Evening food cravings - Obesity Message Board

11-19-2003, 12:36 PM

For years I've wondered why I could control how much I ate during the day but come evening I would go nuts on carbs.

I finally figured out what's going on. It's the light!

If I make sure I get enough daylight in the late afternoon the cravings don't emerge. The bright light goes in your eyes and delays the melatonin hormone cycle which normally shuts off serotonin which triggers the carb cravings.

It's the same principle that's used by people with winter depression (and carb cravings). They sit in front of light boxes and their depression and carb cravings go away.

I've lost 15 pounds just by not eating junk in the evening.

It's like a natural phen/fen.

Has anyone heard of this ?

CeeJo · 11-19-2003, 03:07 PM

I have never heard of it, but am interested. Carbs are my downfall.

11-20-2003, 08:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CeeJo

I have never heard of it, but am interested. Carbs are my downfall.

It has to do with our "circadian rhythms" or "biological clocks" which are controlled by our pineal gland which is synchronized by the light signal coming from the retina. This is so our bodies know what time of day it is and what time of year.

This sounds wierd, but it was widely reported in the media back in 1998: Not only does the light go through your eyes but it will also go through the skin, specifically the skin behind your knees so if you don't want to go outside in the daylight you can put a fluorescent light close up behind your knees between 3-5 PM and the evening food cravings won't happen. This works really well for me except when I'm premenstrual.

I know it sounds wierd but it really works. There's a new medical science discipline called "chronobiology" that studies this sort of thing.

I think the reason so many people are overweight is because we are shut up all day in our homes, offices, schools and factories and we don't get enough daylight, so our circadian rhythms get all screwed up. Indoor light just isn't bright enough.

ZoDiaX · 11-22-2003, 09:39 PM

Heh, you nailed it right on the ***.

I didn't know that your biological clock had to do with carb cravings, but I suppose that may be correct. As far as I am/was concerned with this issue, I thought possibly your body wants to get sleep to restore and repair it's cells, but your pineal gland hasn't secreted it's melatonin yet, therefore you aren't sleepy. I guess I may have been close. Perhaps if you are sleep deprived you crave carbs at night, also?

Thanks, I think I may have learned something pretty helpful.

P.S., why does it censor the word "d ot" at the first sentence?