly ripe. Beyond that, the recipe is just a matter of mixing the filling ingredients together, topping with a simple drop-biscuit dough, and baking until the filling is bubbling and the biscuits are golden brown.

Get the recipe for Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler »

Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Making a fruit-flavored cake isn’t as simple as adding fruit purée to your favorite cake recipe—a properly hydrated cake batter can’t take the extra moisture. Instead, you’ll need to replace the other wet ingredients entirely with the fruit, which works with blackberries because they’re acidic enough to tenderize the cake and help it rise. Making the batter with egg whites instead of whole eggs allows you to achieve the lovely purplish hue you see here; yolks will turn the cake an unpleasant shade of green.

Get the recipe for Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting »

Double Strawberry Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

A successful strawberry cake is a very different animal from the blackberry cake above: Strawberries aren’t as acidic as blackberries, so if you try to use strawberry purée in the batter, you’ll end up with a poorly risen, off-tasting cake thanks to the un-reacted baking soda. Our solution is freeze-dried strawberries, which add a concentrated dose of acidity without affecting the hydration of the dough. As an added benefit, the freeze-dried berries also improve the cake’s color and flavor.

Get the recipe for Double Strawberry Cake »

Texas Sheet Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Need a dessert that can handle a big crowd? This sheet pan–sized chocolate cake can easily be cut into two dozen pieces (or, if I’m in charge, maybe five or six). The thin cake itself is made with buttermilk and natural cocoa powder, giving it a relative lightness that’s immediately counteracted when you douse the whole thing in hot fudge. For a crunchy finish, shower the cake with toasted pecans.

Get the recipe for Texas Sheet Cake »

Other Desserts

Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

For this seasonal crisp, we cook down tart rhubarb in a sweet, thick sauce and bury it under a streusel made from brown sugar, whole wheat flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, anise seed, and Chinese five-spice powder (plus lots of butter, of course). The anise and five-spice powder may surprise you, but these secret ingredients complement the rhubarb nicely and help to bring out more of its flavor. We cook the rhubarb in two stages, leaving some of it meltingly tender and the rest with a little bit of a bite.

Get the recipe for Rhubarb Crisp »

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Rhubarb is definitely an acquired taste, and a common tactic for toning down its assertiveness is to pair it with strawberries, for a flavor that’s both sweeter and more complex. We use the same ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch as we do for baking pies, ensuring that the filling is gooey but not gloopy.

Get the recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp »

Tangy Strawberry Fools

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

A traditional British fool is made by folding stewed fruit into a creamy custard, a dessert that can feel a little too heavy for summer. Modern fools often replace the custard with whipped cream, which is more refreshing but not as rich. Here, we find a middle ground by mixing whipped cream with Greek yogurt and pairing the result with both cooked and macerated strawberries. Check out our pineapple-mango and lemon-blueberry fools, too.

Get the recipe for Tangy Strawberry Fools »

The Best Strawberry Ice Cream

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Strawberry ice cream can be tricky: When it’s made with fresh berries, the fruit’s moisture easily turns to ice; make it with cooked berries, and you lose that fresh strawberry flavor. Using the best strawberries you can find (for a more concentrated flavor and less moisture) and macerating them rather than cooking yields ice cream that’s both flavorful and creamy.

Get the recipe for The Best Strawberry Ice Cream »

No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines

[Photograph: Nila Jones]

These conveniently no-bake, conveniently individual parfaits offer a triple dose of chocolate, with an Oreo crust and fillings made by whipping cream cheese with Nutella and dark chocolate. Finish each one with a dollop of whipped cream, toasted hazelnuts, and crushed Oreos—because can you really ever have too much chocolate?

Get the recipe for No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines »

DIY Pudding Pops

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Who could say no to a popsicle on a hot day? If you’re a child of the ’80s, you probably have fond memories of Jell-O’s Pudding Pops, those chocolate or vanilla or butterscotch swirl popsicles that managed to be both creamy and bracingly cold. Since they haven’t been in stores for years, you’ll have to take matters into your own hands if you want to relive the experience. Our recipe is made with a simple vanilla custard thickened with tapioca starch. You can enjoy them just like that, or dip them in a mixture of chocolate and coconut oil for a crispy shell reminiscent of a Klondike bar—dunk them in sprinkles or cookie crumbs, too, if you’re feeling extra fancy.

Get the recipe for DIY Pudding Pops »

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New Post has been published on http://cookingtipsandreviews.com/20-memorial-day-dessert-recipes/

20 Memorial Day Dessert Recipes

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[Photographs: Vicky Wasik]

It’s true that with all the many Memorial Day grilling recipes we’ve shared recently, you might not end up with much room in your stomach for dessert. But what’s a cookout without something sweet? After a meal of smoky, savory grilled meats, dessert can be a great opportunity to show off the fruit that’s just starting to come into season—think flaky, golden-crusted pies bursting with fresh cherries or blueberries; a moist and tender blackberry cake topped with tangy cream cheese frosting; the best strawberry ice cream; and more. Don’t let the fun stop with fruit, though. Chocolate chip cookies and Texas sheet cake will please guests of all ages and are ideal for serving a big crowd, while frosty DIY pudding pops make a picture-perfect nostalgic summertime treat. Whatever you’re in the mood for, you’ll find the right recipe for your cookout in this collection of 20 Memorial Day dessert recipes.

Cookies and Bars

Sunny Lemon Bars

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The texture of this tangy, bright dessert falls somewhere between lemon curd and lemon meringue pie—soft, rich, and just firm enough to hold its shape when you cut it. A custard made with equal parts whole eggs and egg yolks and cooked on the stove is the key. We also briefly bake the bars in the oven after making the custard, but only to help the filling spread out into a beautifully smooth, satiny layer.

Get the recipe for Sunny Lemon Bars »

Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I don’t know about you, but I’ve definitely stopped at the supermarket more than once for a package of Lofthouse cookies after realizing I needed a last-minute dessert for a party. It takes just a little more effort, though, to re-create these childhood favorites at home. To get them so soft and puffy that they’re more cake than cookie, carefully incorporate the eggs for the most tender crumb possible, and be sure to use only cake flour, such as Swans Down. Don’t forget the frosting, too—use organic powdered sugar to avoid a gritty texture.

Get the recipe for Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies »

Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Chocolate chip cookies are classic for a reason—who doesn’t love them? Our ultimate recipe requires resting the dough overnight, but if you don’t have that kind of time, this version comes together in just 45 minutes and is utterly delicious. The key is ditching the mass-produced chocolate chips in favor of hand-chopped bar chocolate—we like to use a mix of dark, milk, and white chocolate, for variety’s sake. Not only does bar chocolate taste better than chips, chopping it with a knife produces a cocoa dust that infuses every bite of cookie with chocolaty flavor.

Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies »

No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

These cookies are really a type of peanut butter fudge, but don’t let that scare you—with the help of a digital thermometer, this stovetop-only recipe is super easy. You can make the cookies with either instant or old-fashioned oats, but the best option is to use a mixture of the two for a thick, chewy texture. A combination of Dutched cocoa powder and dark chocolate gives the cookies a great flavor that’s mellow enough after cooking to be kid-friendly.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats »

Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate

[Photograph: Morgan Eisenberg]

This recipe combines the salty pretzels and potato chips you might normally see on a party table with chocolate and marshmallow, making a savory-sweet, Rice Krispies Treat–inspired dessert. We bind the pretzels and chips with a homemade marshmallow flavored with bitter stout—be sure to let the beer go flat first, to avoid a sticky boil-up—and finish the bars with stout-infused chocolate to boost the sweetness.

Get the recipe for Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate »

Cakes, Pies, and Cobblers

No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

We may be about to hit peak produce season, but the best choice for adding fruit flavor and vivid color to our no-bake cheesecake is powdered freeze-dried fruit—the excess of moisture in fresh fruit will ruin the texture. A graham cracker crust is a classic choice for cheesecake, but you might also try experimenting with different cookies depending on the fruit—consider Oreos paired with strawberry, Biscoff with banana, or gingersnaps with mango.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit »

The Best Cherry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Fruit pies can feel like an exercise in frustration—how many times have you followed a recipe to a T and still ended up with a filling that was way too loose or gloopy? Turns out, the secret to the best fruit pie comes down to science. If you combine the fruit with 25% of its weight in sugar and 5.5% of its weight in tapioca starch, you’ll end up with a thick but juicy pie every time. The formula works with either fresh or frozen fruit, so you can make this pie even if cherries haven’t appeared at your farmers market yet.

Get the recipe for The Best Cherry Pie »

The Best Blueberry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch works just as well with other fruits as it does with cherries, so you can use it to make a perfect blueberry pie as well. A mix of wild and cultivated blueberries produces the best depth of flavor, though it’s not essential. Our preferred pie plate is made of inexpensive tempered glass, which yields a crispier crust than ceramic or stoneware.

Get the recipe for The Best Blueberry Pie »

Summer Strawberry Pie

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

It’s already sweltering here in California, so turning on the oven long enough to bake a pie doesn’t sound like my idea of a good time. Come Memorial Day, I’m much more likely to whip up this fruity, eye-catching no-bake dessert, made with a combination of macerated strawberries and strawberry purée in a graham cracker crust. Rather than cooking the filling on the stovetop, we simply thicken it with gelatin quickly melted in the microwave—minimizing cooking helps preserve the fresh flavor of the berries.

Get the recipe for Summer Strawberry Pie »

Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

If I’m busy prepping for a big cookout, the last thing I want to do is struggle with a pie crust. A cobbler has all the fruity deliciousness of a pie, but pairs it with tender drop biscuits instead, a much less labor-intensive project. We thicken this lemon-tinged peach filling with a bit of cornstarch, but moisture is less of a concern than it is with a pie—there’s no bottom crust to get soggy, and cobblers are meant to be messy anyhow.

Get the recipe for Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler »

Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Our blackberry cobbler relies on three key ingredients: baking soda (to tame the acidity of the fruit), cinnamon (which intensifies the flavor of the blackberries), and—perhaps surprisingly—a small amount of raspberries. The latter adds a complex sweetness to balance out the blackberries, which can be prone to bitterness if they’re not perfectly ripe. Beyond that, the recipe is just a matter of mixing the filling ingredients together, topping with a simple drop-biscuit dough, and baking until the filling is bubbling and the biscuits are golden brown.

Get the recipe for Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler »

Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Making a fruit-flavored cake isn’t as simple as adding fruit purée to your favorite cake recipe—a properly hydrated cake batter can’t take the extra moisture. Instead, you’ll need to replace the other wet ingredients entirely with the fruit, which works with blackberries because they’re acidic enough to tenderize the cake and help it rise. Making the batter with egg whites instead of whole eggs allows you to achieve the lovely purplish hue you see here; yolks will turn the cake an unpleasant shade of green.

Get the recipe for Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting »

Double Strawberry Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

A successful strawberry cake is a very different animal from the blackberry cake above: Strawberries aren’t as acidic as blackberries, so if you try to use strawberry purée in the batter, you’ll end up with a poorly risen, off-tasting cake thanks to the un-reacted baking soda. Our solution is freeze-dried strawberries, which add a concentrated dose of acidity without affecting the hydration of the dough. As an added benefit, the freeze-dried berries also improve the cake’s color and flavor.

Get the recipe for Double Strawberry Cake »

Texas Sheet Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Need a dessert that can handle a big crowd? This sheet pan–sized chocolate cake can easily be cut into two dozen pieces (or, if I’m in charge, maybe five or six). The thin cake itself is made with buttermilk and natural cocoa powder, giving it a relative lightness that’s immediately counteracted when you douse the whole thing in hot fudge. For a crunchy finish, shower the cake with toasted pecans.

Get the recipe for Texas Sheet Cake »

Other Desserts

Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

For this seasonal crisp, we cook down tart rhubarb in a sweet, thick sauce and bury it under a streusel made from brown sugar, whole wheat flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, anise seed, and Chinese five-spice powder (plus lots of butter, of course). The anise and five-spice powder may surprise you, but these secret ingredients complement the rhubarb nicely and help to bring out more of its flavor. We cook the rhubarb in two stages, leaving some of it meltingly tender and the rest with a little bit of a bite.

Get the recipe for Rhubarb Crisp »

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Rhubarb is definitely an acquired taste, and a common tactic for toning down its assertiveness is to pair it with strawberries, for a flavor that’s both sweeter and more complex. We use the same ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch as we do for baking pies, ensuring that the filling is gooey but not gloopy.

Get the recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp »

Tangy Strawberry Fools

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

A traditional British fool is made by folding stewed fruit into a creamy custard, a dessert that can feel a little too heavy for summer. Modern fools often replace the custard with whipped cream, which is more refreshing but not as rich. Here, we find a middle ground by mixing whipped cream with Greek yogurt and pairing the result with both cooked and macerated strawberries. Check out our pineapple-mango and lemon-blueberry fools, too.

Get the recipe for Tangy Strawberry Fools »

The Best Strawberry Ice Cream

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Strawberry ice cream can be tricky: When it’s made with fresh berries, the fruit’s moisture easily turns to ice; make it with cooked berries, and you lose that fresh strawberry flavor. Using the best strawberries you can find (for a more concentrated flavor and less moisture) and macerating them rather than cooking yields ice cream that’s both flavorful and creamy.

Get the recipe for The Best Strawberry Ice Cream »

No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines

[Photograph: Nila Jones]

These conveniently no-bake, conveniently individual parfaits offer a triple dose of chocolate, with an Oreo crust and fillings made by whipping cream cheese with Nutella and dark chocolate. Finish each one with a dollop of whipped cream, toasted hazelnuts, and crushed Oreos—because can you really ever have too much chocolate?

Get the recipe for No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines »

DIY Pudding Pops

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Who could say no to a popsicle on a hot day? If you’re a child of the ’80s, you probably have fond memories of Jell-O’s Pudding Pops, those chocolate or vanilla or butterscotch swirl popsicles that managed to be both creamy and bracingly cold. Since they haven’t been in stores for years, you’ll have to take matters into your own hands if you want to relive the experience. Our recipe is made with a simple vanilla custard thickened with tapioca starch. You can enjoy them just like that, or dip them in a mixture of chocolate and coconut oil for a crispy shell reminiscent of a Klondike bar—dunk them in sprinkles or cookie crumbs, too, if you’re feeling extra fancy.

Get the recipe for DIY Pudding Pops »

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New Post has been published on https://jmuo.com/20-memorial-day-dessert-recipes/

20 Memorial Day Dessert Recipes

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[Photographs: Vicky Wasik]

It’s true that with all the many Memorial Day grilling recipes we’ve shared recently, you might not end up with much room in your stomach for dessert. But what’s a cookout without something sweet? After a meal of smoky, savory grilled meats, dessert can be a great opportunity to show off the fruit that’s just starting to come into season—think flaky, golden-crusted pies bursting with fresh cherries or blueberries; a moist and tender blackberry cake topped with tangy cream cheese frosting; the best strawberry ice cream; and more. Don’t let the fun stop with fruit, though. Chocolate chip cookies and Texas sheet cake will please guests of all ages and are ideal for serving a big crowd, while frosty DIY pudding pops make a picture-perfect nostalgic summertime treat. Whatever you’re in the mood for, you’ll find the right recipe for your cookout in this collection of 20 Memorial Day dessert recipes.

Cookies and Bars

Sunny Lemon Bars

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The texture of this tangy, bright dessert falls somewhere between lemon curd and lemon meringue pie—soft, rich, and just firm enough to hold its shape when you cut it. A custard made with equal parts whole eggs and egg yolks and cooked on the stove is the key. We also briefly bake the bars in the oven after making the custard, but only to help the filling spread out into a beautifully smooth, satiny layer.

Get the recipe for Sunny Lemon Bars »

Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

I don’t know about you, but I’ve definitely stopped at the supermarket more than once for a package of Lofthouse cookies after realizing I needed a last-minute dessert for a party. It takes just a little more effort, though, to re-create these childhood favorites at home. To get them so soft and puffy that they’re more cake than cookie, carefully incorporate the eggs for the most tender crumb possible, and be sure to use only cake flour, such as Swans Down. Don’t forget the frosting, too—use organic powdered sugar to avoid a gritty texture.

Get the recipe for Lofthouse-Style Frosted Sugar Cookies »

Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Chocolate chip cookies are classic for a reason—who doesn’t love them? Our ultimate recipe requires resting the dough overnight, but if you don’t have that kind of time, this version comes together in just 45 minutes and is utterly delicious. The key is ditching the mass-produced chocolate chips in favor of hand-chopped bar chocolate—we like to use a mix of dark, milk, and white chocolate, for variety’s sake. Not only does bar chocolate taste better than chips, chopping it with a knife produces a cocoa dust that infuses every bite of cookie with chocolaty flavor.

