{"id":8911,"date":"2014-08-04T14:53:37","date_gmt":"2014-08-04T18:53:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angelaminelli.com\/blog\/?p=8911"},"modified":"2022-08-25T22:24:25","modified_gmt":"2022-08-26T03:24:25","slug":"bread-comfort-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/angelaminelli.com\/blog\/bread-comfort-food\/","title":{"rendered":"Bread As Comfort Food"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\"Composition<\/a>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?<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tWhenever they tell me about it, it’s always said in a hushed tone with an air of guilt accompanying it.  But why?\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIf 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 <\/strong>behind emotional eating and in fact if you do feel guilty – about eating anything – you’re eating for emotional reasons, not physical.  \n<\/p>\n

\n\tLet’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. \n<\/p>\n

\n\tIt works like this:\n<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n\t\tWhen you get tense, your body assumes you’re in danger and may need pain medication.\n\t<\/li>\n
  2. \n\t\tThe brain produces excess cortisol to anesthetize the pain.\n\t<\/li>\n
  3. \n\t\tIn turn, cortisol stimulates production of another brain chemical<\/strong> called Neuropeptide Y which largely influences turning carb cravings on and off.\n\t<\/li>\n
  4. \n\t\tThe excess Neuropeptide Y triggers carb cravings.\n\t<\/li>\n
  5. \n\t\tIf 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.\n\t<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    \n\tTherefore, [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!\n<\/p>\n

    \n\tBut 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.\n<\/p>\n

    \n\tJust 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.\n<\/p>\n

    \n\tI 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.\n<\/p>\n

    \n\tHere’s a few carb craving survival tips you might find handy next time you can’t keep your hand out of the breadbox.\n<\/p>\n