Tag: sugar cravings

Falling forward to stay well this winter . . .

If you are like many people, the shift in time and “falling back” with our clocks the passing of day light savings time will mean a bonus hour of sleep and a progressive shift towards shorter and darker days as the sun sets earlier each night.  It also means that you’ll likely experience changes in your mood (you may even experience the “winter blues,” otherwise known as seasonal affective disorder), experience lethargy, a loss of motivation, and increased cravings for foods (particularly sweets).

Your sleep and wake cycles are regulated by your circadian rhythm and the amount of day light you are exposed to each day.  Your circadian rhythm also affects your appetite and hunger, concentration, mood and desire for foods, particularly sweets that are rich in quickly digested carbohydrates.1,2  Your desire for these foods that leads to more insulin being produced and gaining weight is an evolutionary mechanism to gain weight and “hibernate” for the winter.

It is only because of the year round availability of these foods (e.g., tropical fruit, potatoes, rice) and the artificial changing of time (some states like Hawaii and most of Arizona and most countries in Africa and Asia do not participate in DST).   In South America most countries in the north of the continent near the equator do not observe DST, while Paraguay and southern parts of Brazil do) that you may struggle with “cravings” and judge yourself harshly instead of embracing your body, your changes in dietary cravings and feel “down.”

So rather than reaching for that extra “cup of Joe,” feeling guilty for wanting more foods that may lead to adding a few transient pounds for the winter or engaging in compensatory behaviors (e.g., over exercising and “punishing” your body or skipping meals), be gentle and kind with your body-mind and realign with the seasonal changes in day light, food and “fall forward” instead to stay well this winter.

Focus on spending as much as is feasible for you during the day outside and practice sensible sun light exposure while you avoid the unnecessary use of electronics like your smartphone, your computer or watching  T.V. after sunset as these devices emit blue spectrum light that interferes with your pineal gland’s secretion of melatonin and keep you awake at night.  Instead, spend time with your friends and family playing board games, read paper books and magazines, listen to music or develop a hobby like drawing.  In addition, make sure that you practice good sleep hygiene to help your sleep improve, reduce your cravings and make smarter choices that will satisfy your cravings for sweets while nourishing your body.  To help you, experiment with my suggestions below:

  1. The most effective and simplest strategy to improve your quality of sleep is going to bed at the same time each evening and waking up at the same time every morning.
  2. You also want to develop a night time ritual to help you transition into sleep. Try reading or meditating (e.g., Mindfulness Meditation or Loving Kindness Meditation) an hour before you go to bed.
  3. To help you sleep more easily, it is also important to avoid certain stimuli and avoid drinking or eating within 3 hours of your bed time.   Eating before you sleep can interfere with restful sleep as your body is still digesting food.
  4. As a rule of thumb, you also want to dim the lights in your room or house 2 hours before bed time to help your body produce more melatonin.
  5. Wear a sleep mask or install black out curtains in your bedroom to keep artificial lights from interfering with your sleep.
  6. If you must work and use a computer or your smartphone, use software like f.lux to reduce the interference of your computer and IPhone or EasyEyez for Android.
  7. Wear orange or red tinted sunglasses to protect you from blue spectrum lights.   I personally wear True Dark glasses that block all color spectrums (blue, purple, green) known to interfere with melatonin production.
  8. Swap out your LED light bulbs for incandescent or halogen light bulbs instead to reduce blue spectrum lights in your home at night.
  9. Set your smartphone on “airplane mode” and unplug your Wi-Fi router at home as you will not be using the internet during your sleep and the EMFs produced by your phone and Wi-Fi router may interfere with your sleep.
  10. Set the ambient temperature in your bedroom down to at least 68 degrees Fahrenheit or lower. Your core body temperature drops during sleep and setting your climate control higher can contribute to restless sleep.
  11. Choose slower digesting foods that will satisfy your “sweet tooth” that are seasonal like cranberries, kiwi fruit, figs, pomegranates, and squashes and pumpkin.

