Hunger, Part X

August 31, 2017

Craving has a bad reputation, and some of that is deserved, but when really studied, it's an important part of hunger. 

A couple of months ago I met a friend at a restaurant that serves food native to India.  We had a lovely dinner, staying for three and a half hours, eating amazing food, catching up.  For weeks after, I kept thinking about returning to the place, but it is on the other side of town from my office and just didn't work out.  Finally, two weeks ago, I was off from work, and I thought, I want to go there.  And I did.  This satisfied my craving, and while I'll go back as soon as possible, I don't think of the food almost daily now.

Craving is sometimes a message from our bodies about something it needs.  A few weeks ago, a co-worker gave me two tomatoes.  They were so sweet and delicious, and I wanted more, so I went to the Farmers' Market again after a few years of missing it because I couldn't seem to get my behind out the door on Saturday morning before starting the rest of my day.  Over this time, I've bought pounds and pounds of tomatoes.  They sometimes went into dishes I cooked, but most of them were sliced and eaten as they were (maybe a bit of sea salt).  A friend told me my body might be craving iron from them, and she may have been right.  I also think I craved the deliciousness of real tomatoes, not the tasteless things that pass for them at the grocery.  My body craved their goodness, including taste and nutrition. 

Craving is hard to ignore and best not to sometimes, at least for very long, because it can turn into a binge (and hence the bad rep).  I want to be careful and not get into the diet industry's words here, but by this I mean something out-of-control or over-the-top.  If I crave something for a few days, I'm trying now to have it within a reasonable time and quantity. 

Tomorrow, I'll write about deprivation, which can turn craving into a monster.