Craving for Cheese - Cheese Addiction

For many people in the West, cheese is a pure pleasure. Whether it's a cheese pizza or a chocolate cheesecake, cheese is a source of addiction for many. Addiction may seem like a strong word for how we crave after different foods, but some foods really do have addictive properties to them whether it is a physical or emotional addiction, cheese has it all.

So why is cheshire cheese addictive what makes it so?

In 1981, Eli Hazum eat all discovered traces of a chemical in cow's milk that was fairly similar to morphine. After putting this chemical through several tests they discovered in fact it was morphine. Morphine is an addictive opiate, so what is it doing in cow's milk?

Apparently cow's produce morphine in their bodies and they most likely do this to cause a calming effect in their young. This makes sure they continue to feed to get the nutrients they need and also makes sure they bond with their mother.

Morphine isn't the only addictive property of milk though. Milk also

contains casein which when broken down during digestion feels a whole load of opiates. Casein is also in a much higher concentration in cheese than in just milk too. So cheese is something that can be physically addictive.

So how do you stop craving for cheese?

In order to overcome cheese cravings you need to provide your body with the nutrients it needs. Eating healthy nutrient rich foods throughout the day will help diminish any cravings you have or will reduce them enough for them not to be an issue. Make sure that you start with a good breakfast. Breakfast will help prevent strong cravings later in the day. A tip to get you started in the right direction is to eat as much fruit as you desire before each meal. This will satisfy you enough not to overeat and will prevent cravings.

Reducing your dairy intake or at least cutting out cheese will help wade off cravings. Inn the long run though, it may be best to cut out cheese for the time being until you have overcome your strong cravings.

Emotional eating also needs to be considered when conquering any type of craving. Most people eat for emotional reasons and this is normal due to the society we live in (we tend to use in our society food

for celebration, grief and socializing). To discover if you are an emotional eater you can start by observing your eating throughout the day. Observe when you crave and see what triggered it. Did stress trigger it? Maybe you got bored and started craving? If you find you don't have any emotion triggers then great, eating the right foods to nourish your body will be enough. If you do, you now know what triggers your cravings and you can now begin to tackle them. Write a list of things you can do to address your feelings as opposed to eat or give in to cravings. Sometimes sitting and feeling the emotion is enough and you can allow it to pass. This is so much more beneficial to you than repressing it with food, however it can be very daunting at first and you may need to get support from others to overcome this fear. In time it does get easier to be in the present moment and feel.