To your health and success,

Dr. Sandoval

To learn more about how working with a psychologist and holistic health coach can help you to enhance your health and well-being, call or email Dr. Sandoval to schedule a free consultation.

  1. Ilardi, S. (2010). The Depression Cure: The 6-Step Program to Beat Depression without Drugs.
  2. Wiley, TS & Formby, B. (2001). Lights Out: Sleep, Sugar, and Survival.

The information, published and/or made available through the www.drjosesandoval.com website, is not intended to replace the services of a physician, nor does it constitute a physician-patient relationship. This blog is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use the information in this post for diagnosing or treating a medical or health condition. You should consult a physician in all matters relating to your health, particularly in respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.  Any action on the reader’s part in response to the information provided in this blog is at the reader’s discretion.

diabetes, digestive disorders, metabolic syndrome, Miami holistic health coach, Miami psychologist, obesity, sugar cravings,

How to nourish your body and cut your cravings for sugar . . .

If you’re like many people this time of the year, you are anticipating the beginning of the fall and holiday season.  Whether you are a kid at heart  and look forward to celebrating Halloween or spending time with your friends and family for Thanksgiving, you can have fun, celebrate the love in your life and boost your immune system to avoid getting the flu or feeling run down by adopting simple guidelines in the foods that you choose to eat most of the time and HOW you eat.

Sugar in soda, lollipops, cakes, ice cream and other processed foods replace the calories and nutrients you could get from eating more nutrient-dense and mineral-rich real foods.   When you consume sugar, you deplete your body of essential vitamins and minerals.  As an example, your body needs 54 molecules of magnesium to be able to process every molecule of sugar you eat.  Sugar is such a problem that it is now recognized by most health experts, that sugar and not fat is the leading cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease and several digestive disorders. The sugar industry , in fact, has shifted the blame on fat for causing several health problems erroneously for decades.

Eating real, nutrient dense  foods is simple and the most effective way to nourish your body, avoid having cravings for sugar  and reverse numerous health problems like diabetes and heart disease. When investing in the foods that you prepare and eat at home most of the time (i.e., 80% of meals that you cook), strive to eat a variety of real, unprocessed, whole foods.

Real Whole Foods

  • Grass fed, pasture raised meats, poultry and wild caught seafood all are great sources of essential fatty acids and many of the minerals and fat soluble vitamins, like vitamins A, E, D and K2 that regenerate your cells, help you to build your brain,  stabilize your blood sugar levels and support your immune system.
  • Organic dark, green leafy vegetables, nuts, seeds and berries like kale, bok choy, mustard greens, collard greens, Brazil nuts,  pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, as well as tubers like potatoes and sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkin,  strawberries, raspberries and blue berries provide many nutrients like magnesium, potassium, selenium, fiber and folate that are essential for your body.
  • Cultured and fermented foods like sauerkraut, kim chi, apple cider vinegar,  miso, chutney and kefir are all great foods rich in beneficial bacteria and yeast that support and enhance your immune system, digestive health and help you to reduce your craving for sugar.

When you are invited or go out to celebrate and enjoy a holiday party, you’ll also want to use the following suggestions to help you slow down and enjoy your experience.  Before attending a celebration or going out, make sure that you are fully hydrated and fully nourished.  It’s inevitable that whether you’re attending your friend’s Halloween party or partaking in a holiday meal with family, there will be several opportunities to overindulge if you do not remember WHY you are celebrating and have not nourished your body with real, unprocessed, whole foods that provide your body with the nutrients that you need.

When you are present and enjoying the company of the people and festivities of the celebration, focus on the people who you love to spend time with, love and “make contact” with your experiences (i.e., get out of your mind so that you notice the sounds, colors, smells and tactile sensations as you greet, hug, dance and listen to music, talk to your friends and family using your 5 senses). If you choose to eat, allow yourself to relax and savor every bite that you ingest.  Notice the colors, shapes, aromas or smells of the food, notice the sounds and texture of each morsel as you chew your food mindfully.  Chew your food slowly to allow the salivary enzymes in your mouth to coat the food that you are eating and embody your eating experience so that you can observe and allow your body to signal when you are satiated (i.e, you want to chew each bite of food at least 20 times to enhance your digestion and have your stomach produce sufficient stomach acid).

