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Real Life Nutrition Questions Answered
printReal Life Fitness Questions Answered
Emma Brown
Nutritionist
Janet Aylott
Nutritionist
Kelly Marshall
Fitness Consultant
Q.
How can I overcome cravings on night duty?
I crave bad food on night duty.....and working as a nurse I do quite a few! I do really well when I am not at work but find it hard to beat the cravings when I am at work. Any ideas?
A.
Our expert says...
The secret to avoiding cravings is to keep your blood sugar balanced. Too many sweet things, or even simple white carbohydrates like white bread and pasta, can cause blood sugar levels to rise too rapidly. This triggers insulin to be released by the pancreas to bring these levels down again, but too many of these foods can cause too much insulin to be produced. This can cause blood sugar to fall too low and at this point the body starts to crave carbohydrates, and sweet foods, to bring it back up again. And so the vicious circle can continue!
The secret to avoid this is to eat low glycaemic index (GI) foods, which you are probably already familiar with. This includes no-added sugar breakfast cereals (oat based cereals are best) and wholemeal bread. It's also a good idea to reduce the amount of potatoes you have and eat more wholewheat pasta and brown rice. When you do eat potatoes, make sure you cook and eat the skin, as this slows down their digestion. Fill up on lots of different vegetables and fruit too.
When you are on night duty, I suggest that you eat little and often to keep your blood sugar and energy levels up. Always try and include some protein with each meal, even snacks. For example, have half a dozen almonds or a few seeds with some fruit. This slows down digestion and absorption of the carbohydrate and any sharp increases in blood glucose.
There are a number of no-added sugar snack bars on the market now, but make sure they are sweetened with fruit juice rather than artificial sweeteners. You might find them useful to have to hand when the middle of the night munchies call! I hope this helps.
Disclaimer
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