Overcome a Chocolate Addiction

Are you a chocoholic? Everyone likes a sweet treat once in a while. But if you can't get through the day without a chocolate fix, it's possible that you have a problem. Even someone with the sweetest tooth can overcome it. This article will help you to identify if you have a chocolate addiction and help you to do something about it.

Steps

1. Identify the symptoms. Not all researchers in the field of psychology perceive chocolate addiction as a "true addiction",. However, some researchers believe that the release of endorphins brought about by consuming chocolate creates a physical dependency to obtain that mood high again and again, thereby suggesting it is possible to be addicted to chocolate. Any way you look at it, your addiction to chocolate is definitely real and very hard to resist if you have become accustomed to consuming it. If you have uncontrollable cravings for chocolate, these may be some of the signs:
   • You feel "conditioned" to need it at certain times of the day (the post-lunch afternoon dip being one good example).
   • You salivate more in the presence of chocolate, or at the thought of it.
   • You Cope With Self Negativity or anxious without it, and feel better for having it.
2. Identify why it is a problem in your life. If you think chocolate might be a problem, it is important to understand what challenges your chocolate addiction might be bringing into your life:
   • It has become a source of too many nutritionally-empty calories in your diet, adding to weight woes and reducing your nutritional intake. (While chocolate has some benefits, the fat and sugar content do not).
   • Neediness - you are not happy until you have consumed chocolate during the day. You will even go out of your way to purchase and stock up on chocolate, feeling panic if you don't have it in a "stash".
   • You're getting headaches, even severe ones, after consuming chocolate but you still eat it anyway.
   • Feeling under par, lacking in energy half an hour or so after eating chocolate (the sugar crash). To counteract this, you're eating even more chocolate.
   • Binge-eating, defensiveness or lying about eating chocolate if other people near to you disapprove, or if you're trying to cover it up out of shame.
   • Sub-optimal skin or complexion (likely in combination with a generally unhealthy diet, and chocolate's sugar and fat content is adding more nutritional strain).
   • Financial - if you've suddenly developed a penchant for imported European chocolate, or you're stocking up on lots of chocolate regularly, it can hit the wallet!
3. Identify the cause. There are a number of possibilities that might be fueling your chocolate addiction or cravings. Consider whether any of the following apply to you:
   • Emotional problems: You are feeling down, anxious, depressed, disappointed, angry about unresolved issues, etc., and chocolate has become a major source of lifting your mood.
   • Staving off hunger: You are hungry and chocolate is handy, readily available, and cheap. This can be especially tempting if there is chocolate readily available in your workplace or college. Or, perhaps you are on a diet and you feel deprived of pleasurable foods that you'd normally enjoy, so you're sneaking it without counting its calorie burden on your diet.
   • Sense memory: Perhaps the simple memory of the taste of chocolate is enough to trigger your desire for it, or seeing a photo of chocolate online, in a painting, or in a book sets you off.
   • Boredom: Chocolate fills in time and provides a pleasurable distraction while you're waiting, or while you're procrastinating over a report or essay that you aren't enjoying but have to finish.
4. Solve the root problem. Once you have identified the cause, tackle it in a healthy and self-compassionate way. Unless you're allergic to chocolate or your doctor has sworn you off it for medical reasons, you don't need to give up chocolate completely; simply minimize it. Here are some methods for solving your out-of-control chocolate cravings:
   • Make a decision to stop craving chocolate or using it as a crutch. It's important to want to make a change for the better, otherwise, you won't.
   • Find an alternative energy boosts. Eat more protein and grains for lunch to give you afternoon energy. Eat fruit and veggies for snacks, have a few nuts and seeds, try fat-free crackers, and drink more water. Eat chocolate only as an occasional treat rather than as a snack.
   • Lessen the amount of chocolate consumed every week. Get more from your food experience by treating yourself to smaller portions of better quality chocolate. Concentrate on enjoying and prolonging the experience. Try a bar of 80 percent cocoa chocolate (this will contain a lot less sugar) from a health food store, and make it last a week.
   • Stop going down the confectionery aisles in the supermarket. Usually there is nothing nutritionally healthy in this aisle anyway!
   • Use aromatherapy to give your senses a boost. Choose favorite scents, but preferably not chocolate!
   • Find something else to do. When boredom, procrastination, and frustration set in, feed your need for energy release rather than your emotions. Go for a power walk, do some stretches, wash the dishes, feed the cats, take some time away from anywhere that has chocolate.
   • Keep your chocolate supply low or non-existent. That means replacing home and work chocolate stashes with other snacks (healthy ones, like fruits, are better!). If you are not able to resist eating chocolate when it is in the house, stop buying it for stocking up. Tell friends not to give you chocolate, and ask family members to hide their stashes somewhere else!
   • Try new foods with plenty of flavors. Cook up some Cook Phad Thai food, or try African cuisine. Hopefully you'll find some new favorite foods from this.
   • See your dentist. Ask for a check-up and perhaps a whitening treatment or a polish. The check-up might reveal that chocolate hasn't been kind to your teeth, and the whitening treatment or polish might inspire you to not spoil your teeth with more sweets.
5. Know what to expect as you minimize your chocolate intake. You might experience withdrawal symptoms and you might be tempted to replace chocolate with other sweet treats such as cookies and cake. Some things that might accompany minimizing your chocolate intake include:
   • Expect the possibility of some caffeine withdrawal symptoms. This will be even more marked if you have been eating coffee chocolate products, such as chocolate coated coffee beans.
   • Expect the possibility of some Take Control over Sugar Addiction symptoms. If you do experience this, it might manifest itself in lower energy levels (initially but these will bounce back), irritability, depression, mood swings and even flu-like symptoms. See How to Stop Sweet Cravings for more advice.
   • Expect the possibility of feeling irritable, out of sorts, and reaching for the chocolate stash as a matter of habit.
6. Be careful not to substitute chocolate for something else as unhealthy. Don't listen to anyone who insists that chocolate substitutes such as carob or yogurt treats are healthy–they are not because they still have high sugar and saturated fat content. You are better off eating small amounts of top quality chocolate than resorting to such sweet alternatives.
   • Be ready for chocolate cravings by having healthy standbys readily available at all times (fruit, nuts, vegetables, dip, etc.).
7. Sort the myths from the realities when it comes to assessing the so-called health benefits of chocolate. It can be all too easy to use "health-benefits" as an excuse to keep consuming large quantities of chocolate. Chocolate is not a health food. In the right state, it has some healthy properties but only when unadulterated and in small doses:
   • Catechins: Cocoa beans contain catechins, an antioxidant that can help guard against cancer and heart disease. While dark chocolate is a good source of these catechins, only eat in moderation and only quality dark chocolate. Another method for getting the catechins without the fat and high calorie intake is to drink cocoa.
   • Cocoa butter: While pure cocoa might be a beneficial food in small amounts, most processed chocolate contains an array of ingredients including sugar, corn syrup, milk fats / dairy cream, hydrogenated oils, etc., detracting on the whole from its nutritional benefits. If you continue to consume chocolate, stick with dark chocolate only, and check that it has not been adulterated with dairy, sugar, or other products. Cocoa butter itself (rather than added fat) is considered to have no effect on cholesterol levels, so look for chocolate with only cocoa butter (not vegetable fat/oils/butter fat). Remember though that all chocolate has the potential to be fattening.

