Hidden Markers for Symptoms of Cravings and Stress

Sometimes, when it comes to the complexity of conditions, we think we have to look for the most complex thing to solve it and sometimes it is the easiest indicators we just didn't know where to look. 

As a nutrition specialist, I like to look to these underutilized resources, especially the ones that you have right in your hands.

I like to teach people what they can find on their labs, which they already have from their doctor that maybe didn't provide a diagnostic answer but could give valuable information from a functional level. 

Another one of these underutilized resources is your Nutrition Analysis.

We know by now how food functions the body, but we rarely pay attention to some of the markers that our daily food intake could tell us about the symptoms we have, and give us some direction on where to go from here.

I have an example of two clients today that can give us a demonstration on how I look differently at a nutrition panel. 

If we know how to analyze and look at the numbers, the information we can get is pure gold!

Let's take our male client #1.

He had a caloric intake of around 3800 calories per day and is thin as a rail, doesn’t gain weight and has cravings all day long.

Female client number two has cravings all day long as well, her caloric intake is 1400 average daily and has tried all the things for weight loss.

Two people both with cravings one with the highest caloric intake doesn't gain weight one and the one with the lowest caloric intake can't lose weight. What’s going on?

Let me show you hidden markers from this simple tool you can look at with an app you can have right at your fingertips that can make all the difference in your health journey. 

When I work with clients I use a number of analytical nutrition tools, but there is one that is a fantastic tool you can use yourself.  It’s called cronometer. 

It’s a free app you can download to your phone. 

You enter your meals from your phone during the day and go to your desktop if you want to look at the numbers in the way I’m going to describe them to you.

I will rarely tell people to pay attention to their caloric intake unless we're working on something.

I think people get very confused by this number so I’m usually pretty specific in what we’re using it for.  

At the top of the screen you'll see or list of foods that you consumed from what you entered throughout the day on your phone, and below that you'll see your caloric number.

Here's Tip #1:

People should get around 2000 calories a day. 

That's an average.

For some people, it's higher; for others, it's lower, and you really need a proper nutrition assessment to know the number that's right for you. But if we take the daily average of around 2000 calories as the recommended intake for the average person, this should mean that all of your nutrients should also be complete within this 2000 range.

So tip number one is scroll down and see if you have any nutrient markers that are not shaded green.

If they're shaded gray, there's a deficiency of intake for that particular nutrient.

If they're red, there's an excess of intake for that particular nutrient.

If you're having symptoms, nutrient deficiency or excess is highly suspect and is a first go to before needing use medications for symptoms.

This is a first step that you can take to make sure that you're getting all the right kinds of fuel into your body.

Tip #2:

If you take a look at that caloric intake we should also assume that this caloric intake would incorporate every meal of the day.

Now scroll up and look at your list of foods that you've consumed.

The number of foods you consume should be somewhat lengthy.

If you are eating nutrient dense foods, the list of foods tends to be longer.

However if you have a short list of foods, this means that you're eating very few foods throughout the day, and they will typically have a higher caloric intake.

These tend to be very nutrient deficient foods. 

So now the body is lacking in the kinds of fuel it needs for all the work it has to do.

This also can disturb circadian rhythm and  interrupt blood sugar balance because chances are you're not eating enough throughout the day or enough times throughout the day to balance blood sugar or hormones.

For example, in client number two she had a caloric intake of 1400.

However, her list of foods were about six foods on her list.

If you look at a whole day from morning to night and she only ate six things, there's no way that she had enough food intake to have good and regular meal timing.

Sure enough she experiences the symptoms we would expect: fatigue cravings hormone issues, period problems, headaches, weakness, dizziness, muscle weakness, and poor sleep. 

Client number one however, has a high caloric intake but his list of foods is quite lengthy.

Should we be concerned that he's getting a very high caloric intake?

In this person, no, it's understandable.

His waking hours are extensive.

He wakes up at three am and goes to bed about midnight so he has a greater caloric need during the day.

This number is called Total Energy Expenditure and is one we can talk about in another post. He also does not stop, shut down and rest during the day. 

Why are they having cravings?

What is happening in client #1  is he's having cravings even though he's eating so much food that is mostly nutrient dense and the reason why is because his body needs refueling.

It really needs it in the form of sleep or food but since he doesn't allow himself much rest or sleep, it's going to get it in the other way which is food, particularly cravings for sweets or sugars or carbs.

The reason for this is that those foods are fast carbs, which are quickly taken up by the brain, resulting in satisfaction.

Cravings in our female client #2 arose when we calculated her total energy needs for the day to ensure she had enough fuel. She's undertaking nutrients because she's trying to lose weight.

Recall that her list of foods was small so her nutrient density is quite deficient.

Most of her nutrient markers are in the deficient range.

In her case, her cravings are going to come from the fact that her body is asking for more of what she needs. With the fear of gaining weight, she's not answering that call.

How do you utilize this for yourself?

Look to your own caloric intake and see if it's roughly around the daily average.

Even without knowing your specifics, you can calculate it around that 2000 number.

Compare this to your list of foods you're taking in.

There should be enough foods on the list that should complete a three meal day at least.

At each meal, you’re probably eating three things per meal so there should be at least 9 to 12 food items listed. Now go down and look at your nutrition analysis and see which things are in the Gray indicating deficiency.

Tip #3

From here, the kinds of nutrients that are in the deficient ranges can help you understand how your body may be expressing in symptoms.

For example, in our male client with the 3800 caloric intake, the nutrients he's deficient in we're mostly B vitamins and minerals.

Minerals are absolutely necessary for electric and magnetic conduction, as they help in pulling nutrients through the cells membranes. 

B vitamins are essential for energy and nerve foods.

If we see deficiencies in B vitamins and minerals, typically without these, heart may feel tired and fatigued. The person may feel fatigued, the battery packs within our cells will not receive needed nourishment and fatigue will be the common result.

Usually, this person will be expressing common symptoms of adrenal fatigue or constantly feeling tired.

When I see panels like this, I know this person is probably not handling stressors as well,  feels like life is heavy and burdensome, and can't handle tiny amounts of stress.

There is a reason and purpose for every nutrient that is within the foods that we eat.

This is why it's important to not make processed or junk foods a priority as they only serve to fuel caloric need but don't provide fuel sources.

Every simple nutrient serves a purpose. It's why they all exist.

We need to get good at getting in the right kinds of fuel.

I wouldn't put diesel in my gas powered car. Also I'm not going to put 1/4 tank of gas in the car and expect to get all the way to Washington with it.

We need the right kinds of fuel.

Learning this can make drastic change for your health outcomes.

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