While your cravings for sugar may be challenging, it may simply be an indication that you are wanting a deeper connection with people or fear of being judged.  Many times your challenges around food are your body’s innate wisdom speaking to you.  Perhaps, you need to venture out, socialize more frequently  and love yourself first.  By nourishing your body with nutrient rich foods and changing HOW you eat, your craving for sugar will diminish.

To your health and success,

Dr. Sandoval

To learn more about how working with a psychologist and holistic health coach can help you to enhance your health and well-being, call or email Dr. Sandoval to schedule a free consultation.

The information, published and/or made available through the www.drjosesandoval.com website, is not intended to replace the services of a physician, nor does it constitute a physician-patient relationship. This blog is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use the information in this post for diagnosing or treating a medical or health condition. You should consult a physician in all matters relating to your health, particularly in respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.  Any action on the reader’s part in response to the information provided in this blog is at the reader’s discretion.

diabetes, heart disease, Miami holistic health coach, Miami psychologist, New Year's resolutions, obesity, sugar cravings, weight loss,

How to reset your body by eating real, whole foods . .

If you’re like many people during the holidays and starting a new year, you’ve indulged in your share of sweets and have set resolutions for 2017 that include having a healthier lifestyle.  Some of you may even be trying special diets or looking for that one “magic potion” in a bottle to help you cleanse and detox from all the sugar you ate.  While the claims from supplements may sound appealing and work short term, they do not provide you a long term solution.  In order to reset your body,  you simply have to eat real, whole foods that nourish your body’s cells.

Sugar in soda, cakes, ice cream and other processed foods replaces the calories and nutrients you could get from eating more nutrient-dense and mineral-rich real foods, such as bone broths and grass-fed liver.

When you consume sugar, you deplete your body of essential vitamins and minerals.  As an example, your body needs 54 molecules of magnesium to be able to process every molecule of sugar you eat.  Sugar is such a problem that it is now recognized by most health experts, that sugar and not fat is the leading cause of obesity, diabetes, heart disease and numerous other health problems.

While your cravings for sugar may be challenging to overcome,  eating real, nutrient dense  foods is simple and the most effective way to lose weight and reverse numerous health problems like diabetes and heart disease.  In order to help you, follow my guidelines below when buying and preparing the foods that you eat on a regular basis.

Real Whole Foods

  • Grass fed and pasture raised meats, organ meats, and wild caught sea food all are great sources of essential fatty acids and many of the minerals and fat soluble vitamins, like vitamins A, E, D and K that regenerate your cells, help you to build your brain,  stabilize your blood sugar levels and support your immune system.
  • Dark, green leafy vegetables, nuts and berries like kale, bok choy, collard greens, Brazil nuts,  strawberries, raspberries and blue berries provide many nutrients like magnesium, selenium and folate that are essential for your body.
  • Cultured and fermented foods like sauerkraut, kim chi, miso, chutney and kefir are all great foods rich in beneficial bacteria and yeast that support and enhance your immune system, digestive health and help you to reduce your craving for sugar.

To your health,

Dr. Sandoval

To learn more about how working with a psychologist and holistic health coach can help you to enhance your health and well-being, call or email Dr. Sandoval to schedule a free consultation.

The information, published and/or made available through the www.drjosesandoval.com website, is not intended to replace the services of a physician, nor does it constitute a physician-patient relationship. This blog is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should not use the information in this post for diagnosing or treating a medical or health condition. You should consult a physician in all matters relating to your health, particularly in respect to any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.  Any action on the reader’s part in response to the information provided in this blog is at the reader’s discretion.