Tips

• Brush your teeth after meals to stop that craving for chocolate.
• Don't keep the chocolate in your room!
• If you are craving something sweet, buy some fruit or chew gum.
• Think of how healthy you will feel after a few weeks and that should push you forward!
• Try reducing how much chocolate you have a day so if you eat 5-10 pieces of chocolate, try reducing it to 1-2. Also drink plenty of water.
• Tell your friends that you're trying to change your eating habits, so they can support you.
• Eat everything in moderation. Even chocolate. Chocolate can be a healthy snack. It has been proven to reduce inflammation, relieve depression and improve cardiovascular health.
• The main fat in chocolate is stearic acid. It is not considered to increase cholesterol levels.

Warnings

• Be aware that a lot of the studies proving how good chocolate is for you are industry-funded. Think critically when reading such justifications and don't fall for making these your justifications too.
• If you're eating for emotional reasons, seek professional advice.
• Too much of any manufactured sweet food is unhealthy and increases your risk of dental cavities, diabetes, heart disease, etc. Ask for your doctor's advice if you don't know how to reduce your chocolate habit on your own.

Things You'll Need

• Healthy food choices, healthy snacks
• Quality, dark chocolate in moderation

Related Articles

• Stop Sweet Cravings
• Quit Caffeine
• Overcome an Addiction
• Overcome an Addiction to Fast Food
• Cultivate Compassion in Your Life
• Choose Healthy Snacks
• Find Exciting Healthy Snacks
• Reduce Food Addictions

Sources and Citations

See also

• Dunk an Oreo Cookie
• Taste Dark Chocolate
• Stop Eating Chocolate All of the Time
• Eat Chocolate Seductively
• Dip Oreos in Chocolate
• Use a Chocolate Fountain
• Eat Chocolate
• Pair Wine and Chocolate

What links here

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