Get the recipe for Quick and Easy Chocolate Chip Cookies »

No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

These cookies are really a type of peanut butter fudge, but don’t let that scare you—with the help of a digital thermometer, this stovetop-only recipe is super easy. You can make the cookies with either instant or old-fashioned oats, but the best option is to use a mixture of the two for a thick, chewy texture. A combination of Dutched cocoa powder and dark chocolate gives the cookies a great flavor that’s mellow enough after cooking to be kid-friendly.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cookies With Chocolate, Peanut Butter, and Chewy Oats »

Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate

[Photograph: Morgan Eisenberg]

This recipe combines the salty pretzels and potato chips you might normally see on a party table with chocolate and marshmallow, making a savory-sweet, Rice Krispies Treat–inspired dessert. We bind the pretzels and chips with a homemade marshmallow flavored with bitter stout—be sure to let the beer go flat first, to avoid a sticky boil-up—and finish the bars with stout-infused chocolate to boost the sweetness.

Get the recipe for Sweet and Salty Stout Marshmallow Bars With Pretzels, Potato Chips, and Chocolate »

Cakes, Pies, and Cobblers

No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

We may be about to hit peak produce season, but the best choice for adding fruit flavor and vivid color to our no-bake cheesecake is powdered freeze-dried fruit—the excess of moisture in fresh fruit will ruin the texture. A graham cracker crust is a classic choice for cheesecake, but you might also try experimenting with different cookies depending on the fruit—consider Oreos paired with strawberry, Biscoff with banana, or gingersnaps with mango.

Get the recipe for No-Bake Cheesecake With Freeze-Dried Fruit »

The Best Cherry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Fruit pies can feel like an exercise in frustration—how many times have you followed a recipe to a T and still ended up with a filling that was way too loose or gloopy? Turns out, the secret to the best fruit pie comes down to science. If you combine the fruit with 25% of its weight in sugar and 5.5% of its weight in tapioca starch, you’ll end up with a thick but juicy pie every time. The formula works with either fresh or frozen fruit, so you can make this pie even if cherries haven’t appeared at your farmers market yet.

Get the recipe for The Best Cherry Pie »

The Best Blueberry Pie

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

The ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch works just as well with other fruits as it does with cherries, so you can use it to make a perfect blueberry pie as well. A mix of wild and cultivated blueberries produces the best depth of flavor, though it’s not essential. Our preferred pie plate is made of inexpensive tempered glass, which yields a crispier crust than ceramic or stoneware.

Get the recipe for The Best Blueberry Pie »

Summer Strawberry Pie

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

It’s already sweltering here in California, so turning on the oven long enough to bake a pie doesn’t sound like my idea of a good time. Come Memorial Day, I’m much more likely to whip up this fruity, eye-catching no-bake dessert, made with a combination of macerated strawberries and strawberry purée in a graham cracker crust. Rather than cooking the filling on the stovetop, we simply thicken it with gelatin quickly melted in the microwave—minimizing cooking helps preserve the fresh flavor of the berries.

Get the recipe for Summer Strawberry Pie »

Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

If I’m busy prepping for a big cookout, the last thing I want to do is struggle with a pie crust. A cobbler has all the fruity deliciousness of a pie, but pairs it with tender drop biscuits instead, a much less labor-intensive project. We thicken this lemon-tinged peach filling with a bit of cornstarch, but moisture is less of a concern than it is with a pie—there’s no bottom crust to get soggy, and cobblers are meant to be messy anyhow.

Get the recipe for Classic Biscuit-Topped Peach Cobbler »

Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Our blackberry cobbler relies on three key ingredients: baking soda (to tame the acidity of the fruit), cinnamon (which intensifies the flavor of the blackberries), and—perhaps surprisingly—a small amount of raspberries. The latter adds a complex sweetness to balance out the blackberries, which can be prone to bitterness if they’re not perfectly ripe. Beyond that, the recipe is just a matter of mixing the filling ingredients together, topping with a simple drop-biscuit dough, and baking until the filling is bubbling and the biscuits are golden brown.

Get the recipe for Old-Fashioned Blackberry Cobbler »

Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Making a fruit-flavored cake isn’t as simple as adding fruit purée to your favorite cake recipe—a properly hydrated cake batter can’t take the extra moisture. Instead, you’ll need to replace the other wet ingredients entirely with the fruit, which works with blackberries because they’re acidic enough to tenderize the cake and help it rise. Making the batter with egg whites instead of whole eggs allows you to achieve the lovely purplish hue you see here; yolks will turn the cake an unpleasant shade of green.

Get the recipe for Blackberry Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting »

Double Strawberry Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

A successful strawberry cake is a very different animal from the blackberry cake above: Strawberries aren’t as acidic as blackberries, so if you try to use strawberry purée in the batter, you’ll end up with a poorly risen, off-tasting cake thanks to the un-reacted baking soda. Our solution is freeze-dried strawberries, which add a concentrated dose of acidity without affecting the hydration of the dough. As an added benefit, the freeze-dried berries also improve the cake’s color and flavor.

Get the recipe for Double Strawberry Cake »

Texas Sheet Cake

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Need a dessert that can handle a big crowd? This sheet pan–sized chocolate cake can easily be cut into two dozen pieces (or, if I’m in charge, maybe five or six). The thin cake itself is made with buttermilk and natural cocoa powder, giving it a relative lightness that’s immediately counteracted when you douse the whole thing in hot fudge. For a crunchy finish, shower the cake with toasted pecans.

Get the recipe for Texas Sheet Cake »

Other Desserts

Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

For this seasonal crisp, we cook down tart rhubarb in a sweet, thick sauce and bury it under a streusel made from brown sugar, whole wheat flour, rolled oats, cinnamon, anise seed, and Chinese five-spice powder (plus lots of butter, of course). The anise and five-spice powder may surprise you, but these secret ingredients complement the rhubarb nicely and help to bring out more of its flavor. We cook the rhubarb in two stages, leaving some of it meltingly tender and the rest with a little bit of a bite.

Get the recipe for Rhubarb Crisp »

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Rhubarb is definitely an acquired taste, and a common tactic for toning down its assertiveness is to pair it with strawberries, for a flavor that’s both sweeter and more complex. We use the same ratio of fruit to sugar to tapioca starch as we do for baking pies, ensuring that the filling is gooey but not gloopy.

Get the recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp »

Tangy Strawberry Fools

[Photograph: Yvonne Ruperti]

A traditional British fool is made by folding stewed fruit into a creamy custard, a dessert that can feel a little too heavy for summer. Modern fools often replace the custard with whipped cream, which is more refreshing but not as rich. Here, we find a middle ground by mixing whipped cream with Greek yogurt and pairing the result with both cooked and macerated strawberries. Check out our pineapple-mango and lemon-blueberry fools, too.

Get the recipe for Tangy Strawberry Fools »

The Best Strawberry Ice Cream

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Strawberry ice cream can be tricky: When it’s made with fresh berries, the fruit’s moisture easily turns to ice; make it with cooked berries, and you lose that fresh strawberry flavor. Using the best strawberries you can find (for a more concentrated flavor and less moisture) and macerating them rather than cooking yields ice cream that’s both flavorful and creamy.

Get the recipe for The Best Strawberry Ice Cream »

No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines

[Photograph: Nila Jones]

These conveniently no-bake, conveniently individual parfaits offer a triple dose of chocolate, with an Oreo crust and fillings made by whipping cream cheese with Nutella and dark chocolate. Finish each one with a dollop of whipped cream, toasted hazelnuts, and crushed Oreos—because can you really ever have too much chocolate?

Get the recipe for No-Bake Chocolate-Nutella “Cheesecake” Verrines »

DIY Pudding Pops

[Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Who could say no to a popsicle on a hot day? If you’re a child of the ’80s, you probably have fond memories of Jell-O’s Pudding Pops, those chocolate or vanilla or butterscotch swirl popsicles that managed to be both creamy and bracingly cold. Since they haven’t been in stores for years, you’ll have to take matters into your own hands if you want to relive the experience. Our recipe is made with a simple vanilla custard thickened with tapioca starch. You can enjoy them just like that, or dip them in a mixture of chocolate and coconut oil for a crispy shell reminiscent of a Klondike bar—dunk them in sprinkles or cookie crumbs, too, if you’re feeling extra fancy.

Get the recipe for DIY Pudding Pops »

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Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control).

You know the feeling: One salty crunch turns into 100, and suddenly you’re licking the cheese dust and wondering: What’s wrong with me? 

Actually, it’s normal to feel like you can’t stop overeating certain things. Today’s hyperpalatable food is creating a modern-day food crisis — one that’s leaving us feeling sick, out of control, and constantly craving more.

Here’s how it works, plus 3 ways to overcome it.

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It’s happened to us all.

After a frenzy of lustful grabbing and furious crunching, we find ourselves at the bottom of a jumbo bag of chips.

“How did that happen?” we ask fuzzily.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stop?”

But, before going into full-fledged self-loathing mode, consider this.

Processed foods are scientifically engineered to be irresistible and easy to gobble up in large quantities. If you can’t stop, the chips are doing their job.

(In fact, someone at Frito-Lay probably got a promotion for that recipe.)

That’s why, in this article, we’ll explain exactly how junk food is designed to make us respond with compulsive, manic, gotta-have-more snack sessions.

Even better, we’ll arm you with three useful strategies for examining your relationship with processed food and taking control of overeating.

Because, if you feel out of control around certain foods, you’re not crazy.

Even healthy eaters feel out of control around food sometimes. Even if we value nutrition and want to take care of ourselves, some foods can make us feel… kinda possessed.

Know what I mean?

You show up to a potluck with quinoa salad goals and find yourself inhaling a plate of chips, cookies, and some chocolate-peanut-butter-marshmallow thing that some devil, um friend, made.

You reach into the freezer to have one spoonful of ice cream and suddenly you’re mining the caramel swirl, then the nut clusters, then the brownie chunks, and then… your spoon scrapes the bottom.

You just want a bite of your friend’s french fry, but you find yourself elbowing her out of the way so you can steal all the fries, plus the burger too.

Even with the best intentions, the pull of certain foods is so strong that it can leave us feeling powerless.

If you’ve felt this, you’re not alone (and you’re not broken).

Certain foods are actually designed to make us overeat.

If you’re overeating, it’s not because there’s something wrong with you or your willpower.

Here’s the truth: There’s a whole industry dedicated to creating food that’s hyperpalatable — food that’s so tasty it’s nearly irresistible.

Your body and brain are responding exactly as they’re supposed to. It’s supposed to feel almost unnatural to stop eating these foods!

But we’re not talking about food like celery sticks, whole brown rice, or baked salmon filets.

(How often do you hear yourself say, “I ate sooo much steamed asparagus! I just couldn’t stop myself!” That’s right. You’ve never heard yourself say that.)

We’re talking about processed foods.

Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their original, whole-food form in order to change their flavor, texture, or shelf-life. Often, they’re altered so that they hit as many pleasure centers as possible — from our brains to our mouths to our bellies.

Processed foods are highly cravable, immediately gratifying, fun to eat, and easy to over-consume quickly (and often cheaply).

Processed foods will also look and feel different from their whole food counterparts, depending on the degree that they’re processed.

Let’s take corn as an example.

Boiled and eaten off the cob it’s pale yellow, kinda fibrous, but chewy and delicious.

Corn that’s a bit processed — ground into a meal and shaped into a flat disk — turns into a soft corn tortilla. A tortilla has a nice corny flavor and a soft, pliable texture that makes it easy to eat and digest.

But what if you ultra-process that corn? You remove all the fiber, isolate the starch, and then use that starch to make little ring-shaped chips, which are fried and dusted with sweet and salty barbecue powder. They’re freaking delicious.

That corn on the cob is yummy. But those corn-derived ring chips? They’re… well they’re gone because someone ate them all.

Let’s take an even deeper look

The food industry has a variety of processing methods and ingredient additives they use to make food extra tasty and easy to consume…. and over-consume.

Here are a few examples:

Extrusion

Grains are processed into a slurry and pass through a machine called an extruder. With the help of high heat and pressure, whole, raw grains get transformed into airy, crispy, easy-to-digest shapes like cereals, crackers, and other crunchy foods with uniform shapes.

In addition to changing texture and digestibility, the extrusion process also destroys certain nutrients and enzymes, denatures proteins, and changes the starch composition of a grain. This lowers the nutrition and increases the glycemic index of the product.

Emulsifiers

Used to improve the “mouth feel” of a product, emulsifiers smooth out and thicken texture, creating a rich, luxurious feel. Although there are natural emulsifiers, like egg yolk, the food industry often uses chemical emulsifiers like Polysorbate-80, sodium phosphate, and carboxymethylcellulose.

Emulsifiers are often found in creamy treats like ice cream products and processed dairy foods like flavored yogurts or neon orange cheese spreads.

Flavor enhancers

Flavor additives like artificial flavoring agents or monosodium glutamate (MSG) allow food manufacturers to amplify taste without adding whole-food ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or spices. This is useful because artificial flavoring agents are cheap and won’t change a product’s texture.

Coloring agents

Color strongly affects how appealing we perceive a food to be. No one wants to eat gray crackers; add a toasty golden hue and suddenly that cracker is a lot more appealing. Coloring agents, like Yellow #5 (tartrazine) and Red #40 (allura red),  are added purely for the look of food — they don’t add nutrition.

Recently, many large food corporations have been switching to natural foods dyes, like beet powder or turmeric, to color their food products after some correlations emerged linking artificial coloring agents to behavioral problems in children.

Oil hydrogenation

Natural fats eventually go rancid, changing their flavor and texture. In order to render fats more stable, hydrogen atoms are added to fats (usually vegetable oils) so they are less vulnerable to oxidation.

Food manufacturers use hydrogenated oils because it means their products can stay on the shelves for longer without changing flavor or texture. However, the consumption of hydrogenated fats, or trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How processed foods trick us into eating more than we meant to.

There are four sneaky ways processed food can make you overeat. Often, we’re not even aware of how much these factors affect us.

That’s why, awareness = power.

1. Marketing convinces us that processed foods are “healthy”.

Processed foods come in packages with bright colors, cartoon characters, celebrity endorsements, and powerful words that triggers all kinds of positive associations.

Take, for example, “health halo” foods.

“Health halo” foods are processed foods that contain health buzzwords like organic, vegan, and gluten-free on their label to create an illusion, or halo, of health around them.

Companies come out with organic versions of their boxed macaroni and cheese, gluten-free versions of their glazed pastries, and vegan versions of their icing-filled cookies.

You’ll see chips “prepared with avocado oil,” sugary cereal “made with flaxseeds,” or creamy chip dip with “real spinach.”

The nutrient content of those foods isn’t particularly impressive, but the addition of nutrition buzzwords and trendy ingredients make us perceive them as healthier.

Marketers also choose words that relate more broadly to self-care.

Ever notice how many processed food slogans sound like this?

“Have a break.”

“Take some time for yourself.”

“You deserve it.”

Words like “break” and “deserve” distract us from our physical sensations and tap into our feelings — a place where we just want to be understood, supported, soothed, and perhaps just escape for a moment.

Health buzzwords and emotional appeals can make us perceive a food as “good for me”; it seems like a wise and caring choice to put them in our shopping carts, then in our mouths.

And if a food is “healthy” or “we deserve it,” we don’t feel so bad eating as much as we want.

2. Big portions make us think we’re getting a “good deal”.

People get mixed up about food and value.

We’re taught to save money and not waste food.

We’re taught to buy more for less.

Given the choice between a small juice for two dollars, and a pop with endless refills for the same price, the pop seems like better value.

What we don’t calculate into this equation is something I like to call the “health tax.”

The “health tax” is the toll you pay for eating low-nutrient, highly processed foods. If you eat them consistently over time, eventually you’ll pay the price with your health.

When companies use cheap, poor quality ingredients, they can sell bigger quantities without raising the price.

But what’s the deal?

Sure, you’ll save a buck in the short term, but you’ll pay the health tax — through poor health — in the long term.

3. Variety makes us hungrier.

Choice excites us.

Think of a self-serve frozen yogurt topping bar:

“Ooh! Sprinkles! And beer nuts! Oh, and they have those mini peanut butter cups! And granola clusters! Wait, are those crushed cookies?? And cheesecake chunks??! YES! Now on to the drizzles…”

Before you know it, there‘s a leaning tower of frozen dessert in front of you.

Or think of those “party mixes” — pretzels and corn chips and cheesy puffs and barbeque rings — all in one bag! The fun never ends because there’s a variety of flavors and textures to amuse you forever!

When we have lots of variety, we have lots of appetite.

It’s hard to overeat tons of one thing, with one flavor, like apples.

How many apples can you eat before, frankly, you get bored?

Reduce the variety and you also reduce distraction from your body’s built-in self-regulating signals. When we’re not so giddy with choice and stimuli, we’re more likely to slow down, eat mindfully, and eat less.

