# cravings = deficiency?



## ursusarctos (Dec 16, 2008)

I have always heard that craving something nutritionally empty means you need some nutrient. Like craving soil means you need minerals, craving sweets means you need protein, etc.
So what does it mean if you crave nachos?







And not corn-tortilla-and-real-cheese nachos but industrial-corn-chips-and-fluorescent-orange-cheese-dip nachos. Consistently. For months. I'm guessing it doesn't mean you're deficient in yellow food coloring







Theories?


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## Tori Gollihugh (Jun 16, 2005)

I'm sure there is something the body could actually be craving, but I've been learning about Candid recently, and it seems that the starches and sugars in those foods could be food for some overgrown bugs... like a certain strain wants them so your mind recognizes a craving. ? Just a suggestion.


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## ursusarctos (Dec 16, 2008)

Oh interesting! I never thought of that. It did occur to me that my body just might want the extra calories for some reason but I didn't make that connection. I know my mom has struggled with systemic candida so that would probably be a possibility for me too. I will look into it, thanks!
Though I'm still curious if anyone else has ideas...


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## cristeen (Jan 20, 2007)

My first thought with any food like that is fat. Chips and cheese sauce are both high in fat - one of the few nutrients they do contain.


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## azdesertrn (Apr 2, 2003)

My first guess when you crave anything salty is sea salt/minerals. For me, using real sea salt (not the white kind) or a trace mineral supplement helps curb many junk cravings.

My other guesses are fat or calcium.


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## ursusarctos (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:

My first thought with any food like that is fat. Chips and cheese sauce are both high in fat - one of the few nutrients they do contain.
Hm yes, true - packed with calories, again. Actually I eat quite a bit of fat as it is, but generally it's butter, coconut or olive oil and I avoid processed vegetable fat like that found in nachos. Is there anything nutritionally valuable about that kind of fat besides the calories? Could I be needing more fat soluble vitamins?
Or could it be some kind of allergy thing? I read somewhere that often when you have a food sensitivity you will crave exactly that thing because it prevents some sort of crash from detoxing from it or something...


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## ursusarctos (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *azdesertrn* 
My first guess when you crave anything salty is sea salt/minerals. For me, using real sea salt (not the white kind) or a trace mineral supplement helps curb many junk cravings.

My other guesses are fat or calcium.

I actually do use real sea salt, though I didn't think of the trace mineral thing... They are supposed to be majorly depleted from our soil, right?
Calcium might make sense since I don't drink milk (can't get raw) and just don't eat that much yogurt or leafy greens (I mean daily).
But fat - why would I be craving fat? And that particular kind of fat? I do crave fat in general but don't worry about eating real cheese or eggs or butter - but they don't quite hit the spot the same way as the processed vegetable fat


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## azdesertrn (Apr 2, 2003)

I think many people are deficient in trace minerals- and when we crave salt often we are actually craving the minerals that used to be found with salt. Our bodies haven't caught on to the fact that most salt is refined now.

But, if you've been using real unrefined salt to taste for awhile perhaps that's not the case for you.

Do you have other strong cravings?

And have you actually eaten the junky style nachos to see if they actually taste good?- sometimes I crave something but its more of a memory and the actual item is not as I remembered. I was recently craving Dunkin donuts so I got one- I ended up throwing it away after a few bites and the craving was gone. It was not what I remembered from childhood.


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## tanyalynn (Jun 5, 2005)

I don't know if either of these would apply to you, but when my body has been seriously depleted and stressed, I've had huge fat cravings, and my adrenals are really worn down, so I also have serious salt cravings. The adrenal - salt thing is for the sodium, strangely enough, my body's not holding onto sodium well, so I need to consume more just to have a normal functioning amount.


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## ursusarctos (Dec 16, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *azdesertrn* 
I think many people are deficient in trace minerals- and when we crave salt often we are actually craving the minerals that used to be found with salt. Our bodies haven't caught on to the fact that most salt is refined now.

But, if you've been using real unrefined salt to taste for awhile perhaps that's not the case for you.

Do you have other strong cravings?

And have you actually eaten the junky style nachos to see if they actually taste good?- sometimes I crave something but its more of a memory and the actual item is not as I remembered. I was recently craving Dunkin donuts so I got one- I ended up throwing it away after a few bites and the craving was gone. It was not what I remembered from childhood.

I have only been using unrefined salt for a couple months, maybe it hasn't had a chance to have an effect yet? Also, I get normal salt in my butter (the only unsalted available is not cultured or organic) so I haven't switched over entirely.
Mostly I crave salty, fatty and moist foods, almost never sweets. Whole milk feta cheese aged in brine is a good example - pretty much the creamiest saltiest thing around. I don't usually crave the normal fatty salty culprits like chips or fries. And in fact I only crave corn chips in combination with the cheese dip. I generally indulge my fatty salty cravings without guilt if it's real food and not some processed garbage, but this is obviously different.
And yes, I have eaten the junky nachos lately. A month or so ago I was eating them like once a week







Lately I have been restraining myself because they're just so nasty. I do know what you mean about junk food not really tasting good though - I get that with almost every junk food except nachos







I was raised mostly junk food free until I was a teenager and could acquire it myself, so this is not one of those emotionally charged childhood cravings. And actually I hated all cheese, including fake cheese, until my teens, after which I haven't been able to get enough of it.

Quote:


Originally Posted by *TanyaLopez* 
I don't know if either of these would apply to you, but when my body has been seriously depleted and stressed, I've had huge fat cravings, and my adrenals are really worn down, so I also have serious salt cravings. The adrenal - salt thing is for the sodium, strangely enough, my body's not holding onto sodium well, so I need to consume more just to have a normal functioning amount.

That is very interesting. I recently started taking a multivitamin (including some minerals) and have felt much better. Though when I don't take it for a few days I start to feel crappy again. Which would indicate some kind of deficiency, right? Or my body not building up stores of some vitamin/mineral? Absorption problems? Also, a morning coffee seems to do wonders for me - perhaps due to my adrenals being run down? Blah, I suppose the coffee isn't helping in that case.


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## Learning_Mum (Jan 5, 2007)

I would say carbs or MSG (I don't know what the ones you eat contain, but they sound like they're highly likely to have MSG!)

I just started taking Chromium because I have wicked sugar cravings. It helps your body process carbs and sugar. Helps with cravings. Might help?


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