A Simple Guide to Eliminating Junk Cravings

Most processed foods are essentially legal drugs.

Eating them will disrupt your gut flora, leaving you craving them more and more.

In this email, I’ll give you a simple guide to eliminating these cravings for good (for you and your kids).

Food Engineering

Processed food companies spend countless hours and dollars engineering their products to get people hooked.

They fine-tune the perfect ratio of sugar, salt, and fat to make their products hyper-palatable. This triggers pleasurable responses in our brains, activating the same reward pathways as tobacco and alcohol.

Take sugar for example. Our bodies are hardwired to crave it for quick energy.

Food manufacturers take this to the extreme by using high fructose corn syrup (cheaper and sweeter than sugar) in huge amounts.

They also use additives that disrupt your normal appetite regulation cues. For example, food dyes are neurostimulative (especially for kids).

This systematic approach to food engineering makes consumers addicted to their products, bringing big food companies more profits.

Eliminate Junk Cravings for Good

When you’re hooked on junk food, your gut microbiome is disrupted.

Bad bacteria grows and tells your brain to eat more and more until you satisfy your cravings.

You should be able to rely on your body’s cravings to eat the right foods. When your gut is healthy, they will point you in the right direction. Eating unhealthy food makes you lose this ability.

So, here are four practical strategies you can use to eliminate junk food cravings.

Replacement

Replacement is easier than removal, especially for your kids. Take your guilty pleasures, and replace them with healthier options.

Making a conscious effort to cook at home will make this much easier.

• Normal chips → Chips fried in healthy fats (Masa is a good option, no affiliation)

• Candy → Grapes and berries

• Ice cream → Make your own (My Chief of Staff has a great recipe here)

• Store-bought baked goods → Bake your own treats with organic, unenriched flour (check out this simple protein brownie recipe here)

• Soda → Fresh-squeezed orange juice

Get creative and search online for recipes that satisfy what you’re looking for.

Since some of your kids’ friends likely have unhealthy snacks, give your kids extra to take to lunch and share with their friends.

Making these swaps will reduce the amount of additives you consume and your gut flora will return to normal.

Fasting

Fasting is one of the most powerful tools for starving bad bacteria in the gut. Follow the protocol I wrote about here. This is not recommended for kids.

Sleep

A lack of sleep puts stress on the body and can increase junk cravings. Make sure you and your kids get 8-9 hours per night, to give your bodies the energy they need and keep cravings low.

Mindfulness

Practice mindful eating. Express gratitude before meals and eat slowly without distractions.

By paying attention to your body’s hunger and fullness cues, you can tune into your body’s needs and avoid overeating.

I hope this guide helped. If you’re curious about specific ingredients in processed foods to avoid, I will share a list tomorrow. Be sure to keep an eye out.

See you tomorrow,

Kashif Khan

P.S. If your kids are stubborn when it comes to eating healthy, check out Defend Blend Kidz. Our kids’ nutritional needs differ from ours so I’ve designed a unique blend to cover their bases. It's packed with vitamins, minerals, and nutrients to help keep them happy and healthy, even when they don’t want to eat healthy. You can check it out here.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Information on this site is provided for informational purposes only. It is not meant to substitute for medical advice from your physician or other medical professional. You should not use the information contained herein for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication. If you have or suspect that you have a medical problem, promptly contact your regular health care provider.