4. Multiple flavors at once are irresistible.

If there’s a party in your mouth, you can guarantee that at least two out of three of the following guests will be there:

Sugar

Fat

Salt

These three flavors — the sweetness of sugar, the luxurious mouthfeel of fat, and the sharp savory of salt — are favorites among those of us with mouths.

I never hear my clients say that they love eating spoonfuls of sugar or salt, or that they want to chug a bottle of oil.

However, when you combine these flavors, they become ultra delicious and hard-to-resist. This is called stimuli stacking — combining two or more flavors to create a hyperpalatable food.

For example:

The satisfying combination of fat and salt, found in chips, fries, nachos, cheesy things, etc.

The comforting combination of fat and sugar, found in baked goods, fudge, ice cream, cookies, chocolate, etc.

The irresistible combination of all three — heaven forbid you stumble on a combo of fat, salt, and sugar — a salted chocolate brownie, or caramel corn with candied nuts, or fries with ketchup!

Food manufacturers know: When it comes to encouraging people to overeat, two flavors are better than one.

In fact, when I spoke to an industry insider, a food scientist at a prominent processed food manufacturer, she revealed the specific “stimuli stacking” formula that the food industry uses to create hyperpalatable food.

They call it “The Big 5.”

Foods that fulfill “The Big 5” are:

Calorie dense, usually high in sugar and/or fat.

Intensely flavored — the food must deliver strong flavor hits.

Immediately delicious, with a love-at-first taste experience.

Easy to eat — no effortful chewing needed!

“Melted” down easily — the food almost dissolves in your mouth, thus easy to eat quickly and overconsume.

When these five factors exist in one food, you get a product that’s practically irresistible.

In fact, foods developed by this company have to hit the big 5, or they’re not allowed to go to market.

When processed food manufacturers evaluate a prospective food product, the “irresistibility” (the extent to which a person can’t stop eating a food) is more important even than taste!

Just think about the ease of eating whole foods versus processed foods:

Whole foods require about 25 chews per mouthful, which means that you have to slow down. When you slow down, your satiety signals keep pace with your eating and have a chance to tell you when you’ve had enough. Which is probably why you’ve never overeaten Brussel sprouts (also because, farting).

Processed food manufacturers, on the other hand, aim for food products to be broken down in 10 chews or less per mouthful. That means the intense, flavorful, crazy-delicious experience is over quickly, and you’re left wanting more — ASAP.

Restaurants use these “ease of eating” tactics, too.

A major national chain uses this sci-fi-esque trick:

To make their signature chicken dish, each chicken breast is injected with a highly flavored sauce through hundreds of tiny needles. This results in a jacked-up chicken breast with intense flavor hits, but also tenderizes the chicken so it requires less chewing.

In other words, there’s a reason that restaurant chicken often goes down easier and just tastes better than the simple grilled chicken breast you make in your kitchen. Unless you have hundreds of tiny sauce-needles (weird), that chicken is hard to recreate at home.

This is why I rarely talk about willpower when my clients come to me struggling with overeating. If you’re relying on willpower to resist these foods, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

The solution isn’t more willpower. The solution is educating yourself about these foods, examining your own relationship with food, and employing strategies that put you in control.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Our love of certain flavors has very primitive roots.

So does our desire to load up on calories.

Once upon a time, food was not so abundant. Not only was food challenging to obtain — through effortful scavenging and hunting — but it was also not reliably safe.

That leaf over there? Yeah, that could be poison.

Those berries? They might give you the runs or make your throat close up.

Therefore, our ancient ancestors evolved some survival instincts along the way.

For example, sweet foods tend not to be poisonous. Therefore, we stored a preference for sweet, starchy foods in our brains to keep us safe.

Babies and children are particularly attracted to sweet foods, probably because their immature immune systems are less likely to recover from eating a poisonous plant, and their immature brains can’t tell the difference between dangerous bitter green (like hemlock) and safe bitter green (like kale).

Therefore, kids’ attraction to sweet (read: safe) foods is a built-in mechanism to prevent death by poisoning.

Fat is also a preferred nutrient, as it’s high-calorie and would be a jackpot for our often-threatened-by-starvation ancestors.

While most foods our ancestors ate would have been fibrous and low-calorie (roots, greens, lean meats), fat would have been a highly prized treat.

Imagine, as a primitive hunter-gatherer, stumbling on a macadamia nut tree. The yield from that tree might provide enough calories to feed your tribe for days!

As a result, we stored another preference in our brains: fatty, calorie-dense foods = yum / stock up!

Today, of course, we don’t have to run and dig and hike for nine hours to get our food. Instead, we can just roll up to the drive-thru window and order a combination of flavors we’re primed to love — maybe in the form of a milkshake and a cheeseburger — and enjoy it while sitting in our car.

Evolution’s gifts now work against us.

So, now you see why processed foods are so hard to control yourself around.

But what can actually you do about it?

Up next, some practical strategies to put you (or your clients) in the driver’s seat.

3 strategies to find your way back to a peaceful relationship with food.

It’s one thing to know in theory why certain foods are so easy to over-consume, but it’s even more valuable to discover for yourself how food processing, certain ingredient combinations, marketing, and even easy accessibility affect you and your food choices.

So, it’s time to get a little nerdy, try some experiments, and learn some strategies that will help you improve your relationship with food, get healthier, and just feel more sane.

1. Get curious about the foods you eat.

We’ve established that processed foods are designed to be easy to eat.

For a food to be “easy to eat”, it has to be:

broken down easily (less chewing), and

low volume (doesn’t take up much physical space).

So:

Less chewing + Low volume = More eating

Chewing takes time. The more we have to chew something, the longer it takes us to eat, giving our fullness signals a chance to catch up.

That feeling of “fullness” matters a lot too.

When you eat, your stomach expands. It’s partly through that sensation of pressure that your body knows you’ve had enough. Processed foods deliver a lot of calories without taking up much space, meaning you can eat a lot before you realize you’ve overdone it.

Experiment #1: Observe as you chew.

Yup, that’s right. I want you to count your chews.

Note: Don’t do this forever. I’m not trying to turn you into the weirdo who no one wants to sit next to at the lunch table.  Just try it as an experiment to get some data about how you eat different foods.

First, eat a whole food — a vegetable, fruit, whole grain, lean protein, whatever — and count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat an entire portion of that food? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Then, next time you eat something processed, count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat that serving of pasta, chips, or cookies? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Make some comparisons and notice the differences. Contrast how long eating each of these foods takes you, how satiated you feel after eating each of them, and how much you want to keep eating.

How will you use that information to make food choices moving forward?

2. Notice the messages you’re getting about food.

Food manufacturers use creative marketing strategies to imply processed foods are healthy. And even if you know they’re not, they have other ways of getting you to buy them.

Here’s an example:

Ever notice that the produce section is the first area you pass through in grocery stores?

Grocery stores have found that if they put the produce section first, you’re more likely to purchase processed foods. This is probably because if you’ve already got your cart loaded with spinach, broccoli, and apples, perhaps you’ll feel better about picking up some ice cream, cookies, and crackers, before heading to the checkout line.

Let that sink in: The supermarkets we all shop in several times a month are designed to make you feel better about buying foods that could negatively impact your health goals.

The good news? Simply being aware of this trick can help you bypass it.

Experiment #2: Evaluate your pantry.

In this experiment, you’ll examine the foods you have in your home and the messages you’ve been given about them.

Note: Keep in mind that this is a mindful awareness activity. You’re not doing this to judge yourself or feel shame about the food choices you’ve made.

Look at your pantry with curious (and more informed) eyes.

Step 1: Look for “health halo” foods. Do you have any? If so, why did you choose them? Was it the language used to describe it? Was it the packaging? A trendy “superfood” ingredient? Is it organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, Paleo, or something else?

Step 2: Read the nutritional information. Once you’ve identified the “health halo” foods, take a closer look. Is your “healthy” organic dark chocolate peanut butter cup all that nutritionally different from that mass-market peanut butter cup? Chances are, it’s just different packaging.

Step 3: Count how many varieties of junk foods you have. If you love ice cream — how many flavors do you have? If you peek into your cupboards, are there cookies, popcorn, candy, or chips? Without judgment, count the total junk food variety currently in your home. Generally, the more options you have, the easier it is to overeat.

The takeaway?

You’ll be more aware of the particular types of marketing you’re susceptible to, which you can use to make more informed food choices.

You’ll also have a better idea of which treat foods you prefer, and by reducing the variety of them in your home, you’ll cut down on opportunities to overeat.

3. Look for patterns.

We often use food for reasons other than physical nourishment.

For example, if we feel sad, we might reach for a cookie to comfort ourselves. Temporarily, we feel better.

The next time we feel sad, we remember the temporary relief that cookie brought us. So we repeat the ritual. If we continue to repeat this cycle, we may find our arm reaching for the cookie jar every time we feel blue. We’re not even thinking about it at this point; it’s just habit.

Habits are powerful, for better or for worse. They can work for us or against us.

Luckily, we have control over this.

All it takes is a little time and an understanding of how habits get formed.

All animals learn habits in the following way:

This leads us to our next experiment…

Experiment #3: Put the science of habits to work.

If you want to break the habit of overeating, you can use this trigger, behavior, and reward loop to your advantage. Here’s how.

Step 1: identify your triggers.

A trigger can be a:

Feeling. We might eat more when we’re stressed, lonely, or bored. Food fills the void.

Time of day. We always have a cookie at 11am, or a soda at 3pm. It’s just part of our routine.

Social setting. Hey, everyone else is having beer and chicken wings, so might as well join the happy hour!

Place. For some reason, a dark movie theater or our parents’ kitchen might make us want to munch.

Thought pattern. Thinking “I deserve this” or “Life is too hard to chew kale” might steer us toward the drive-thru window.

When you find yourself eating when you’re not physically hungry, increase your awareness of your triggers by asking yourself:

What am I feeling?

What time is it?

Who am I with?

Where am I?

What thoughts am I having?

Keep a journal and look for patterns.

And remember: Overeating is generally problematic when it’s chronic — those pants are feeling pretty tight after most meals — or when episodes of overeating are particularly intense, like during a binge. So don’t get too worried with isolated episodes of overeating. To differentiate overeating from binge eating, keep in mind that binge eating feels disassociated, out of control, hard to stop, and usually comes with feelings of shame and guilt.

If, in observing your eating patterns, you discover that you may be dealing with compulsive bingeing behavior, then recruiting a doctor, therapist, or other qualified practitioner to help you navigate your feelings around food is likely the best course of action.

Step 2: Find a new behavior in response to your trigger(s).

Once you’ve identified your triggers, try associating new behaviors with them. These should support your health goals and feel good. If the new behaviors aren’t rewarding, they won’t be repeated, so they won’t be learned as habits.

In order to find the “right” new behavior, it’s helpful to know that when we eat, we’re trying to meet a “need.”

So when you brainstorm new behaviors, find something that meets that need — be it time in nature, some human connection, a physical release, or just a break from your thoughts.

For example, I had a client whose trigger was talking to her ex-husband. She felt angry when she interacted with him, and some furious crunching on chips temporarily made her feel better.

She eventually replaced the crunching with a punching bag session or by stomping up and down the stairs. Both activities were effective at relieving tension, but unlike the chips, they supported her goals.

Step 3: Practice.

Every time a trigger pops up that compels you to eat, replace eating with a healthy feel-good behavior.

Repeat this loop until the new behavior becomes a habit that’s just as automatic as reaching for the jar of peanut butter used to be.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Not all “feel-good” habits are created equal, in terms of their physiological effect on the stress response.

According to the American Psychological Association, the most effective stress relievers are:

exercising / playing sports,

reading,

listening to music,

praying / attending a religious service,

spending time with friends / family,

getting a massage,

walking outside,

meditation,

yoga, and

engaging in a creative hobby.

The least effective stress relievers are: gambling, shopping, smoking, eating, drinking, playing video games, surfing the internet, and watching TV / movies for more than two hours.

Although we may use the second list as “stress-relievers” — because they feel so good in the short term — they don’t actually reduce stress effectively.

This is because these habits rely on dopamine to give us a “hit” of pleasure. Dopamine feels rewarding immediately, but because it’s an excitatory neurotransmitter, it actually stimulates adrenaline and initiates the stress response.

In contrast, the first list of habits boost neurotransmitters like serotonin, GABA, and oxytocin, which calm down the stress response and induce a feeling of wellbeing.

Although these activities aren’t initially as “exciting” as the second list, they’re ultimately more rewarding and more effective at relieving stress long-term.

It’s not just about the food

As a dietician, I know how important nutrition is. So it might surprise you to hear me say the following:

It’s not all about the food.

Structure your diet around colorful, nutrient-dense whole foods, but also remember that a healthy life is not about calorie math or obsessing over everything you put in your mouth.

A healthy life is about giving time and attention to our whole selves.

Eating happens in context.

Pay attention to your mindset, your relationships, your work, and your environment.

When we’re well-nourished in other areas of our life, we’re less likely to use food as a cure-all when we struggle.

So if there’s one more piece of nutrition advice I have, it’s this:

Be good to yourself.

Not just at the table, but in all areas of life.

What to do next

1. Be kind, curious, and honest.

When we fall short of our ideals, we think that beating ourselves up is the fastest way to improvement. But it’s not.

Criticism and crash dieting may work in the short term, but can damage our mental and physical health in the long term.

Because overeating is already a painful experience, as you consider how these behaviors show up in your life and how you might address them, please be:

Kind: Be friendly and self-compassionate; work with yourself instead of against yourself.

Curious: Explore your habits with openness and interest. Be like a scientist looking at data rather than a criminal investigator looking to blame and punish.

Honest: Look at your reality. How are you behaving day-to-day around food? The more accurate you are at perceiving yourself, the better you can support yourself to change.

With this attitude of support and non-judgment, you’re more likely to move forward.

2. Use the “traffic light” system.

Precision Nutrition has a great tool for creating awareness around food that I use all the time with my clients. It’s called the “traffic light” system.

You see, we all have red light foods, yellow light foods, and green light foods.

Red means stop.

Red foods are a “no-go.” Either because they don’t help you achieve your goals, you have trouble eating them in reasonable amounts, or they plain old make you feel gross.

Often, red light foods are processed foods like chips, candy, ice cream, and pastries. Red foods can also be foods that you’re allergic / intolerant to.

Yellow means proceed with caution.

Yellow light foods are sometimes OK, sometimes not. Maybe you can eat a little bit without feeling ill, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others but not at home alone, or you can have them as an occasional treat.

Yellow light foods might include things like bread, crackers, pasta, flavored yogurt, granola bars, or seasoned nuts. They’re not the worst choices, but they’re not the most nutritious either.

Green means go.

Green foods are a “go.” You like eating them because they’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts.

Green foods are usually whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean animal proteins, beans and legumes, raw nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

Create your own red, yellow, and green light food lists.

Everyone’s list will be different! You might leave ice cream in the freezer untouched for months, whereas another person might need a restraining order from that rocky road caramel swirl.

Once you have your list, stock your kitchen with as many green light foods as possible. Choose the yellow foods you allow in your house wisely. And red foods are to be limited or eliminated entirely.

At the very least, consider reducing the variety of red light or treat foods.

Take some pressure off your willpower and surround yourself with foods that support your goals.

3. Put quality above quantity.

It’s tempting to buy that jumbo bag of chips because it’s such a good deal.

But remember: Real value isn’t about price or quantity so much as it is about quality.

Quality foods are nutrient-dense and minimally-processed. They are foods that you like, and make sense for your schedule and budget.  

Quality foods may take a little more preparation and be a little more expensive up-front, but in the long run, they’re the real deal, and have a lower “health tax” to pay later in life.

4. Focus on whole foods.

Whole foods will make it easier to regulate food intake and will also improve nutrition.

We can almost feel “high” when we eat processed foods. Whole foods, on the other hand, are more subtle in flavor and require a bit more effort to chew and digest. Instead of feeling high, whole foods just make us feel nourished and content.

Whole foods are generally more perishable than processed foods, so this will require some more planning and preparation. So schedule some extra time in the kitchen — even ten minutes a day counts!

In ten minutes, you can cut up some veggies, boil some eggs, cook some oatmeal, or marinate some chicken breasts to make the following day go smoother.

While this might sound like more work, it’s rewarding. A closer relationship with food often means more respect and care for it too.

5. Find feel-good habits that support your goals.

Make a list of activities that you feel good doing. You might find that you like certain activities better than others depending on your feelings, the time of day, or your environment.

When you feel triggered to eat when you’re not physically hungry, choose an activity from your list.

This could be some gentle physical activity, fresh air, social interaction, playing a game, or a self-care ritual like painting your nails or getting a scalp massage.

The point is simply to disrupt the cycle of trigger > eat > reward, and replace eating with an activity that supports your goals.

6. Slow down.

If nothing else works, and the idea of taking away treat foods totally freaks you out, just do this:

Slow down.

