I know one of the biggest comfort foods for women is bread, and before I went gluten free, it was for me too.  I hear it all the time from clients, but is it really so bad?

Whenever they tell me about it, it’s always said in a hushed tone with an air of guilt accompanying it.  But why?

If you’ve ever read the book French Women Don’t Get Fat (highly recommended), you’ll never feel guilty about your bread obsession ever again.  Why should you feel guilty about what you eat anyways?  Guilt is a strong driver behind emotional eating and in fact if you do feel guilty – about eating anything – you’re eating for emotional reasons, not physical.  

Let’s break down bread, or really carb, cravings.  Many of the people I work with experience high levels of stress, which is no coincidence.  The brain-produced hormone that anesthetizes pain, cortisol, explains the tension/stress/carb link. 

It works like this:

1. When you get tense, your body assumes you’re in danger and may need pain medication.
2. The brain produces excess cortisol to anesthetize the pain.
3. In turn, cortisol stimulates production of another brain chemical called Neuropeptide Y which largely influences turning carb cravings on and off.
4. The excess Neuropeptide Y triggers carb cravings.
5. If you eat in response to your cravings, you’re more apt to gain weight.  Neuropeptide Y and cortisol, still believing your body may be in danger, order it to hang on to any excess body fat.

Therefore, [bctt tweet=”stress and tension not only create constant crab cravings, they make it difficult to lose fat”] too, which is why I always tell clients not to do exercise they don’t love doing because otherwise, it creates more stress!

But then there’s the emotional aspect.  The smell of freshly baked bread reminds us of being in mom’s kitchen when we’re kids, where she’s taking loving care of us and all our needs, tucking us in, reading us bedtime stories, and we momentarily return to our childhood years where there’s less responsibility and things are much simpler.

Just the smell of bread can fill us with the giddiness of a schoolyard!  In fact, a survey of 1,000 people concluded that the smell of baked goods was the scent that most reminded them of childhood.

I mean let’s face it.  When life gets brutal and uncaring, who doesn’t want their mommy?  Bread cravings, particularly for squishy breads, indicate your body’s need for more tender loving care.  Your peace of mind is rocked, you feel misunderstood and unloved, and turn to food for comfort.

Here’s a few carb craving survival tips you might find handy next time you can’t keep your hand out of the breadbox.

• Eat smaller carb snacks like rice cakes throughout the day which may help lessen your appetite for high-fat carbs at dinnertime.
• Exercise, but only do exercise you love.  One reason you crave carbs is due to low levels of serotonin.  Many studies show even one session of exercise increases serotonin levels in the brain and the effects can last throughout the day!
• Vitamin B-6 supplements will keep your serotonin levels high enough to combat carb cravings.  Try 100mg of B-6/day.
• Take any steps necessary to de-stress your life!  Maybe quitting your job and moving to a tropical island isn’t in the cards right now, but there are things you can do on a smaller scale to help yourself out, like learning to say no more often, or setting aside 15 minutes of free time every day to focus only on yourself.  Ask yourself what one step you can take right now that will afford you some form of stress relief, and do it!
• Seek out nonfood forms of comfort.  Pet your cat, read a book, go for a walk.  Any number of things can take your focus off of food, and put it onto what you’re really craving.

A great affirmation you can try to get started would be “I release my tension into the universe.”  It might sound too simple, but simple is what you’re after anyways right?  Once you get why you crave, it's easier to deal with your emotions, because it just all makes sense.  Work with the facts and you'll make grave headway in dealing with emotional eating issues, as well as stubborn weight too.

Don’t forget to comment on the blog so we can interact in person!  And, while you're here, get my free eCourse on how to stop emotional eating just by clicking the big orange button below:

Love,

Angela

Angela Minelli is an author, speaker and founder of Angela Minelli International, a heart-based global business serving purpose-driven everyday women and entrepreneurs whose self-image and weight issues are inhibiting their confidence and blocking them from pursuing their life’s passion. 

Angela's joy is in taking a stand for women who are living less than ideal lives, stopped by fear and doubt, which prevents them from stepping into their innate power and delivering their God-given genius to the world. Her coaching programs and products are designed for women with busy lifestyles yet allow for powerful transformation to take place within a small segment of time.  

As a natural health practitioner and digestive health specialist, Angela specializes in helping people overcome weight and energy issues through holistic, non-invasive protocols that address the root cause of their conditions, including adrenal fatigue, candida, thyroid disorders, and more.  

Explore the ideals that are the cornerstone of her work at angelaminelli.com.