Food cravings and personality? You gotta be kidding!

*Speechless!*

There are times when you wake up in the middle of the night and you have a STRONG craving for something salty and savoury or something sweet. Cravings does not necessarily happen that time every month. Ahem. Why is it when something unexplained happen to the body always get associated with monthly period?

Anyway, cravings can happen anytime. Have you heard that what food you crave is associated with your personality, psychological and physiological state you are in? Alan R. Hirsch, M.D., head of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago and the author of "What Flavor Is Your Personality?" studied the food choices and cravings of almost 20,000 people for the last 25 years and reported consistent generalizations of what our cravings say about our personalities.



When you crave salty food 

Body: you may have a calcium, potassium, calcium, or iron deficiency. 

Those who are stressed, angry, and anxious often crave salty food. It is a sign of adrenal weakness. Your adrenals manage your stress response. Often salty snacks are also crunchy - the crunch gives your jaw a physical outlet for stress (people usually hold anger in by clenching their jaw).

Personality: You go with the flow. Hirsch's research describes salt lovers as having an "external locus of control," meaning they believe that outside forces, not their own actions, determine their fate.

When you crave chocolate

Body:  It's basically an antidepressant in dessert form that your body instinctively seeks out when your happy chemicals (Serotonin) are low and you need a quick lift.

Personality: That depends on what type of chocolate you long for:

(1) Dark chocolate: You're the life of the party, a social butterfly, and right in the mix of the team project at work.

(2) Milk chocolate: You're the quiet, introspective type. Your idea of a perfect afternoon is a solo run or one-on-one time with a good book.

When you crave something spicy

Body: If you're having trouble cooling down, your body may crave a fiery taste to make you perspire.  Some research also suggests that people become addicted to the rush of spicy food — the spiked blood pressure, accelerated heart rate, and rapid breathing (Tammy Lakatos Shames, R.D.) 

Personality: You love order, dislike wasting time, and sweat the details.

When you crave sweets

Body: This is a lot like a chocolate craving — you're looking to boost your mood or you're just low on energy. The body absorbs refined sugars of the candy variety faster than any other type of food, giving you immediate fuel.

Personality: Sugarholics tend to walk toward the wild side, Hirsch says. He describes them as hedonistic, with few regrets. They also like to stand out and feel special.

When you crave something salty and sweet

Body: Your body needs glucose and sodium to function properly, so when the cells get sluggish (and you get tired), you reach for the chocolate-covered pretzels or french fries dip in ice cream to get them revving, Hirsch says.

Personality: You're a loner, but a whiz, too. You tend to be creative but private, to the point that they appear standoffish.

I always always always crave for something salty and savoury...like french fries, or boiled egg with soy sauce and sometimes green apple with some salt. Maybe i'm stressed, angry and anxious, subconsciously? 

Source: www.msnbc.msn.com, www.fitsugar.com