Allow yourself to eat whatever you want, just eat slowly and mindfully.

Slowing down allows us to savor our food, making us satisfied with less. It also lets physical sensations of fullness to catch up, so we know when we’ve had enough.

Bingeing can feel stressful and out of control — by slowing down, we help ourselves calm down and take back some of the control.

7. If you feel like you’re in over your head, ask for help.

Sometimes we need support.

If overeating is especially frequent or extreme, or if you have health problems related to overeating that you don’t know how to manage, seek the help of a coach, nutritionist, dietician, or counselor who specializes in disordered eating behaviors.

There’s no shame in receiving support. The best coaches and practitioners often have their own support team too.

Want help becoming the healthiest, fittest, strongest version of you?

Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.

That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health… no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.

It’s also why we work with health, fitness and wellness professionals (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.

Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Wednesday, July 18th, 2018.

If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.

You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.

You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.

If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.

[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].

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References

Click here to view the information sources referenced in this article.

Avena, N.M, Gold, M.S. (2011). Variety and hyperpalatability: are they promoting addictive overeating? The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(2), 367-368. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.020164.

Drewnowski, A., Shrager, E., Lipsky, C., Stellar, E., Greenwood, M.R. (1989). Sugar and fat: Sensory and hedonic evaluation of liquid and solid foods. Physiology & Behavior, 45 (1), 177-183. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(89)90182-0.

Kessler, David A. Your food is fooling you: How your brain is hijacked by sugar, fat, and salt. Roaring Book Press, 2012.

Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (2006). Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035.

Provencher, V., Polivy, J., Herman, C.P. (2009). Perceived healthiness of food. If it’s healthy, you can eat more! Appetite, 52(2), 340-344. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2008.11.005.

Rolls, B.J., Drewnowski, A., Ledikwe, J.H. (2005). Changing the energy density of the diet as a strategy for weight management. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 105(5S), 98-103. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.033.

The post Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control). appeared first on Precision Nutrition.

Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control). published first on

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Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control).

You know the feeling: One salty crunch turns into 100, and suddenly you’re licking the cheese dust and wondering: What’s wrong with me? 

Actually, it’s normal to feel like you can’t stop overeating certain things. Today’s hyperpalatable food is creating a modern-day food crisis — one that’s leaving us feeling sick, out of control, and constantly craving more.

Here’s how it works, plus 3 ways to overcome it.

++++

It’s happened to us all.

After a frenzy of lustful grabbing and furious crunching, we find ourselves at the bottom of a jumbo bag of chips.

“How did that happen?” we ask fuzzily.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stop?”

But, before going into full-fledged self-loathing mode, consider this.

Processed foods are scientifically engineered to be irresistible and easy to gobble up in large quantities. If you can’t stop, the chips are doing their job.

(In fact, someone at Frito-Lay probably got a promotion for that recipe.)

That’s why, in this article, we’ll explain exactly how junk food is designed to make us respond with compulsive, manic, gotta-have-more snack sessions.

Even better, we’ll arm you with three useful strategies for examining your relationship with processed food and taking control of overeating.

Because, if you feel out of control around certain foods, you’re not crazy.

Even healthy eaters feel out of control around food sometimes. Even if we value nutrition and want to take care of ourselves, some foods can make us feel… kinda possessed.

Know what I mean?

You show up to a potluck with quinoa salad goals and find yourself inhaling a plate of chips, cookies, and some chocolate-peanut-butter-marshmallow thing that some devil, um friend, made.

You reach into the freezer to have one spoonful of ice cream and suddenly you’re mining the caramel swirl, then the nut clusters, then the brownie chunks, and then… your spoon scrapes the bottom.

You just want a bite of your friend’s french fry, but you find yourself elbowing her out of the way so you can steal all the fries, plus the burger too.

Even with the best intentions, the pull of certain foods is so strong that it can leave us feeling powerless.

If you’ve felt this, you’re not alone (and you’re not broken).

Certain foods are actually designed to make us overeat.

If you’re overeating, it’s not because there’s something wrong with you or your willpower.

Here’s the truth: There’s a whole industry dedicated to creating food that’s hyperpalatable — food that’s so tasty it’s nearly irresistible.

Your body and brain are responding exactly as they’re supposed to. It’s supposed to feel almost unnatural to stop eating these foods!

But we’re not talking about food like celery sticks, whole brown rice, or baked salmon filets.

(How often do you hear yourself say, “I ate sooo much steamed asparagus! I just couldn’t stop myself!” That’s right. You’ve never heard yourself say that.)

We’re talking about processed foods.

Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their original, whole-food form in order to change their flavor, texture, or shelf-life. Often, they’re altered so that they hit as many pleasure centers as possible — from our brains to our mouths to our bellies.

Processed foods are highly cravable, immediately gratifying, fun to eat, and easy to over-consume quickly (and often cheaply).

Processed foods will also look and feel different from their whole food counterparts, depending on the degree that they’re processed.

Let’s take corn as an example.

Boiled and eaten off the cob it’s pale yellow, kinda fibrous, but chewy and delicious.

Corn that’s a bit processed — ground into a meal and shaped into a flat disk — turns into a soft corn tortilla. A tortilla has a nice corny flavor and a soft, pliable texture that makes it easy to eat and digest.

But what if you ultra-process that corn? You remove all the fiber, isolate the starch, and then use that starch to make little ring-shaped chips, which are fried and dusted with sweet and salty barbecue powder. They’re freaking delicious.

That corn on the cob is yummy. But those corn-derived ring chips? They’re… well they’re gone because someone ate them all.

Let’s take an even deeper look

The food industry has a variety of processing methods and ingredient additives they use to make food extra tasty and easy to consume…. and over-consume.

Here are a few examples:

Extrusion

Grains are processed into a slurry and pass through a machine called an extruder. With the help of high heat and pressure, whole, raw grains get transformed into airy, crispy, easy-to-digest shapes like cereals, crackers, and other crunchy foods with uniform shapes.

In addition to changing texture and digestibility, the extrusion process also destroys certain nutrients and enzymes, denatures proteins, and changes the starch composition of a grain. This lowers the nutrition and increases the glycemic index of the product.

Emulsifiers

Used to improve the “mouth feel” of a product, emulsifiers smooth out and thicken texture, creating a rich, luxurious feel. Although there are natural emulsifiers, like egg yolk, the food industry often uses chemical emulsifiers like Polysorbate-80, sodium phosphate, and carboxymethylcellulose.

Emulsifiers are often found in creamy treats like ice cream products and processed dairy foods like flavored yogurts or neon orange cheese spreads.

Flavor enhancers

Flavor additives like artificial flavoring agents or monosodium glutamate (MSG) allow food manufacturers to amplify taste without adding whole-food ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or spices. This is useful because artificial flavoring agents are cheap and won’t change a product’s texture.

Coloring agents

Color strongly affects how appealing we perceive a food to be. No one wants to eat gray crackers; add a toasty golden hue and suddenly that cracker is a lot more appealing. Coloring agents, like Yellow #5 (tartrazine) and Red #40 (allura red),  are added purely for the look of food — they don’t add nutrition.

Recently, many large food corporations have been switching to natural foods dyes, like beet powder or turmeric, to color their food products after some correlations emerged linking artificial coloring agents to behavioral problems in children.

Oil hydrogenation

Natural fats eventually go rancid, changing their flavor and texture. In order to render fats more stable, hydrogen atoms are added to fats (usually vegetable oils) so they are less vulnerable to oxidation.

Food manufacturers use hydrogenated oils because it means their products can stay on the shelves for longer without changing flavor or texture. However, the consumption of hydrogenated fats, or trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How processed foods trick us into eating more than we meant to.

There are four sneaky ways processed food can make you overeat. Often, we’re not even aware of how much these factors affect us.

That’s why, awareness = power.

1. Marketing convinces us that processed foods are “healthy”.

Processed foods come in packages with bright colors, cartoon characters, celebrity endorsements, and powerful words that triggers all kinds of positive associations.

Take, for example, “health halo” foods.

“Health halo” foods are processed foods that contain health buzzwords like organic, vegan, and gluten-free on their label to create an illusion, or halo, of health around them.

Companies come out with organic versions of their boxed macaroni and cheese, gluten-free versions of their glazed pastries, and vegan versions of their icing-filled cookies.

You’ll see chips “prepared with avocado oil,” sugary cereal “made with flaxseeds,” or creamy chip dip with “real spinach.”

The nutrient content of those foods isn’t particularly impressive, but the addition of nutrition buzzwords and trendy ingredients make us perceive them as healthier.

Marketers also choose words that relate more broadly to self-care.

Ever notice how many processed food slogans sound like this?

“Have a break.”

“Take some time for yourself.”

“You deserve it.”

Words like “break” and “deserve” distract us from our physical sensations and tap into our feelings — a place where we just want to be understood, supported, soothed, and perhaps just escape for a moment.

Health buzzwords and emotional appeals can make us perceive a food as “good for me”; it seems like a wise and caring choice to put them in our shopping carts, then in our mouths.

And if a food is “healthy” or “we deserve it,” we don’t feel so bad eating as much as we want.

2. Big portions make us think we’re getting a “good deal”.

People get mixed up about food and value.

We’re taught to save money and not waste food.

We’re taught to buy more for less.

Given the choice between a small juice for two dollars, and a pop with endless refills for the same price, the pop seems like better value.

What we don’t calculate into this equation is something I like to call the “health tax.”

The “health tax” is the toll you pay for eating low-nutrient, highly processed foods. If you eat them consistently over time, eventually you’ll pay the price with your health.

When companies use cheap, poor quality ingredients, they can sell bigger quantities without raising the price.

But what’s the deal?

Sure, you’ll save a buck in the short term, but you’ll pay the health tax — through poor health — in the long term.

3. Variety makes us hungrier.

Choice excites us.

Think of a self-serve frozen yogurt topping bar:

“Ooh! Sprinkles! And beer nuts! Oh, and they have those mini peanut butter cups! And granola clusters! Wait, are those crushed cookies?? And cheesecake chunks??! YES! Now on to the drizzles…”

Before you know it, there‘s a leaning tower of frozen dessert in front of you.

Or think of those “party mixes” — pretzels and corn chips and cheesy puffs and barbeque rings — all in one bag! The fun never ends because there’s a variety of flavors and textures to amuse you forever!

When we have lots of variety, we have lots of appetite.

It’s hard to overeat tons of one thing, with one flavor, like apples.

How many apples can you eat before, frankly, you get bored?

Reduce the variety and you also reduce distraction from your body’s built-in self-regulating signals. When we’re not so giddy with choice and stimuli, we’re more likely to slow down, eat mindfully, and eat less.

4. Multiple flavors at once are irresistible.

If there’s a party in your mouth, you can guarantee that at least two out of three of the following guests will be there:

Sugar

Fat

Salt

These three flavors — the sweetness of sugar, the luxurious mouthfeel of fat, and the sharp savory of salt — are favorites among those of us with mouths.

I never hear my clients say that they love eating spoonfuls of sugar or salt, or that they want to chug a bottle of oil.

However, when you combine these flavors, they become ultra delicious and hard-to-resist. This is called stimuli stacking — combining two or more flavors to create a hyperpalatable food.

For example:

The satisfying combination of fat and salt, found in chips, fries, nachos, cheesy things, etc.

The comforting combination of fat and sugar, found in baked goods, fudge, ice cream, cookies, chocolate, etc.

The irresistible combination of all three — heaven forbid you stumble on a combo of fat, salt, and sugar — a salted chocolate brownie, or caramel corn with candied nuts, or fries with ketchup!

Food manufacturers know: When it comes to encouraging people to overeat, two flavors are better than one.

In fact, when I spoke to an industry insider, a food scientist at a prominent processed food manufacturer, she revealed the specific “stimuli stacking” formula that the food industry uses to create hyperpalatable food.

They call it “The Big 5.”

Foods that fulfill “The Big 5” are:

Calorie dense, usually high in sugar and/or fat.

Intensely flavored — the food must deliver strong flavor hits.

Immediately delicious, with a love-at-first taste experience.

Easy to eat — no effortful chewing needed!

“Melted” down easily — the food almost dissolves in your mouth, thus easy to eat quickly and overconsume.

When these five factors exist in one food, you get a product that’s practically irresistible.

In fact, foods developed by this company have to hit the big 5, or they’re not allowed to go to market.

When processed food manufacturers evaluate a prospective food product, the “irresistibility” (the extent to which a person can’t stop eating a food) is more important even than taste!

Just think about the ease of eating whole foods versus processed foods:

Whole foods require about 25 chews per mouthful, which means that you have to slow down. When you slow down, your satiety signals keep pace with your eating and have a chance to tell you when you’ve had enough. Which is probably why you’ve never overeaten Brussel sprouts (also because, farting).

Processed food manufacturers, on the other hand, aim for food products to be broken down in 10 chews or less per mouthful. That means the intense, flavorful, crazy-delicious experience is over quickly, and you’re left wanting more — ASAP.

Restaurants use these “ease of eating” tactics, too.

A major national chain uses this sci-fi-esque trick:

To make their signature chicken dish, each chicken breast is injected with a highly flavored sauce through hundreds of tiny needles. This results in a jacked-up chicken breast with intense flavor hits, but also tenderizes the chicken so it requires less chewing.

In other words, there’s a reason that restaurant chicken often goes down easier and just tastes better than the simple grilled chicken breast you make in your kitchen. Unless you have hundreds of tiny sauce-needles (weird), that chicken is hard to recreate at home.

This is why I rarely talk about willpower when my clients come to me struggling with overeating. If you’re relying on willpower to resist these foods, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

The solution isn’t more willpower. The solution is educating yourself about these foods, examining your own relationship with food, and employing strategies that put you in control.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Our love of certain flavors has very primitive roots.

So does our desire to load up on calories.

Once upon a time, food was not so abundant. Not only was food challenging to obtain — through effortful scavenging and hunting — but it was also not reliably safe.

That leaf over there? Yeah, that could be poison.

Those berries? They might give you the runs or make your throat close up.

Therefore, our ancient ancestors evolved some survival instincts along the way.

For example, sweet foods tend not to be poisonous. Therefore, we stored a preference for sweet, starchy foods in our brains to keep us safe.

Babies and children are particularly attracted to sweet foods, probably because their immature immune systems are less likely to recover from eating a poisonous plant, and their immature brains can’t tell the difference between dangerous bitter green (like hemlock) and safe bitter green (like kale).

Therefore, kids’ attraction to sweet (read: safe) foods is a built-in mechanism to prevent death by poisoning.

Fat is also a preferred nutrient, as it’s high-calorie and would be a jackpot for our often-threatened-by-starvation ancestors.

While most foods our ancestors ate would have been fibrous and low-calorie (roots, greens, lean meats), fat would have been a highly prized treat.

Imagine, as a primitive hunter-gatherer, stumbling on a macadamia nut tree. The yield from that tree might provide enough calories to feed your tribe for days!

As a result, we stored another preference in our brains: fatty, calorie-dense foods = yum / stock up!

Today, of course, we don’t have to run and dig and hike for nine hours to get our food. Instead, we can just roll up to the drive-thru window and order a combination of flavors we’re primed to love — maybe in the form of a milkshake and a cheeseburger — and enjoy it while sitting in our car.

Evolution’s gifts now work against us.

So, now you see why processed foods are so hard to control yourself around.

But what can actually you do about it?

Up next, some practical strategies to put you (or your clients) in the driver’s seat.

3 strategies to find your way back to a peaceful relationship with food.

It’s one thing to know in theory why certain foods are so easy to over-consume, but it’s even more valuable to discover for yourself how food processing, certain ingredient combinations, marketing, and even easy accessibility affect you and your food choices.

So, it’s time to get a little nerdy, try some experiments, and learn some strategies that will help you improve your relationship with food, get healthier, and just feel more sane.

1. Get curious about the foods you eat.

We’ve established that processed foods are designed to be easy to eat.

For a food to be “easy to eat”, it has to be:

broken down easily (less chewing), and

low volume (doesn’t take up much physical space).

So:

Less chewing + Low volume = More eating

Chewing takes time. The more we have to chew something, the longer it takes us to eat, giving our fullness signals a chance to catch up.

That feeling of “fullness” matters a lot too.

When you eat, your stomach expands. It’s partly through that sensation of pressure that your body knows you’ve had enough. Processed foods deliver a lot of calories without taking up much space, meaning you can eat a lot before you realize you’ve overdone it.

Experiment #1: Observe as you chew.

Yup, that’s right. I want you to count your chews.

Note: Don’t do this forever. I’m not trying to turn you into the weirdo who no one wants to sit next to at the lunch table.  Just try it as an experiment to get some data about how you eat different foods.

First, eat a whole food — a vegetable, fruit, whole grain, lean protein, whatever — and count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat an entire portion of that food? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Then, next time you eat something processed, count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat that serving of pasta, chips, or cookies? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Make some comparisons and notice the differences. Contrast how long eating each of these foods takes you, how satiated you feel after eating each of them, and how much you want to keep eating.

How will you use that information to make food choices moving forward?

2. Notice the messages you’re getting about food.

Food manufacturers use creative marketing strategies to imply processed foods are healthy. And even if you know they’re not, they have other ways of getting you to buy them.

Here’s an example:

Ever notice that the produce section is the first area you pass through in grocery stores?

Grocery stores have found that if they put the produce section first, you’re more likely to purchase processed foods. This is probably because if you’ve already got your cart loaded with spinach, broccoli, and apples, perhaps you’ll feel better about picking up some ice cream, cookies, and crackers, before heading to the checkout line.

Let that sink in: The supermarkets we all shop in several times a month are designed to make you feel better about buying foods that could negatively impact your health goals.

The good news? Simply being aware of this trick can help you bypass it.

Experiment #2: Evaluate your pantry.

In this experiment, you’ll examine the foods you have in your home and the messages you’ve been given about them.

Note: Keep in mind that this is a mindful awareness activity. You’re not doing this to judge yourself or feel shame about the food choices you’ve made.

Look at your pantry with curious (and more informed) eyes.

Step 1: Look for “health halo” foods. Do you have any? If so, why did you choose them? Was it the language used to describe it? Was it the packaging? A trendy “superfood” ingredient? Is it organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, Paleo, or something else?

Step 2: Read the nutritional information. Once you’ve identified the “health halo” foods, take a closer look. Is your “healthy” organic dark chocolate peanut butter cup all that nutritionally different from that mass-market peanut butter cup? Chances are, it’s just different packaging.

Step 3: Count how many varieties of junk foods you have. If you love ice cream — how many flavors do you have? If you peek into your cupboards, are there cookies, popcorn, candy, or chips? Without judgment, count the total junk food variety currently in your home. Generally, the more options you have, the easier it is to overeat.

The takeaway?

You’ll be more aware of the particular types of marketing you’re susceptible to, which you can use to make more informed food choices.

You’ll also have a better idea of which treat foods you prefer, and by reducing the variety of them in your home, you’ll cut down on opportunities to overeat.

3. Look for patterns.

We often use food for reasons other than physical nourishment.

For example, if we feel sad, we might reach for a cookie to comfort ourselves. Temporarily, we feel better.

The next time we feel sad, we remember the temporary relief that cookie brought us. So we repeat the ritual. If we continue to repeat this cycle, we may find our arm reaching for the cookie jar every time we feel blue. We’re not even thinking about it at this point; it’s just habit.

Habits are powerful, for better or for worse. They can work for us or against us.

Luckily, we have control over this.

All it takes is a little time and an understanding of how habits get formed.

All animals learn habits in the following way:

This leads us to our next experiment…

Experiment #3: Put the science of habits to work.

If you want to break the habit of overeating, you can use this trigger, behavior, and reward loop to your advantage. Here’s how.

Step 1: identify your triggers.

A trigger can be a:

Feeling. We might eat more when we’re stressed, lonely, or bored. Food fills the void.

Time of day. We always have a cookie at 11am, or a soda at 3pm. It’s just part of our routine.

Social setting. Hey, everyone else is having beer and chicken wings, so might as well join the happy hour!

Place. For some reason, a dark movie theater or our parents’ kitchen might make us want to munch.

Thought pattern. Thinking “I deserve this” or “Life is too hard to chew kale” might steer us toward the drive-thru window.

When you find yourself eating when you’re not physically hungry, increase your awareness of your triggers by asking yourself:

What am I feeling?

What time is it?

Who am I with?

Where am I?

What thoughts am I having?

Keep a journal and look for patterns.

And remember: Overeating is generally problematic when it’s chronic — those pants are feeling pretty tight after most meals — or when episodes of overeating are particularly intense, like during a binge. So don’t get too worried with isolated episodes of overeating. To differentiate overeating from binge eating, keep in mind that binge eating feels disassociated, out of control, hard to stop, and usually comes with feelings of shame and guilt.

If, in observing your eating patterns, you discover that you may be dealing with compulsive bingeing behavior, then recruiting a doctor, therapist, or other qualified practitioner to help you navigate your feelings around food is likely the best course of action.

Step 2: Find a new behavior in response to your trigger(s).

Once you’ve identified your triggers, try associating new behaviors with them. These should support your health goals and feel good. If the new behaviors aren’t rewarding, they won’t be repeated, so they won’t be learned as habits.

In order to find the “right” new behavior, it’s helpful to know that when we eat, we’re trying to meet a “need.”

So when you brainstorm new behaviors, find something that meets that need — be it time in nature, some human connection, a physical release, or just a break from your thoughts.

For example, I had a client whose trigger was talking to her ex-husband. She felt angry when she interacted with him, and some furious crunching on chips temporarily made her feel better.

She eventually replaced the crunching with a punching bag session or by stomping up and down the stairs. Both activities were effective at relieving tension, but unlike the chips, they supported her goals.

Step 3: Practice.

Every time a trigger pops up that compels you to eat, replace eating with a healthy feel-good behavior.

Repeat this loop until the new behavior becomes a habit that’s just as automatic as reaching for the jar of peanut butter used to be.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Not all “feel-good” habits are created equal, in terms of their physiological effect on the stress response.

According to the American Psychological Association, the most effective stress relievers are:

exercising / playing sports,

reading,

listening to music,

praying / attending a religious service,

spending time with friends / family,

getting a massage,

walking outside,

meditation,

yoga, and

engaging in a creative hobby.

The least effective stress relievers are: gambling, shopping, smoking, eating, drinking, playing video games, surfing the internet, and watching TV / movies for more than two hours.

Although we may use the second list as “stress-relievers” — because they feel so good in the short term — they don’t actually reduce stress effectively.

This is because these habits rely on dopamine to give us a “hit” of pleasure. Dopamine feels rewarding immediately, but because it’s an excitatory neurotransmitter, it actually stimulates adrenaline and initiates the stress response.

In contrast, the first list of habits boost neurotransmitters like serotonin, GABA, and oxytocin, which calm down the stress response and induce a feeling of wellbeing.

Although these activities aren’t initially as “exciting” as the second list, they’re ultimately more rewarding and more effective at relieving stress long-term.

It’s not just about the food

As a dietician, I know how important nutrition is. So it might surprise you to hear me say the following:

It’s not all about the food.

Structure your diet around colorful, nutrient-dense whole foods, but also remember that a healthy life is not about calorie math or obsessing over everything you put in your mouth.

A healthy life is about giving time and attention to our whole selves.

Eating happens in context.

Pay attention to your mindset, your relationships, your work, and your environment.

When we’re well-nourished in other areas of our life, we’re less likely to use food as a cure-all when we struggle.

So if there’s one more piece of nutrition advice I have, it’s this:

Be good to yourself.

Not just at the table, but in all areas of life.

What to do next

1. Be kind, curious, and honest.

When we fall short of our ideals, we think that beating ourselves up is the fastest way to improvement. But it’s not.

Criticism and crash dieting may work in the short term, but can damage our mental and physical health in the long term.

Because overeating is already a painful experience, as you consider how these behaviors show up in your life and how you might address them, please be:

Kind: Be friendly and self-compassionate; work with yourself instead of against yourself.

Curious: Explore your habits with openness and interest. Be like a scientist looking at data rather than a criminal investigator looking to blame and punish.

Honest: Look at your reality. How are you behaving day-to-day around food? The more accurate you are at perceiving yourself, the better you can support yourself to change.

With this attitude of support and non-judgment, you’re more likely to move forward.

2. Use the “traffic light” system.

Precision Nutrition has a great tool for creating awareness around food that I use all the time with my clients. It’s called the “traffic light” system.

You see, we all have red light foods, yellow light foods, and green light foods.

Red means stop.

Red foods are a “no-go.” Either because they don’t help you achieve your goals, you have trouble eating them in reasonable amounts, or they plain old make you feel gross.

Often, red light foods are processed foods like chips, candy, ice cream, and pastries. Red foods can also be foods that you’re allergic / intolerant to.

Yellow means proceed with caution.

Yellow light foods are sometimes OK, sometimes not. Maybe you can eat a little bit without feeling ill, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others but not at home alone, or you can have them as an occasional treat.

Yellow light foods might include things like bread, crackers, pasta, flavored yogurt, granola bars, or seasoned nuts. They’re not the worst choices, but they’re not the most nutritious either.

Green means go.

Green foods are a “go.” You like eating them because they’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts.

Green foods are usually whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean animal proteins, beans and legumes, raw nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

Create your own red, yellow, and green light food lists.

Everyone’s list will be different! You might leave ice cream in the freezer untouched for months, whereas another person might need a restraining order from that rocky road caramel swirl.

Once you have your list, stock your kitchen with as many green light foods as possible. Choose the yellow foods you allow in your house wisely. And red foods are to be limited or eliminated entirely.

At the very least, consider reducing the variety of red light or treat foods.

Take some pressure off your willpower and surround yourself with foods that support your goals.

3. Put quality above quantity.

It’s tempting to buy that jumbo bag of chips because it’s such a good deal.

But remember: Real value isn’t about price or quantity so much as it is about quality.

Quality foods are nutrient-dense and minimally-processed. They are foods that you like, and make sense for your schedule and budget.  

Quality foods may take a little more preparation and be a little more expensive up-front, but in the long run, they’re the real deal, and have a lower “health tax” to pay later in life.

4. Focus on whole foods.

Whole foods will make it easier to regulate food intake and will also improve nutrition.

We can almost feel “high” when we eat processed foods. Whole foods, on the other hand, are more subtle in flavor and require a bit more effort to chew and digest. Instead of feeling high, whole foods just make us feel nourished and content.

Whole foods are generally more perishable than processed foods, so this will require some more planning and preparation. So schedule some extra time in the kitchen — even ten minutes a day counts!

In ten minutes, you can cut up some veggies, boil some eggs, cook some oatmeal, or marinate some chicken breasts to make the following day go smoother.

While this might sound like more work, it’s rewarding. A closer relationship with food often means more respect and care for it too.

5. Find feel-good habits that support your goals.

Make a list of activities that you feel good doing. You might find that you like certain activities better than others depending on your feelings, the time of day, or your environment.

When you feel triggered to eat when you’re not physically hungry, choose an activity from your list.

This could be some gentle physical activity, fresh air, social interaction, playing a game, or a self-care ritual like painting your nails or getting a scalp massage.

The point is simply to disrupt the cycle of trigger > eat > reward, and replace eating with an activity that supports your goals.

6. Slow down.

If nothing else works, and the idea of taking away treat foods totally freaks you out, just do this:

Slow down.

Allow yourself to eat whatever you want, just eat slowly and mindfully.

Slowing down allows us to savor our food, making us satisfied with less. It also lets physical sensations of fullness to catch up, so we know when we’ve had enough.

Bingeing can feel stressful and out of control — by slowing down, we help ourselves calm down and take back some of the control.

7. If you feel like you’re in over your head, ask for help.

Sometimes we need support.

If overeating is especially frequent or extreme, or if you have health problems related to overeating that you don’t know how to manage, seek the help of a coach, nutritionist, dietician, or counselor who specializes in disordered eating behaviors.

There’s no shame in receiving support. The best coaches and practitioners often have their own support team too.

Want help becoming the healthiest, fittest, strongest version of you?

Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.

That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health… no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.

It’s also why we work with health, fitness and wellness professionals (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.

Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Wednesday, July 18th, 2018.

If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.

You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.

You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.

If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.

[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].

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References

Click here to view the information sources referenced in this article.

Avena, N.M, Gold, M.S. (2011). Variety and hyperpalatability: are they promoting addictive overeating? The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(2), 367-368. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.020164.

Drewnowski, A., Shrager, E., Lipsky, C., Stellar, E., Greenwood, M.R. (1989). Sugar and fat: Sensory and hedonic evaluation of liquid and solid foods. Physiology & Behavior, 45 (1), 177-183. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(89)90182-0.

Kessler, David A. Your food is fooling you: How your brain is hijacked by sugar, fat, and salt. Roaring Book Press, 2012.

Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (2006). Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035.

Provencher, V., Polivy, J., Herman, C.P. (2009). Perceived healthiness of food. If it’s healthy, you can eat more! Appetite, 52(2), 340-344. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2008.11.005.

Rolls, B.J., Drewnowski, A., Ledikwe, J.H. (2005). Changing the energy density of the diet as a strategy for weight management. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 105(5S), 98-103. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.033.

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Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control).

You know the feeling: One salty crunch turns into 100, and suddenly you’re licking the cheese dust and wondering: What’s wrong with me? 

Actually, it’s normal to feel like you can’t stop overeating certain things. Today’s hyperpalatable food is creating a modern-day food crisis — one that’s leaving us feeling sick, out of control, and constantly craving more.

Here’s how it works, plus 3 ways to overcome it.

++++

It’s happened to us all.

After a frenzy of lustful grabbing and furious crunching, we find ourselves at the bottom of a jumbo bag of chips.

“How did that happen?” we ask fuzzily.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stop?”

But, before going into full-fledged self-loathing mode, consider this.

Processed foods are scientifically engineered to be irresistible and easy to gobble up in large quantities. If you can’t stop, the chips are doing their job.

(In fact, someone at Frito-Lay probably got a promotion for that recipe.)

That’s why, in this article, we’ll explain exactly how junk food is designed to make us respond with compulsive, manic, gotta-have-more snack sessions.

Even better, we’ll arm you with three useful strategies for examining your relationship with processed food and taking control of overeating.

Because, if you feel out of control around certain foods, you’re not crazy.

Even healthy eaters feel out of control around food sometimes. Even if we value nutrition and want to take care of ourselves, some foods can make us feel… kinda possessed.

Know what I mean?

You show up to a potluck with quinoa salad goals and find yourself inhaling a plate of chips, cookies, and some chocolate-peanut-butter-marshmallow thing that some devil, um friend, made.

You reach into the freezer to have one spoonful of ice cream and suddenly you’re mining the caramel swirl, then the nut clusters, then the brownie chunks, and then… your spoon scrapes the bottom.

You just want a bite of your friend’s french fry, but you find yourself elbowing her out of the way so you can steal all the fries, plus the burger too.

Even with the best intentions, the pull of certain foods is so strong that it can leave us feeling powerless.

If you’ve felt this, you’re not alone (and you’re not broken).

Certain foods are actually designed to make us overeat.

If you’re overeating, it’s not because there’s something wrong with you or your willpower.

Here’s the truth: There’s a whole industry dedicated to creating food that’s hyperpalatable — food that’s so tasty it’s nearly irresistible.

Your body and brain are responding exactly as they’re supposed to. It’s supposed to feel almost unnatural to stop eating these foods!

But we’re not talking about food like celery sticks, whole brown rice, or baked salmon filets.

(How often do you hear yourself say, “I ate sooo much steamed asparagus! I just couldn’t stop myself!” That’s right. You’ve never heard yourself say that.)

We’re talking about processed foods.

Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their original, whole-food form in order to change their flavor, texture, or shelf-life. Often, they’re altered so that they hit as many pleasure centers as possible — from our brains to our mouths to our bellies.

Processed foods are highly cravable, immediately gratifying, fun to eat, and easy to over-consume quickly (and often cheaply).

Processed foods will also look and feel different from their whole food counterparts, depending on the degree that they’re processed.

Let’s take corn as an example.

Boiled and eaten off the cob it’s pale yellow, kinda fibrous, but chewy and delicious.

Corn that’s a bit processed — ground into a meal and shaped into a flat disk — turns into a soft corn tortilla. A tortilla has a nice corny flavor and a soft, pliable texture that makes it easy to eat and digest.

But what if you ultra-process that corn? You remove all the fiber, isolate the starch, and then use that starch to make little ring-shaped chips, which are fried and dusted with sweet and salty barbecue powder. They’re freaking delicious.

That corn on the cob is yummy. But those corn-derived ring chips? They’re… well they’re gone because someone ate them all.

Let’s take an even deeper look

The food industry has a variety of processing methods and ingredient additives they use to make food extra tasty and easy to consume…. and over-consume.

Here are a few examples:

Extrusion

Grains are processed into a slurry and pass through a machine called an extruder. With the help of high heat and pressure, whole, raw grains get transformed into airy, crispy, easy-to-digest shapes like cereals, crackers, and other crunchy foods with uniform shapes.

In addition to changing texture and digestibility, the extrusion process also destroys certain nutrients and enzymes, denatures proteins, and changes the starch composition of a grain. This lowers the nutrition and increases the glycemic index of the product.

Emulsifiers

Used to improve the “mouth feel” of a product, emulsifiers smooth out and thicken texture, creating a rich, luxurious feel. Although there are natural emulsifiers, like egg yolk, the food industry often uses chemical emulsifiers like Polysorbate-80, sodium phosphate, and carboxymethylcellulose.

Emulsifiers are often found in creamy treats like ice cream products and processed dairy foods like flavored yogurts or neon orange cheese spreads.

Flavor enhancers

Flavor additives like artificial flavoring agents or monosodium glutamate (MSG) allow food manufacturers to amplify taste without adding whole-food ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or spices. This is useful because artificial flavoring agents are cheap and won’t change a product’s texture.

Coloring agents

Color strongly affects how appealing we perceive a food to be. No one wants to eat gray crackers; add a toasty golden hue and suddenly that cracker is a lot more appealing. Coloring agents, like Yellow #5 (tartrazine) and Red #40 (allura red),  are added purely for the look of food — they don’t add nutrition.

Recently, many large food corporations have been switching to natural foods dyes, like beet powder or turmeric, to color their food products after some correlations emerged linking artificial coloring agents to behavioral problems in children.

Oil hydrogenation

Natural fats eventually go rancid, changing their flavor and texture. In order to render fats more stable, hydrogen atoms are added to fats (usually vegetable oils) so they are less vulnerable to oxidation.

Food manufacturers use hydrogenated oils because it means their products can stay on the shelves for longer without changing flavor or texture. However, the consumption of hydrogenated fats, or trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How processed foods trick us into eating more than we meant to.

There are four sneaky ways processed food can make you overeat. Often, we’re not even aware of how much these factors affect us.

That’s why, awareness = power.

1. Marketing convinces us that processed foods are “healthy”.

Processed foods come in packages with bright colors, cartoon characters, celebrity endorsements, and powerful words that triggers all kinds of positive associations.

Take, for example, “health halo” foods.

“Health halo” foods are processed foods that contain health buzzwords like organic, vegan, and gluten-free on their label to create an illusion, or halo, of health around them.

Companies come out with organic versions of their boxed macaroni and cheese, gluten-free versions of their glazed pastries, and vegan versions of their icing-filled cookies.

You’ll see chips “prepared with avocado oil,” sugary cereal “made with flaxseeds,” or creamy chip dip with “real spinach.”

The nutrient content of those foods isn’t particularly impressive, but the addition of nutrition buzzwords and trendy ingredients make us perceive them as healthier.

Marketers also choose words that relate more broadly to self-care.

Ever notice how many processed food slogans sound like this?

“Have a break.”

“Take some time for yourself.”

“You deserve it.”

Words like “break” and “deserve” distract us from our physical sensations and tap into our feelings — a place where we just want to be understood, supported, soothed, and perhaps just escape for a moment.

Health buzzwords and emotional appeals can make us perceive a food as “good for me”; it seems like a wise and caring choice to put them in our shopping carts, then in our mouths.

And if a food is “healthy” or “we deserve it,” we don’t feel so bad eating as much as we want.

2. Big portions make us think we’re getting a “good deal”.

People get mixed up about food and value.

We’re taught to save money and not waste food.

We’re taught to buy more for less.

Given the choice between a small juice for two dollars, and a pop with endless refills for the same price, the pop seems like better value.

What we don’t calculate into this equation is something I like to call the “health tax.”

The “health tax” is the toll you pay for eating low-nutrient, highly processed foods. If you eat them consistently over time, eventually you’ll pay the price with your health.

When companies use cheap, poor quality ingredients, they can sell bigger quantities without raising the price.

But what’s the deal?

Sure, you’ll save a buck in the short term, but you’ll pay the health tax — through poor health — in the long term.

3. Variety makes us hungrier.

Choice excites us.

Think of a self-serve frozen yogurt topping bar:

“Ooh! Sprinkles! And beer nuts! Oh, and they have those mini peanut butter cups! And granola clusters! Wait, are those crushed cookies?? And cheesecake chunks??! YES! Now on to the drizzles…”

Before you know it, there‘s a leaning tower of frozen dessert in front of you.

Or think of those “party mixes” — pretzels and corn chips and cheesy puffs and barbeque rings — all in one bag! The fun never ends because there’s a variety of flavors and textures to amuse you forever!

When we have lots of variety, we have lots of appetite.

It’s hard to overeat tons of one thing, with one flavor, like apples.

How many apples can you eat before, frankly, you get bored?

Reduce the variety and you also reduce distraction from your body’s built-in self-regulating signals. When we’re not so giddy with choice and stimuli, we’re more likely to slow down, eat mindfully, and eat less.

4. Multiple flavors at once are irresistible.

If there’s a party in your mouth, you can guarantee that at least two out of three of the following guests will be there:

Sugar

Fat

Salt

These three flavors — the sweetness of sugar, the luxurious mouthfeel of fat, and the sharp savory of salt — are favorites among those of us with mouths.

I never hear my clients say that they love eating spoonfuls of sugar or salt, or that they want to chug a bottle of oil.

However, when you combine these flavors, they become ultra delicious and hard-to-resist. This is called stimuli stacking — combining two or more flavors to create a hyperpalatable food.

For example:

The satisfying combination of fat and salt, found in chips, fries, nachos, cheesy things, etc.

The comforting combination of fat and sugar, found in baked goods, fudge, ice cream, cookies, chocolate, etc.

The irresistible combination of all three — heaven forbid you stumble on a combo of fat, salt, and sugar — a salted chocolate brownie, or caramel corn with candied nuts, or fries with ketchup!

Food manufacturers know: When it comes to encouraging people to overeat, two flavors are better than one.

In fact, when I spoke to an industry insider, a food scientist at a prominent processed food manufacturer, she revealed the specific “stimuli stacking” formula that the food industry uses to create hyperpalatable food.

They call it “The Big 5.”

Foods that fulfill “The Big 5” are:

Calorie dense, usually high in sugar and/or fat.

Intensely flavored — the food must deliver strong flavor hits.

Immediately delicious, with a love-at-first taste experience.

Easy to eat — no effortful chewing needed!

“Melted” down easily — the food almost dissolves in your mouth, thus easy to eat quickly and overconsume.

When these five factors exist in one food, you get a product that’s practically irresistible.

In fact, foods developed by this company have to hit the big 5, or they’re not allowed to go to market.

When processed food manufacturers evaluate a prospective food product, the “irresistibility” (the extent to which a person can’t stop eating a food) is more important even than taste!

Just think about the ease of eating whole foods versus processed foods:

Whole foods require about 25 chews per mouthful, which means that you have to slow down. When you slow down, your satiety signals keep pace with your eating and have a chance to tell you when you’ve had enough. Which is probably why you’ve never overeaten Brussel sprouts (also because, farting).

Processed food manufacturers, on the other hand, aim for food products to be broken down in 10 chews or less per mouthful. That means the intense, flavorful, crazy-delicious experience is over quickly, and you’re left wanting more — ASAP.

Restaurants use these “ease of eating” tactics, too.

A major national chain uses this sci-fi-esque trick:

To make their signature chicken dish, each chicken breast is injected with a highly flavored sauce through hundreds of tiny needles. This results in a jacked-up chicken breast with intense flavor hits, but also tenderizes the chicken so it requires less chewing.

In other words, there’s a reason that restaurant chicken often goes down easier and just tastes better than the simple grilled chicken breast you make in your kitchen. Unless you have hundreds of tiny sauce-needles (weird), that chicken is hard to recreate at home.

This is why I rarely talk about willpower when my clients come to me struggling with overeating. If you’re relying on willpower to resist these foods, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

The solution isn’t more willpower. The solution is educating yourself about these foods, examining your own relationship with food, and employing strategies that put you in control.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Our love of certain flavors has very primitive roots.

So does our desire to load up on calories.

Once upon a time, food was not so abundant. Not only was food challenging to obtain — through effortful scavenging and hunting — but it was also not reliably safe.

That leaf over there? Yeah, that could be poison.

Those berries? They might give you the runs or make your throat close up.

Therefore, our ancient ancestors evolved some survival instincts along the way.

For example, sweet foods tend not to be poisonous. Therefore, we stored a preference for sweet, starchy foods in our brains to keep us safe.

Babies and children are particularly attracted to sweet foods, probably because their immature immune systems are less likely to recover from eating a poisonous plant, and their immature brains can’t tell the difference between dangerous bitter green (like hemlock) and safe bitter green (like kale).

Therefore, kids’ attraction to sweet (read: safe) foods is a built-in mechanism to prevent death by poisoning.

Fat is also a preferred nutrient, as it’s high-calorie and would be a jackpot for our often-threatened-by-starvation ancestors.

While most foods our ancestors ate would have been fibrous and low-calorie (roots, greens, lean meats), fat would have been a highly prized treat.

Imagine, as a primitive hunter-gatherer, stumbling on a macadamia nut tree. The yield from that tree might provide enough calories to feed your tribe for days!

As a result, we stored another preference in our brains: fatty, calorie-dense foods = yum / stock up!

Today, of course, we don’t have to run and dig and hike for nine hours to get our food. Instead, we can just roll up to the drive-thru window and order a combination of flavors we’re primed to love — maybe in the form of a milkshake and a cheeseburger — and enjoy it while sitting in our car.

Evolution’s gifts now work against us.

So, now you see why processed foods are so hard to control yourself around.

But what can actually you do about it?

Up next, some practical strategies to put you (or your clients) in the driver’s seat.

3 strategies to find your way back to a peaceful relationship with food.

It’s one thing to know in theory why certain foods are so easy to over-consume, but it’s even more valuable to discover for yourself how food processing, certain ingredient combinations, marketing, and even easy accessibility affect you and your food choices.

So, it’s time to get a little nerdy, try some experiments, and learn some strategies that will help you improve your relationship with food, get healthier, and just feel more sane.

1. Get curious about the foods you eat.

We’ve established that processed foods are designed to be easy to eat.

For a food to be “easy to eat”, it has to be:

broken down easily (less chewing), and

low volume (doesn’t take up much physical space).

So:

Less chewing + Low volume = More eating

Chewing takes time. The more we have to chew something, the longer it takes us to eat, giving our fullness signals a chance to catch up.

That feeling of “fullness” matters a lot too.

When you eat, your stomach expands. It’s partly through that sensation of pressure that your body knows you’ve had enough. Processed foods deliver a lot of calories without taking up much space, meaning you can eat a lot before you realize you’ve overdone it.

Experiment #1: Observe as you chew.

Yup, that’s right. I want you to count your chews.

Note: Don’t do this forever. I’m not trying to turn you into the weirdo who no one wants to sit next to at the lunch table.  Just try it as an experiment to get some data about how you eat different foods.

First, eat a whole food — a vegetable, fruit, whole grain, lean protein, whatever — and count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat an entire portion of that food? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Then, next time you eat something processed, count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat that serving of pasta, chips, or cookies? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Make some comparisons and notice the differences. Contrast how long eating each of these foods takes you, how satiated you feel after eating each of them, and how much you want to keep eating.

How will you use that information to make food choices moving forward?

2. Notice the messages you’re getting about food.

Food manufacturers use creative marketing strategies to imply processed foods are healthy. And even if you know they’re not, they have other ways of getting you to buy them.

Here’s an example:

Ever notice that the produce section is the first area you pass through in grocery stores?

Grocery stores have found that if they put the produce section first, you’re more likely to purchase processed foods. This is probably because if you’ve already got your cart loaded with spinach, broccoli, and apples, perhaps you’ll feel better about picking up some ice cream, cookies, and crackers, before heading to the checkout line.

Let that sink in: The supermarkets we all shop in several times a month are designed to make you feel better about buying foods that could negatively impact your health goals.

The good news? Simply being aware of this trick can help you bypass it.

Experiment #2: Evaluate your pantry.

In this experiment, you’ll examine the foods you have in your home and the messages you’ve been given about them.

Note: Keep in mind that this is a mindful awareness activity. You’re not doing this to judge yourself or feel shame about the food choices you’ve made.

Look at your pantry with curious (and more informed) eyes.

Step 1: Look for “health halo” foods. Do you have any? If so, why did you choose them? Was it the language used to describe it? Was it the packaging? A trendy “superfood” ingredient? Is it organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, Paleo, or something else?

Step 2: Read the nutritional information. Once you’ve identified the “health halo” foods, take a closer look. Is your “healthy” organic dark chocolate peanut butter cup all that nutritionally different from that mass-market peanut butter cup? Chances are, it’s just different packaging.

Step 3: Count how many varieties of junk foods you have. If you love ice cream — how many flavors do you have? If you peek into your cupboards, are there cookies, popcorn, candy, or chips? Without judgment, count the total junk food variety currently in your home. Generally, the more options you have, the easier it is to overeat.

The takeaway?

You’ll be more aware of the particular types of marketing you’re susceptible to, which you can use to make more informed food choices.

You’ll also have a better idea of which treat foods you prefer, and by reducing the variety of them in your home, you’ll cut down on opportunities to overeat.

3. Look for patterns.

We often use food for reasons other than physical nourishment.

For example, if we feel sad, we might reach for a cookie to comfort ourselves. Temporarily, we feel better.

The next time we feel sad, we remember the temporary relief that cookie brought us. So we repeat the ritual. If we continue to repeat this cycle, we may find our arm reaching for the cookie jar every time we feel blue. We’re not even thinking about it at this point; it’s just habit.

Habits are powerful, for better or for worse. They can work for us or against us.

Luckily, we have control over this.

All it takes is a little time and an understanding of how habits get formed.

All animals learn habits in the following way:

This leads us to our next experiment…

Experiment #3: Put the science of habits to work.

If you want to break the habit of overeating, you can use this trigger, behavior, and reward loop to your advantage. Here’s how.

Step 1: identify your triggers.

A trigger can be a:

Feeling. We might eat more when we’re stressed, lonely, or bored. Food fills the void.

Time of day. We always have a cookie at 11am, or a soda at 3pm. It’s just part of our routine.

Social setting. Hey, everyone else is having beer and chicken wings, so might as well join the happy hour!

Place. For some reason, a dark movie theater or our parents’ kitchen might make us want to munch.

Thought pattern. Thinking “I deserve this” or “Life is too hard to chew kale” might steer us toward the drive-thru window.

When you find yourself eating when you’re not physically hungry, increase your awareness of your triggers by asking yourself:

What am I feeling?

What time is it?

Who am I with?

Where am I?

What thoughts am I having?

Keep a journal and look for patterns.

And remember: Overeating is generally problematic when it’s chronic — those pants are feeling pretty tight after most meals — or when episodes of overeating are particularly intense, like during a binge. So don’t get too worried with isolated episodes of overeating. To differentiate overeating from binge eating, keep in mind that binge eating feels disassociated, out of control, hard to stop, and usually comes with feelings of shame and guilt.

If, in observing your eating patterns, you discover that you may be dealing with compulsive bingeing behavior, then recruiting a doctor, therapist, or other qualified practitioner to help you navigate your feelings around food is likely the best course of action.

Step 2: Find a new behavior in response to your trigger(s).

Once you’ve identified your triggers, try associating new behaviors with them. These should support your health goals and feel good. If the new behaviors aren’t rewarding, they won’t be repeated, so they won’t be learned as habits.

In order to find the “right” new behavior, it’s helpful to know that when we eat, we’re trying to meet a “need.”

So when you brainstorm new behaviors, find something that meets that need — be it time in nature, some human connection, a physical release, or just a break from your thoughts.

For example, I had a client whose trigger was talking to her ex-husband. She felt angry when she interacted with him, and some furious crunching on chips temporarily made her feel better.

She eventually replaced the crunching with a punching bag session or by stomping up and down the stairs. Both activities were effective at relieving tension, but unlike the chips, they supported her goals.

Step 3: Practice.

Every time a trigger pops up that compels you to eat, replace eating with a healthy feel-good behavior.

Repeat this loop until the new behavior becomes a habit that’s just as automatic as reaching for the jar of peanut butter used to be.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Not all “feel-good” habits are created equal, in terms of their physiological effect on the stress response.

According to the American Psychological Association, the most effective stress relievers are:

exercising / playing sports,

reading,

listening to music,

praying / attending a religious service,

spending time with friends / family,

getting a massage,

walking outside,

meditation,

yoga, and

engaging in a creative hobby.

The least effective stress relievers are: gambling, shopping, smoking, eating, drinking, playing video games, surfing the internet, and watching TV / movies for more than two hours.

Although we may use the second list as “stress-relievers” — because they feel so good in the short term — they don’t actually reduce stress effectively.

This is because these habits rely on dopamine to give us a “hit” of pleasure. Dopamine feels rewarding immediately, but because it’s an excitatory neurotransmitter, it actually stimulates adrenaline and initiates the stress response.

In contrast, the first list of habits boost neurotransmitters like serotonin, GABA, and oxytocin, which calm down the stress response and induce a feeling of wellbeing.

Although these activities aren’t initially as “exciting” as the second list, they’re ultimately more rewarding and more effective at relieving stress long-term.

It’s not just about the food

As a dietician, I know how important nutrition is. So it might surprise you to hear me say the following:

It’s not all about the food.

Structure your diet around colorful, nutrient-dense whole foods, but also remember that a healthy life is not about calorie math or obsessing over everything you put in your mouth.

A healthy life is about giving time and attention to our whole selves.

Eating happens in context.

Pay attention to your mindset, your relationships, your work, and your environment.

When we’re well-nourished in other areas of our life, we’re less likely to use food as a cure-all when we struggle.

So if there’s one more piece of nutrition advice I have, it’s this:

Be good to yourself.

Not just at the table, but in all areas of life.

What to do next

1. Be kind, curious, and honest.

When we fall short of our ideals, we think that beating ourselves up is the fastest way to improvement. But it’s not.

Criticism and crash dieting may work in the short term, but can damage our mental and physical health in the long term.

Because overeating is already a painful experience, as you consider how these behaviors show up in your life and how you might address them, please be:

Kind: Be friendly and self-compassionate; work with yourself instead of against yourself.

Curious: Explore your habits with openness and interest. Be like a scientist looking at data rather than a criminal investigator looking to blame and punish.

Honest: Look at your reality. How are you behaving day-to-day around food? The more accurate you are at perceiving yourself, the better you can support yourself to change.

With this attitude of support and non-judgment, you’re more likely to move forward.

2. Use the “traffic light” system.

Precision Nutrition has a great tool for creating awareness around food that I use all the time with my clients. It’s called the “traffic light” system.

You see, we all have red light foods, yellow light foods, and green light foods.

Red means stop.

Red foods are a “no-go.” Either because they don’t help you achieve your goals, you have trouble eating them in reasonable amounts, or they plain old make you feel gross.

Often, red light foods are processed foods like chips, candy, ice cream, and pastries. Red foods can also be foods that you’re allergic / intolerant to.

Yellow means proceed with caution.

Yellow light foods are sometimes OK, sometimes not. Maybe you can eat a little bit without feeling ill, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others but not at home alone, or you can have them as an occasional treat.

Yellow light foods might include things like bread, crackers, pasta, flavored yogurt, granola bars, or seasoned nuts. They’re not the worst choices, but they’re not the most nutritious either.

Green means go.

Green foods are a “go.” You like eating them because they’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts.

Green foods are usually whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean animal proteins, beans and legumes, raw nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

Create your own red, yellow, and green light food lists.

Everyone’s list will be different! You might leave ice cream in the freezer untouched for months, whereas another person might need a restraining order from that rocky road caramel swirl.

Once you have your list, stock your kitchen with as many green light foods as possible. Choose the yellow foods you allow in your house wisely. And red foods are to be limited or eliminated entirely.

At the very least, consider reducing the variety of red light or treat foods.

Take some pressure off your willpower and surround yourself with foods that support your goals.

3. Put quality above quantity.

It’s tempting to buy that jumbo bag of chips because it’s such a good deal.

But remember: Real value isn’t about price or quantity so much as it is about quality.

Quality foods are nutrient-dense and minimally-processed. They are foods that you like, and make sense for your schedule and budget.  

Quality foods may take a little more preparation and be a little more expensive up-front, but in the long run, they’re the real deal, and have a lower “health tax” to pay later in life.

4. Focus on whole foods.

Whole foods will make it easier to regulate food intake and will also improve nutrition.

We can almost feel “high” when we eat processed foods. Whole foods, on the other hand, are more subtle in flavor and require a bit more effort to chew and digest. Instead of feeling high, whole foods just make us feel nourished and content.

Whole foods are generally more perishable than processed foods, so this will require some more planning and preparation. So schedule some extra time in the kitchen — even ten minutes a day counts!

In ten minutes, you can cut up some veggies, boil some eggs, cook some oatmeal, or marinate some chicken breasts to make the following day go smoother.

While this might sound like more work, it’s rewarding. A closer relationship with food often means more respect and care for it too.

5. Find feel-good habits that support your goals.

Make a list of activities that you feel good doing. You might find that you like certain activities better than others depending on your feelings, the time of day, or your environment.

When you feel triggered to eat when you’re not physically hungry, choose an activity from your list.

This could be some gentle physical activity, fresh air, social interaction, playing a game, or a self-care ritual like painting your nails or getting a scalp massage.

The point is simply to disrupt the cycle of trigger > eat > reward, and replace eating with an activity that supports your goals.

6. Slow down.

If nothing else works, and the idea of taking away treat foods totally freaks you out, just do this:

Slow down.

Allow yourself to eat whatever you want, just eat slowly and mindfully.

Slowing down allows us to savor our food, making us satisfied with less. It also lets physical sensations of fullness to catch up, so we know when we’ve had enough.

Bingeing can feel stressful and out of control — by slowing down, we help ourselves calm down and take back some of the control.

7. If you feel like you’re in over your head, ask for help.

Sometimes we need support.

If overeating is especially frequent or extreme, or if you have health problems related to overeating that you don’t know how to manage, seek the help of a coach, nutritionist, dietician, or counselor who specializes in disordered eating behaviors.

There’s no shame in receiving support. The best coaches and practitioners often have their own support team too.

Want help becoming the healthiest, fittest, strongest version of you?

Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.

That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health… no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.

It’s also why we work with health, fitness and wellness professionals (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.

Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Wednesday, July 18th, 2018.

If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.

You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.

You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.

If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.

[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].

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References

Click here to view the information sources referenced in this article.

Avena, N.M, Gold, M.S. (2011). Variety and hyperpalatability: are they promoting addictive overeating? The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 94(2), 367-368. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.020164.

Drewnowski, A., Shrager, E., Lipsky, C., Stellar, E., Greenwood, M.R. (1989). Sugar and fat: Sensory and hedonic evaluation of liquid and solid foods. Physiology & Behavior, 45 (1), 177-183. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(89)90182-0.

Kessler, David A. Your food is fooling you: How your brain is hijacked by sugar, fat, and salt. Roaring Book Press, 2012.

Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (2006). Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035.

Provencher, V., Polivy, J., Herman, C.P. (2009). Perceived healthiness of food. If it’s healthy, you can eat more! Appetite, 52(2), 340-344. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2008.11.005.

Rolls, B.J., Drewnowski, A., Ledikwe, J.H. (2005). Changing the energy density of the diet as a strategy for weight management. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 105(5S), 98-103. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.033.

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Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control). published first on

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Manufactured deliciousness: Why you can’t stop overeating (plus 3 strategies to get control).

You know the feeling: One salty crunch turns into 100, and suddenly you’re licking the cheese dust and wondering: What’s wrong with me? 

Actually, it’s normal to feel like you can’t stop overeating certain things. Today’s hyperpalatable food is creating a modern-day food crisis — one that’s leaving us feeling sick, out of control, and constantly craving more.

Here’s how it works, plus 3 ways to overcome it.

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It’s happened to us all.

After a frenzy of lustful grabbing and furious crunching, we find ourselves at the bottom of a jumbo bag of chips.

“How did that happen?” we ask fuzzily.

“What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I stop?”

But, before going into full-fledged self-loathing mode, consider this.

Processed foods are scientifically engineered to be irresistible and easy to gobble up in large quantities. If you can’t stop, the chips are doing their job.

(In fact, someone at Frito-Lay probably got a promotion for that recipe.)

That’s why, in this article, we’ll explain exactly how junk food is designed to make us respond with compulsive, manic, gotta-have-more snack sessions.

Even better, we’ll arm you with three useful strategies for examining your relationship with processed food and taking control of overeating.

Because, if you feel out of control around certain foods, you’re not crazy.

Even healthy eaters feel out of control around food sometimes. Even if we value nutrition and want to take care of ourselves, some foods can make us feel… kinda possessed.

Know what I mean?

You show up to a potluck with quinoa salad goals and find yourself inhaling a plate of chips, cookies, and some chocolate-peanut-butter-marshmallow thing that some devil, um friend, made.

You reach into the freezer to have one spoonful of ice cream and suddenly you’re mining the caramel swirl, then the nut clusters, then the brownie chunks, and then… your spoon scrapes the bottom.

You just want a bite of your friend’s french fry, but you find yourself elbowing her out of the way so you can steal all the fries, plus the burger too.

Even with the best intentions, the pull of certain foods is so strong that it can leave us feeling powerless.

If you’ve felt this, you’re not alone (and you’re not broken).

Certain foods are actually designed to make us overeat.

If you’re overeating, it’s not because there’s something wrong with you or your willpower.

Here’s the truth: There’s a whole industry dedicated to creating food that’s hyperpalatable — food that’s so tasty it’s nearly irresistible.

Your body and brain are responding exactly as they’re supposed to. It’s supposed to feel almost unnatural to stop eating these foods!

But we’re not talking about food like celery sticks, whole brown rice, or baked salmon filets.

(How often do you hear yourself say, “I ate sooo much steamed asparagus! I just couldn’t stop myself!” That’s right. You’ve never heard yourself say that.)

We’re talking about processed foods.

Processed foods are foods that have been modified from their original, whole-food form in order to change their flavor, texture, or shelf-life. Often, they’re altered so that they hit as many pleasure centers as possible — from our brains to our mouths to our bellies.

Processed foods are highly cravable, immediately gratifying, fun to eat, and easy to over-consume quickly (and often cheaply).

Processed foods will also look and feel different from their whole food counterparts, depending on the degree that they’re processed.

Let’s take corn as an example.

Boiled and eaten off the cob it’s pale yellow, kinda fibrous, but chewy and delicious.

Corn that’s a bit processed — ground into a meal and shaped into a flat disk — turns into a soft corn tortilla. A tortilla has a nice corny flavor and a soft, pliable texture that makes it easy to eat and digest.

But what if you ultra-process that corn? You remove all the fiber, isolate the starch, and then use that starch to make little ring-shaped chips, which are fried and dusted with sweet and salty barbecue powder. They’re freaking delicious.

That corn on the cob is yummy. But those corn-derived ring chips? They’re… well they’re gone because someone ate them all.

Let’s take an even deeper look

The food industry has a variety of processing methods and ingredient additives they use to make food extra tasty and easy to consume…. and over-consume.

Here are a few examples:

Extrusion

Grains are processed into a slurry and pass through a machine called an extruder. With the help of high heat and pressure, whole, raw grains get transformed into airy, crispy, easy-to-digest shapes like cereals, crackers, and other crunchy foods with uniform shapes.

In addition to changing texture and digestibility, the extrusion process also destroys certain nutrients and enzymes, denatures proteins, and changes the starch composition of a grain. This lowers the nutrition and increases the glycemic index of the product.

Emulsifiers

Used to improve the “mouth feel” of a product, emulsifiers smooth out and thicken texture, creating a rich, luxurious feel. Although there are natural emulsifiers, like egg yolk, the food industry often uses chemical emulsifiers like Polysorbate-80, sodium phosphate, and carboxymethylcellulose.

Emulsifiers are often found in creamy treats like ice cream products and processed dairy foods like flavored yogurts or neon orange cheese spreads.

Flavor enhancers

Flavor additives like artificial flavoring agents or monosodium glutamate (MSG) allow food manufacturers to amplify taste without adding whole-food ingredients like fruits, vegetables, or spices. This is useful because artificial flavoring agents are cheap and won’t change a product’s texture.

Coloring agents

Color strongly affects how appealing we perceive a food to be. No one wants to eat gray crackers; add a toasty golden hue and suddenly that cracker is a lot more appealing. Coloring agents, like Yellow #5 (tartrazine) and Red #40 (allura red),  are added purely for the look of food — they don’t add nutrition.

Recently, many large food corporations have been switching to natural foods dyes, like beet powder or turmeric, to color their food products after some correlations emerged linking artificial coloring agents to behavioral problems in children.

Oil hydrogenation

Natural fats eventually go rancid, changing their flavor and texture. In order to render fats more stable, hydrogen atoms are added to fats (usually vegetable oils) so they are less vulnerable to oxidation.

Food manufacturers use hydrogenated oils because it means their products can stay on the shelves for longer without changing flavor or texture. However, the consumption of hydrogenated fats, or trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How processed foods trick us into eating more than we meant to.

There are four sneaky ways processed food can make you overeat. Often, we’re not even aware of how much these factors affect us.

That’s why, awareness = power.

1. Marketing convinces us that processed foods are “healthy”.

Processed foods come in packages with bright colors, cartoon characters, celebrity endorsements, and powerful words that triggers all kinds of positive associations.

Take, for example, “health halo” foods.

“Health halo” foods are processed foods that contain health buzzwords like organic, vegan, and gluten-free on their label to create an illusion, or halo, of health around them.

Companies come out with organic versions of their boxed macaroni and cheese, gluten-free versions of their glazed pastries, and vegan versions of their icing-filled cookies.

You’ll see chips “prepared with avocado oil,” sugary cereal “made with flaxseeds,” or creamy chip dip with “real spinach.”

The nutrient content of those foods isn’t particularly impressive, but the addition of nutrition buzzwords and trendy ingredients make us perceive them as healthier.

Marketers also choose words that relate more broadly to self-care.

Ever notice how many processed food slogans sound like this?

“Have a break.”

“Take some time for yourself.”

“You deserve it.”

Words like “break” and “deserve” distract us from our physical sensations and tap into our feelings — a place where we just want to be understood, supported, soothed, and perhaps just escape for a moment.

Health buzzwords and emotional appeals can make us perceive a food as “good for me”; it seems like a wise and caring choice to put them in our shopping carts, then in our mouths.

And if a food is “healthy” or “we deserve it,” we don’t feel so bad eating as much as we want.

2. Big portions make us think we’re getting a “good deal”.

People get mixed up about food and value.

We’re taught to save money and not waste food.

We’re taught to buy more for less.

Given the choice between a small juice for two dollars, and a pop with endless refills for the same price, the pop seems like better value.

What we don’t calculate into this equation is something I like to call the “health tax.”

The “health tax” is the toll you pay for eating low-nutrient, highly processed foods. If you eat them consistently over time, eventually you’ll pay the price with your health.

When companies use cheap, poor quality ingredients, they can sell bigger quantities without raising the price.

But what’s the deal?

Sure, you’ll save a buck in the short term, but you’ll pay the health tax — through poor health — in the long term.

3. Variety makes us hungrier.

Choice excites us.

Think of a self-serve frozen yogurt topping bar:

“Ooh! Sprinkles! And beer nuts! Oh, and they have those mini peanut butter cups! And granola clusters! Wait, are those crushed cookies?? And cheesecake chunks??! YES! Now on to the drizzles…”

Before you know it, there‘s a leaning tower of frozen dessert in front of you.

Or think of those “party mixes” — pretzels and corn chips and cheesy puffs and barbeque rings — all in one bag! The fun never ends because there’s a variety of flavors and textures to amuse you forever!

When we have lots of variety, we have lots of appetite.

It’s hard to overeat tons of one thing, with one flavor, like apples.

How many apples can you eat before, frankly, you get bored?

Reduce the variety and you also reduce distraction from your body’s built-in self-regulating signals. When we’re not so giddy with choice and stimuli, we’re more likely to slow down, eat mindfully, and eat less.

4. Multiple flavors at once are irresistible.

If there’s a party in your mouth, you can guarantee that at least two out of three of the following guests will be there:

Sugar

Fat

Salt

These three flavors — the sweetness of sugar, the luxurious mouthfeel of fat, and the sharp savory of salt — are favorites among those of us with mouths.

I never hear my clients say that they love eating spoonfuls of sugar or salt, or that they want to chug a bottle of oil.

However, when you combine these flavors, they become ultra delicious and hard-to-resist. This is called stimuli stacking — combining two or more flavors to create a hyperpalatable food.

For example:

The satisfying combination of fat and salt, found in chips, fries, nachos, cheesy things, etc.

The comforting combination of fat and sugar, found in baked goods, fudge, ice cream, cookies, chocolate, etc.

The irresistible combination of all three — heaven forbid you stumble on a combo of fat, salt, and sugar — a salted chocolate brownie, or caramel corn with candied nuts, or fries with ketchup!

Food manufacturers know: When it comes to encouraging people to overeat, two flavors are better than one.

In fact, when I spoke to an industry insider, a food scientist at a prominent processed food manufacturer, she revealed the specific “stimuli stacking” formula that the food industry uses to create hyperpalatable food.

They call it “The Big 5.”

Foods that fulfill “The Big 5” are:

Calorie dense, usually high in sugar and/or fat.

Intensely flavored — the food must deliver strong flavor hits.

Immediately delicious, with a love-at-first taste experience.

Easy to eat — no effortful chewing needed!

“Melted” down easily — the food almost dissolves in your mouth, thus easy to eat quickly and overconsume.

When these five factors exist in one food, you get a product that’s practically irresistible.

In fact, foods developed by this company have to hit the big 5, or they’re not allowed to go to market.

When processed food manufacturers evaluate a prospective food product, the “irresistibility” (the extent to which a person can’t stop eating a food) is more important even than taste!

Just think about the ease of eating whole foods versus processed foods:

Whole foods require about 25 chews per mouthful, which means that you have to slow down. When you slow down, your satiety signals keep pace with your eating and have a chance to tell you when you’ve had enough. Which is probably why you’ve never overeaten Brussel sprouts (also because, farting).

Processed food manufacturers, on the other hand, aim for food products to be broken down in 10 chews or less per mouthful. That means the intense, flavorful, crazy-delicious experience is over quickly, and you’re left wanting more — ASAP.

Restaurants use these “ease of eating” tactics, too.

A major national chain uses this sci-fi-esque trick:

To make their signature chicken dish, each chicken breast is injected with a highly flavored sauce through hundreds of tiny needles. This results in a jacked-up chicken breast with intense flavor hits, but also tenderizes the chicken so it requires less chewing.

In other words, there’s a reason that restaurant chicken often goes down easier and just tastes better than the simple grilled chicken breast you make in your kitchen. Unless you have hundreds of tiny sauce-needles (weird), that chicken is hard to recreate at home.

This is why I rarely talk about willpower when my clients come to me struggling with overeating. If you’re relying on willpower to resist these foods, you’re fighting an uphill battle.

The solution isn’t more willpower. The solution is educating yourself about these foods, examining your own relationship with food, and employing strategies that put you in control.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Our love of certain flavors has very primitive roots.

So does our desire to load up on calories.

Once upon a time, food was not so abundant. Not only was food challenging to obtain — through effortful scavenging and hunting — but it was also not reliably safe.

That leaf over there? Yeah, that could be poison.

Those berries? They might give you the runs or make your throat close up.

Therefore, our ancient ancestors evolved some survival instincts along the way.

For example, sweet foods tend not to be poisonous. Therefore, we stored a preference for sweet, starchy foods in our brains to keep us safe.

Babies and children are particularly attracted to sweet foods, probably because their immature immune systems are less likely to recover from eating a poisonous plant, and their immature brains can’t tell the difference between dangerous bitter green (like hemlock) and safe bitter green (like kale).

Therefore, kids’ attraction to sweet (read: safe) foods is a built-in mechanism to prevent death by poisoning.

Fat is also a preferred nutrient, as it’s high-calorie and would be a jackpot for our often-threatened-by-starvation ancestors.

While most foods our ancestors ate would have been fibrous and low-calorie (roots, greens, lean meats), fat would have been a highly prized treat.

Imagine, as a primitive hunter-gatherer, stumbling on a macadamia nut tree. The yield from that tree might provide enough calories to feed your tribe for days!

As a result, we stored another preference in our brains: fatty, calorie-dense foods = yum / stock up!

Today, of course, we don’t have to run and dig and hike for nine hours to get our food. Instead, we can just roll up to the drive-thru window and order a combination of flavors we’re primed to love — maybe in the form of a milkshake and a cheeseburger — and enjoy it while sitting in our car.

Evolution’s gifts now work against us.

So, now you see why processed foods are so hard to control yourself around.

But what can actually you do about it?

Up next, some practical strategies to put you (or your clients) in the driver’s seat.

3 strategies to find your way back to a peaceful relationship with food.

It’s one thing to know in theory why certain foods are so easy to over-consume, but it’s even more valuable to discover for yourself how food processing, certain ingredient combinations, marketing, and even easy accessibility affect you and your food choices.

So, it’s time to get a little nerdy, try some experiments, and learn some strategies that will help you improve your relationship with food, get healthier, and just feel more sane.

1. Get curious about the foods you eat.

We’ve established that processed foods are designed to be easy to eat.

For a food to be “easy to eat”, it has to be:

broken down easily (less chewing), and

low volume (doesn’t take up much physical space).

So:

Less chewing + Low volume = More eating

Chewing takes time. The more we have to chew something, the longer it takes us to eat, giving our fullness signals a chance to catch up.

That feeling of “fullness” matters a lot too.

When you eat, your stomach expands. It’s partly through that sensation of pressure that your body knows you’ve had enough. Processed foods deliver a lot of calories without taking up much space, meaning you can eat a lot before you realize you’ve overdone it.

Experiment #1: Observe as you chew.

Yup, that’s right. I want you to count your chews.

Note: Don’t do this forever. I’m not trying to turn you into the weirdo who no one wants to sit next to at the lunch table.  Just try it as an experiment to get some data about how you eat different foods.

First, eat a whole food — a vegetable, fruit, whole grain, lean protein, whatever — and count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat an entire portion of that food? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Then, next time you eat something processed, count how many chews you take per mouthful. How long does it take to eat that serving of pasta, chips, or cookies? How satiated do you feel afterward? Do you want to eat more?

Make some comparisons and notice the differences. Contrast how long eating each of these foods takes you, how satiated you feel after eating each of them, and how much you want to keep eating.

How will you use that information to make food choices moving forward?

2. Notice the messages you’re getting about food.

Food manufacturers use creative marketing strategies to imply processed foods are healthy. And even if you know they’re not, they have other ways of getting you to buy them.

Here’s an example:

Ever notice that the produce section is the first area you pass through in grocery stores?

Grocery stores have found that if they put the produce section first, you’re more likely to purchase processed foods. This is probably because if you’ve already got your cart loaded with spinach, broccoli, and apples, perhaps you’ll feel better about picking up some ice cream, cookies, and crackers, before heading to the checkout line.

Let that sink in: The supermarkets we all shop in several times a month are designed to make you feel better about buying foods that could negatively impact your health goals.

The good news? Simply being aware of this trick can help you bypass it.

Experiment #2: Evaluate your pantry.

In this experiment, you’ll examine the foods you have in your home and the messages you’ve been given about them.

Note: Keep in mind that this is a mindful awareness activity. You’re not doing this to judge yourself or feel shame about the food choices you’ve made.

Look at your pantry with curious (and more informed) eyes.

Step 1: Look for “health halo” foods. Do you have any? If so, why did you choose them? Was it the language used to describe it? Was it the packaging? A trendy “superfood” ingredient? Is it organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, Paleo, or something else?

Step 2: Read the nutritional information. Once you’ve identified the “health halo” foods, take a closer look. Is your “healthy” organic dark chocolate peanut butter cup all that nutritionally different from that mass-market peanut butter cup? Chances are, it’s just different packaging.

Step 3: Count how many varieties of junk foods you have. If you love ice cream — how many flavors do you have? If you peek into your cupboards, are there cookies, popcorn, candy, or chips? Without judgment, count the total junk food variety currently in your home. Generally, the more options you have, the easier it is to overeat.

The takeaway?

You’ll be more aware of the particular types of marketing you’re susceptible to, which you can use to make more informed food choices.

You’ll also have a better idea of which treat foods you prefer, and by reducing the variety of them in your home, you’ll cut down on opportunities to overeat.

3. Look for patterns.

We often use food for reasons other than physical nourishment.

For example, if we feel sad, we might reach for a cookie to comfort ourselves. Temporarily, we feel better.

The next time we feel sad, we remember the temporary relief that cookie brought us. So we repeat the ritual. If we continue to repeat this cycle, we may find our arm reaching for the cookie jar every time we feel blue. We’re not even thinking about it at this point; it’s just habit.

Habits are powerful, for better or for worse. They can work for us or against us.

Luckily, we have control over this.

All it takes is a little time and an understanding of how habits get formed.

All animals learn habits in the following way:

This leads us to our next experiment…

Experiment #3: Put the science of habits to work.

If you want to break the habit of overeating, you can use this trigger, behavior, and reward loop to your advantage. Here’s how.

Step 1: identify your triggers.

A trigger can be a:

Feeling. We might eat more when we’re stressed, lonely, or bored. Food fills the void.

Time of day. We always have a cookie at 11am, or a soda at 3pm. It’s just part of our routine.

Social setting. Hey, everyone else is having beer and chicken wings, so might as well join the happy hour!

Place. For some reason, a dark movie theater or our parents’ kitchen might make us want to munch.

Thought pattern. Thinking “I deserve this” or “Life is too hard to chew kale” might steer us toward the drive-thru window.

When you find yourself eating when you’re not physically hungry, increase your awareness of your triggers by asking yourself:

What am I feeling?

What time is it?

Who am I with?

Where am I?

What thoughts am I having?

Keep a journal and look for patterns.

And remember: Overeating is generally problematic when it’s chronic — those pants are feeling pretty tight after most meals — or when episodes of overeating are particularly intense, like during a binge. So don’t get too worried with isolated episodes of overeating. To differentiate overeating from binge eating, keep in mind that binge eating feels disassociated, out of control, hard to stop, and usually comes with feelings of shame and guilt.

If, in observing your eating patterns, you discover that you may be dealing with compulsive bingeing behavior, then recruiting a doctor, therapist, or other qualified practitioner to help you navigate your feelings around food is likely the best course of action.

Step 2: Find a new behavior in response to your trigger(s).

Once you’ve identified your triggers, try associating new behaviors with them. These should support your health goals and feel good. If the new behaviors aren’t rewarding, they won’t be repeated, so they won’t be learned as habits.

In order to find the “right” new behavior, it’s helpful to know that when we eat, we’re trying to meet a “need.”

So when you brainstorm new behaviors, find something that meets that need — be it time in nature, some human connection, a physical release, or just a break from your thoughts.

For example, I had a client whose trigger was talking to her ex-husband. She felt angry when she interacted with him, and some furious crunching on chips temporarily made her feel better.

She eventually replaced the crunching with a punching bag session or by stomping up and down the stairs. Both activities were effective at relieving tension, but unlike the chips, they supported her goals.

Step 3: Practice.

Every time a trigger pops up that compels you to eat, replace eating with a healthy feel-good behavior.

Repeat this loop until the new behavior becomes a habit that’s just as automatic as reaching for the jar of peanut butter used to be.

Let’s take an even deeper look

Not all “feel-good” habits are created equal, in terms of their physiological effect on the stress response.

According to the American Psychological Association, the most effective stress relievers are:

exercising / playing sports,

reading,

listening to music,

praying / attending a religious service,

spending time with friends / family,

getting a massage,

walking outside,

meditation,

yoga, and

engaging in a creative hobby.

The least effective stress relievers are: gambling, shopping, smoking, eating, drinking, playing video games, surfing the internet, and watching TV / movies for more than two hours.

Although we may use the second list as “stress-relievers” — because they feel so good in the short term — they don’t actually reduce stress effectively.

This is because these habits rely on dopamine to give us a “hit” of pleasure. Dopamine feels rewarding immediately, but because it’s an excitatory neurotransmitter, it actually stimulates adrenaline and initiates the stress response.

In contrast, the first list of habits boost neurotransmitters like serotonin, GABA, and oxytocin, which calm down the stress response and induce a feeling of wellbeing.

Although these activities aren’t initially as “exciting” as the second list, they’re ultimately more rewarding and more effective at relieving stress long-term.

It’s not just about the food

As a dietician, I know how important nutrition is. So it might surprise you to hear me say the following:

It’s not all about the food.

Structure your diet around colorful, nutrient-dense whole foods, but also remember that a healthy life is not about calorie math or obsessing over everything you put in your mouth.

A healthy life is about giving time and attention to our whole selves.

Eating happens in context.

Pay attention to your mindset, your relationships, your work, and your environment.

When we’re well-nourished in other areas of our life, we’re less likely to use food as a cure-all when we struggle.

So if there’s one more piece of nutrition advice I have, it’s this:

Be good to yourself.

Not just at the table, but in all areas of life.

What to do next

1. Be kind, curious, and honest.

When we fall short of our ideals, we think that beating ourselves up is the fastest way to improvement. But it’s not.

Criticism and crash dieting may work in the short term, but can damage our mental and physical health in the long term.

Because overeating is already a painful experience, as you consider how these behaviors show up in your life and how you might address them, please be:

Kind: Be friendly and self-compassionate; work with yourself instead of against yourself.

Curious: Explore your habits with openness and interest. Be like a scientist looking at data rather than a criminal investigator looking to blame and punish.

Honest: Look at your reality. How are you behaving day-to-day around food? The more accurate you are at perceiving yourself, the better you can support yourself to change.

With this attitude of support and non-judgment, you’re more likely to move forward.

2. Use the “traffic light” system.

Precision Nutrition has a great tool for creating awareness around food that I use all the time with my clients. It’s called the “traffic light” system.

You see, we all have red light foods, yellow light foods, and green light foods.

Red means stop.

Red foods are a “no-go.” Either because they don’t help you achieve your goals, you have trouble eating them in reasonable amounts, or they plain old make you feel gross.

Often, red light foods are processed foods like chips, candy, ice cream, and pastries. Red foods can also be foods that you’re allergic / intolerant to.

Yellow means proceed with caution.

Yellow light foods are sometimes OK, sometimes not. Maybe you can eat a little bit without feeling ill, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others but not at home alone, or you can have them as an occasional treat.

Yellow light foods might include things like bread, crackers, pasta, flavored yogurt, granola bars, or seasoned nuts. They’re not the worst choices, but they’re not the most nutritious either.

Green means go.

Green foods are a “go.” You like eating them because they’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts.

Green foods are usually whole foods like fruits and vegetables, lean animal proteins, beans and legumes, raw nuts and seeds, and whole grains.

Create your own red, yellow, and green light food lists.

Everyone’s list will be different! You might leave ice cream in the freezer untouched for months, whereas another person might need a restraining order from that rocky road caramel swirl.

Once you have your list, stock your kitchen with as many green light foods as possible. Choose the yellow foods you allow in your house wisely. And red foods are to be limited or eliminated entirely.

At the very least, consider reducing the variety of red light or treat foods.

Take some pressure off your willpower and surround yourself with foods that support your goals.

3. Put quality above quantity.

It’s tempting to buy that jumbo bag of chips because it’s such a good deal.

But remember: Real value isn’t about price or quantity so much as it is about quality.

Quality foods are nutrient-dense and minimally-processed. They are foods that you like, and make sense for your schedule and budget.  

Quality foods may take a little more preparation and be a little more expensive up-front, but in the long run, they’re the real deal, and have a lower “health tax” to pay later in life.

4. Focus on whole foods.

Whole foods will make it easier to regulate food intake and will also improve nutrition.

We can almost feel “high” when we eat processed foods. Whole foods, on the other hand, are more subtle in flavor and require a bit more effort to chew and digest. Instead of feeling high, whole foods just make us feel nourished and content.

Whole foods are generally more perishable than processed foods, so this will require some more planning and preparation. So schedule some extra time in the kitchen — even ten minutes a day counts!

In ten minutes, you can cut up some veggies, boil some eggs, cook some oatmeal, or marinate some chicken breasts to make the following day go smoother.

While this might sound like more work, it’s rewarding. A closer relationship with food often means more respect and care for it too.

5. Find feel-good habits that support your goals.

Make a list of activities that you feel good doing. You might find that you like certain activities better than others depending on your feelings, the time of day, or your environment.

When you feel triggered to eat when you’re not physically hungry, choose an activity from your list.

This could be some gentle physical activity, fresh air, social interaction, playing a game, or a self-care ritual like painting your nails or getting a scalp massage.

The point is simply to disrupt the cycle of trigger > eat > reward, and replace eating with an activity that supports your goals.

6. Slow down.

If nothing else works, and the idea of taking away treat foods totally freaks you out, just do this:

Slow down.

Allow yourself to eat whatever you want, just eat slowly and mindfully.

Slowing down allows us to savor our food, making us satisfied with less. It also lets physical sensations of fullness to catch up, so we know when we’ve had enough.

Bingeing can feel stressful and out of control — by slowing down, we help ourselves calm down and take back some of the control.

7. If you feel like you’re in over your head, ask for help.

Sometimes we need support.

If overeating is especially frequent or extreme, or if you have health problems related to overeating that you don’t know how to manage, seek the help of a coach, nutritionist, dietician, or counselor who specializes in disordered eating behaviors.

There’s no shame in receiving support. The best coaches and practitioners often have their own support team too.

Want help becoming the healthiest, fittest, strongest version of you?

Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.

That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health… no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.

It’s also why we work with health, fitness and wellness professionals (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.

Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.

We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Wednesday, July 18th, 2018.

If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.

You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.

You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.

If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.

[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].

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References

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Drewnowski, A., Shrager, E., Lipsky, C., Stellar, E., Greenwood, M.R. (1989). Sugar and fat: Sensory and hedonic evaluation of liquid and solid foods. Physiology & Behavior, 45 (1), 177-183. doi: 10.1016/0031-9384(89)90182-0

Kessler, David A. Your food is fooling you: How your brain is hijacked by sugar, fat, and salt. Roaring Book Press, 2012.

Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (2006). Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035.

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Rolls, B.J., Drewnowski, A., Ledikwe, J.H. (2005). Changing the energy density of the diet as a strategy for weight management. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 105(5S), 98-103. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2005.02.033

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